My passion is back

Rating: 9/10 (10 July 2005)

Episodes III restored my passion for this series.
Like many others, the original trilogy was a watershed moment of my youth; all I can remember of a trip to Martha's Vineyard at age four was begging my parents to take me to see Star Wars again. I was excited when Episode I came out, becoming one of many to make attending the midnight premiere a priority. After seeing it a few more times, I finally realized that I was trying to convince myself that it was good. It wasn't. Ditto Attack of the Clones. When I found myself standing in line for tickets on the morning of the premiere of Episode III, I also found myself asking, "What the hell am I doing here?" The answer is simple: falling in love with Star Wars all over again. The first 20 minutes of this movie are on a par with any twenty minutes in the entire saga, with a space battle that makes the Pelennor Fields in Return of the King look like a back-alley brawl. The action sequences and lightsaber battles are second, visually, to nothing I have ever seen. While the dialogue (though much improved) was still clunky in spots, the actors have adapted to delivering it more believably. The story was fantastic. Lucas has done a great job of bringing the saga back to where it began...and has done an even better job of bringing back the fire within me as a fan.
One final note: Lucas also sent copies of Episode III to every major military base in Iraq, free of charge. This was not a PR move; I heard it from my brother-in-law, who is home on leave.