Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
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In Theaters : 19 May, 2005 |
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Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith Customer Reviews
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It Is What It Is - Better Than Episodes 1 & 2, But Not Even Close To The Originals
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This movie is basically George Lucas doing what George Lucas does best--doing whatever he wants to do and not caring about the end result (critics and fans). He has the money, the company, and the power to do so--it is his creation after all. This doesn't make it a bad movie or good movie. A critic (whether professional or amatuer) has to look at this kind of movie differently as it really can't be held to typical movie standards--it is a Lucas movie. Let me delve into my review.
Plot - B
The plot for Episode III is actually rather good and much darker than any other Star Wars movie (except, perhaps, the severing of Luke's hand in Empire or the death of Darth Vader in Return). The political intrigue that Lucas tried to weave into Episode I, and more so in Episode II, is even more present in this one. (Note: Watch the deleted scenes for more political backstory, and frankly these scenes should have been included--not deleted.)
The movie begins with an epic space battle over Coruscant, and finds our heroes Anakin and Obi-Wan fighting side by side as they battle General Grievous' forces as well as the Trade Federation forces. There are some moments of awe with the special effects and the John Williams' music (slight nods to the original trilogy pop up everywhere in this movie). The battle in space becomes a man-to-droid battle inside Grievous' ship. Nothing out of the ordinary and some moments that make you go "wait a minute". For example, at one point, Grievous, breaks the cockpit glass and is sucked out into space. This leaves Anakin and Obi-Wan struggling to hold on and not be sucked out as well. The only problem is, how can they breath with no oxygen in space and why doesn't their tissue explode from the pressure? Maybe Jedi are that invulnerable, but I doubt it. The plot shifts quickly to separate Anakin and Obi-Wan (as this is probably done to put distance between them and initiate the "fall" of Anakin). Lucas, unsuccessfully, attempts to introduce more "love scenes" between Padme and Anakin and fails miserably every time. There just is no chemistry between them (character-wise or actor-wise).
There is basically two stories running at the same time. You have Obi-Wan and the jedi hunting down Grievous and you have Anakin being lured further away from the light by Chancellor Palpatine.
The side story is the "hidden" marriage between Anakin and Padme, the acknowledgment that she is pregnant, and the continuous nightmares Anakin has concerning Padme's death.
The actual reasoning behind Anakin's fall (to gain enough Dark Side power to prevent Padme's death)and the manner in which it is carried out, is not believable at all (perhaps this is due to abysmal acting).
The movie continues with ultimate betrayal and annihilation of the jedi. There are moments that make you go wow and send shivers up your spine--but just not enough to make this movie anything more than average.
The ultimate battle between Anakin (Vader) and Obi-Wan is the most climatic (as it should be) and very sad. There is no winner in this fight as we all know. There is a very touching moment at the end between the two and that one moment made this feel like it was as good as the originals--but then you have to look at the whole of the movie--and it just never measures up. As Anakin (Vader) and Obi-Wan fight, Lucas creatively has the Yoda/Darth Sidious fight occuring simultaneously. This fight is shorter but nonetheless spectacular.
The "birth" of Vader is remarkable and the "scream" everyone jokes about and makes fun of, is actually very moving as it shows there is still (even at this time) good in him and that he was ultimately betrayed by Darth Sidious. (Note: For the life of me, the movie is not convincing enough for me to believe that after learning of Padme's death, that Vader would stay with the "Emperor", and start a life consumed with evil and determination to take over planets and rule the galaxy. The way the movie appears, it would seem Vader would want to kill the Emperor and realize the bad judgment he made when he thought he was saving Padme. Power and greed corrupt though--so maybe that is it.)
The end of the movie is perfect and ties in with Episode IV beautifully.
Acting - F
The acting is terrible. The lines are spoken very woodenly by the actors and at times when they are meant to be serious, they sound almost comical. This is especially true with the Padme and Anakin scenes. (The balcony scene is perhaps the worst example of acting in all of the Star Wars movies.) It is pretty bad when a CGI character (Yoda) is a more believable actor than a real human. But like most, I didn't go to see the movie for it's acting.
Music/Soundtrack - A
Some chide the movie for lack of original music and for relying too much on themes from the original movies and the other prequel movies. To me, this movie had at least one outstanding original piece of music that was playing during Anakin(Vader) and Obi-Wan's fight. It was perfect! The other music was good (Grievous' theme) and the inclusion of so much original trilogy music, really made the connection to Episode IV more meaningful.
Cinematography - B
Is there such a thing anymore with CGI sets and characters? I guess so. It was stereotypical Star Wars which is not a bad thing. The space battles were fast and furious, making one dizzy at times. The interior scenes looked sharp. CGI is never going to look 100% real, so some scenes suffer. For the most, it is a beautiful movie to watch--so many different locales (like in Empire). Mustafar was perhaps the most interesting. A planet full or lava--can't beat that!
DVD - A
Picture quality is superb, as is the sound. The extras are great with behind-the-scenes footage and commentary. The deleted scenes are actually interesting this time (compared with Episode I and II). There are at least 2-3 scenes in here that I am scratching my head as to why they were deleted. The Yoda scene should have been included--it was a no brainer!
Overall - B
In sum, best of the Prequel Trilogy and maybe the 4th best Star Wars film. Definately worthy of purchasing for the Star Wars fan--maybe a rental for others. |
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Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith dvd movie.