You Can't Fault ROTS For Continuity Issues (Personal Review)

Rating: 8/10 (1 June 2005)

Allow me to preface this comment with a general opinion of the film--great. Not perfect, but great.
The opening scene combines visuals, with sound, with music to create a breathtaking display. Wow. One of the densest sequences ever, if not the.
The plotting overall is tight, given the limitations imposed by the original trilogy (in the end, it's still Lucas' fault, obviously). I won't excuse him or belabor the obvious.
Many complained about Anakin and Obi-Wan going through the routine of killing droids in the beginning, that it was gratuitous. To the contrary, the opening sequence is very important. It serves to highlight their increased skills individually AND to show their ability to work together. Their (mis)adventure through Grievous' ship shows the viewer that they have both come a long way in their relationship, totally trusting one another. They have a deep bond built upon mutual respect of the other's talents. This, in turn, makes their confrontation in the end all the more tragic.
Of course, there are problems with the film that are not excusable. With Grievous, I fear Lucas has created another throw-away character, who is utterly undeveloped. As with Darth Maul, there was potential. The same can be said for Dooku.
But the plot is excellent with regard to Anakin's turn to the dark side. There are layers upon layers of psychology at play there. And I would point out that Lucas needed Anakin to be somewhat sympathetic. Otherwise his return to the good side in ROTJ is inexplicable and contrived.
Many fault the film for the continuity errors between PT and OT. I say that you CANNOT fault ROTS for these problems. These were put into place when Lucas wrote the OT. Fortunately, there was a limit to his "editing" the OT in the Special Editions, so he did not go back and delete certain scenes which are now problematic. It is apparent that, while he may have had a general idea about the backstory when he created the OT, he most certainly did not have these stories fleshed out to the degree which is, in hindsight, required. There are many continuity errors, and I will not list them, because they have been discussed on these boards ad nauseam. I will just say that some have been resolved, others have been questionably resolved, and others are just irreconcilable.
My only point is that, when considering ROTS, one should not fault it for continuity errors between the trilogies. These problems stem from Lucas' initial work with the series.
The acting, oh the acting, was much better. As well as the dialogue. I thought McGregor was fantastic and owned the role. Indeed, we see his character come to life and progress into the Obi-Wan we knew and loved. Picture him aboard Padme's ship, near the end, waiting to confront Anakin. The poise, the intelligence, the mastery of his emotions (we know that he was very conflicted about facing Anakin)--he had transformed into Alec Guinness. Only after his task is complete does he allow his emotions to get the better of him. And by then, they are totally appropriate.
Wait, did I forget to mention that this movie was incredibly moving? Certainly was. We now understand Anakin's motivations/illusions. We now understand how and why the Jedi Order was almost wiped out.
And the imagery and symbolism used was extremely clever. Mustafar is Hell, and it is there that Anakin fully becomes Vader, where he is at home. He has made his deal with the devil. Juxtapose that with the fight in the Senate Chamber between Yoda and Palpatine. Palpatine literally and figuratively controls and is destroying the Senate. It was no small coincidence that Lucas had him Force=controlling and launching Senate pods at Yoda, destroying the room where democracy used to reside.
I gave it a 10. I wish the ratings would allow me to give it a 9.5, because I don't think it's as good as A New Hope or The Empire Strikes Back (which I think both deserve a 10). But then again, it's a totally different movie. Lucas wanted to give us three-dimensional characters in Anakin and Obi-Wan, and he has definitely succeeded.
I can't wait to see it again. And I can't wait for Christmas when, supposedly, it will be available on DVD. I hope it breaks every conceivable box office record.
Addendum--It deeply saddens me that this has fallen out of the Top 250 on IMDb. I'm not familiar with how the voting on IMDb works, so I won't start saying dumb things like "somebody rigged it," or all the idiots who voted 1 brought it down, because I'm sure their votes were probably not counted. But this film is one of the better entries of the best fantasy series ever created. It's certainly better than ROTJ, which has secured its place in the Top 250. Oh well.