Kiddie movie with decent SFX

Rating: 1/10 (9 August 2002)

The problem with this movie is the script. It just never rises above the level of a Flash Gordon episode. The camera work is pedestrian. The pacing is glacial except for the last ten minutes and the back and forth storytelling (a problem in all the Star Wars movies, but especially those directed by Mr. Lucas) never lets any momentum build. Like "Phantom Menace" and espcially "Attack of the Clones", Lucas just doesn't know how to write a "scene". What we get is like a quilt of little bits that are cobbled together. Each with basically the same pace. The saving grace of "Star Wars" is some of the acting. Alec Guinness really brightens up the screen whenever he's on. And Peter Cushing brings some genuine class and star quality. I saw this movie again recently and I was stunned by what a big bore it is. I can't imagine how anyone over the age of 20 could be thrilled by it.