still feels like "diet" Star Wars... not quite the real thing

Rating: 6/10 (2 August 2014)

I can only conclude that "Revenge of the Sith" has such a high score because it's not a complete pile of steaming turd like "Attack of the Clones" or an utter disappointment like "the Phantom Menace". If this was anything but episode three, it would be a terrific sci-fi action film but there is too much baggage attached to make it rise to the level of the original films.
The main problem? George Lucas. His writing is pure garbage and his direction in anything but the action scenes is just as bad. It's a real shame because he'd be an awesome 2nd unit director as he really understands how to frame, follow and pace action but he cannot, I REPEAT, can NOT direct scenes with drama or dialog.
Second: Hayden Christiansen is back as Anakin Skywalker and is utterly unconvincing playing the Jedi-turned-Sith. Every time you see him on screen you want to punch him in the face for being such a bitch.
Third: frogger Yoda. It was a terrible idea in episode II and it's just as bad here. It's like GL has totally forgotten who Yoda is and what he stands for.
However, for all it's bad, this film has a quite a bit of good. The opening space battle is perhaps the greatest ever put to film and the action scenes throughout the movie are really well conceived and shot. The film also looks excellent but the over-reliance on CGI makes many of the ground battles look like a video game, especially when compared to LOTR.
Overall, this is easily the high point for the prequels. Unfortunately, that's not saying an awful lot.