By George, He's Done It!

Rating: 10/10 (23 May 2005)

I am unabashedly a Star Wars fan; have been since 1977 when I first saw it as an awe struck 8 year old, right up to now. I have enjoyed all the films greatly, particularly the original trilogy. The prequels, however, have for me always lacked the magic that those first three great films held for me. Well, I'm hear to tell you that THE MAGIC IS BACK! I had high hopes for this movie going into it, but I expected that it would probably only be a little better than Attack of the Clones. Boy, was I wrong. It FAR exceeded my expectations. Lucas has created a fun, exciting, visually beautiful, sometimes frightening, often moving film that does not disappoint. Sure, there are a few lines of dialog here and there that are pretty hokey (listen to Anakin and Padme speaking sweet nothing to each other) and maybe a scene or two that might have done well with a rewrite, but they're not enough to detract the experience of what is an incredible science-fantasy epic. Lucas proves that he is the master of visual storytelling, more so than in any of his other Star Wars films. Ewan McGregor has channeled Alec Guiness and has come full circle to become Obi-Wan Kenobi. He IS this character now, and you see that on screen by how comfortable he looks in the role. And it's a good thing, because we see as much of him as we do Anakin here, and the audience has to be convinced that he and the man we see 20 years after the end of Episode III are indeed one in the same. The other great performance is by the great Ian McDiarmid as Palpatine (the Emperor). He is wonderfully devious and now ranks up there with the greatest of villains, Darth Vader himself. I cannot express enough just how grand this film is. The opening sequence is one that will be remembered long after you have left the theater. The transformation of Anakin to Lord Darth Vader is done so well that even though we already know what Anakin's fate is, by the time we get to the point where he makes that final fatal choice I found myself desperately wanting him to make the right choice, to stay on the light side of the force. That's how well Lucas has painted this picture. We are immersed in this world and the stakes feel so high. Revenge of the Sith is a not-to-be-missed film, on par with The Empire Stikes Back, which I have always considered to be the best of the series. Now it has excellent company. That it wraps up this Star Wars saga is very befitting. I applaud you, George! This is truly your masterpiece.