ROTS makes the Kessel run in less then 12 parsecs

Rating: 9/10 (20 May 2005)

As someone who never had the privilege of seeing the originals when they were in the theater, I belonged to a generation that picked up on the Star Wars craze later in life. I grew up watching Episodes 4, 5 and 6 and eagerly awaited the release of 1, 2 and 3 to finish the story. I am by no means a Star Wars fanatic but I do enjoy the movies a great deal. I was one of the very few that deeply enjoyed episodes 1 and 2 except for the rather amateur performance of Hayden Christensen in Episode 2. Now, to the movie. The energy in the theater was absolutely hair raising as we anxiously awaited the signature Star Wars theme. As the blue colored text faded back into space informing us of the story we were about to be told from "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...", anticipation in the theater reached it's absolute plateau when "STAR WARS" screamed to to life in front of us and the signature music sounded to loud cheers and hoots and screams. After the intro story had rolled telling us of what we were in for, I found myself absolutely riveted. The movie explodes in the early going in a fury of action and one-liners. This worried me because early explosions of action are usually indicative of a movie that is going to run out of gas and quick. Fortunately, the action never subsides and is complimented by strong performances by all actors and actresses, including the young Hayden who to this point had not impressed me with his acting ability. He had shown signs of promise but only signs. I enjoy his on screen time but it is far too obvious that he is still in the early stages of his acting potential. Natalie Portman is stunning as Padmei Omidala, furthering my belief that she has a great future in Hollywood. Once again, the theater erupted into hoots and cheers at the sight of a mad green midget with a light saber leaping everywhere (yes, Yoda). Ian McDermaid (sp?) shines as the sinister and scheming Emperor-to-be, presenting a truly terrifying performance. Ewan McGregor scores huge as Obi Wan, truly complimenting the role once played by Sir Alec Guiness (sp?). All in all, no disappointments are in this movie, except for one sighting of Jar Jar which was completely uncalled for in my opinion, it starts strong, stays strong and mixes the magic of ILM into a perfect conclusion of the prequel. Cudos to everyone in this film and to Lucas for giving us a great ending to this story.