Not bad...once we actually got to the movie

Rating: 6/10 (30 May 2005)

I have no idea what Lucas was thinking about when he wrote this bloated mess. It seems so simple; everyone wants to see how Anakin becomes Darth Vader. So why are we watching 2 hours of Obi-Wan or Yoda chasing people around the galaxy with the requisite 15 minute long light saber battle? No one cares about any of that...just get to what the movie is actually about for God's sake.
Once they get to that storyline in Act 3, the movie becomes interesting. While the acting by certain cast members is rather stiff (which I blame partially on the digital sets; it's hard to interact with a green screen for a whole movie), Ewan McGregor gets better as the movie goes on. The screen writing, direction, and editing also get much tighter in the 3rd act. In short, Act 3 shows what kind of movie could have been made if Lucas wasn't so focused on CGI battles designed more to sell toys than to advance the plot. The Empire Strikes Back remains the best in the series mostly because it was about advancing a story rather than Lucas' bank account.