OK - lets get this straight from the start - I was 7 when I saw the first Star Wars film and consequently have the characters ingrained into my subconscious in the way that biblical characters were ingrained into the subconscious of generations past. I can recite most of the dialogue from the first 3 movies by heart and still have pangs of regret for the boxes of Star Wars figures I gave to a friends little brother in a moment of madness when I was a teenager. The feeling of watching that film for the first time has left a huge psychological, spiritual even, impact on me, as it has done with many of my generation. With that out of the way, I think I can begin to review the latest in George Lucas's series of films.
There is a pattern embedding in the sets of films he releases I feel. Phantom Menace, I felt, was akin to Star wars itself in terms of plot structure. Young innocent becomes embroiled with mysterious warriors/magicians and goes on to rescue a princess. George had taken this plot from Hidden Fortress by Akira Kirosawa and probably felt, quite rightly, that it was an idea worth repeating. Both films moved at a fast pace, introduced many characters and ended on a positive note.
Like Empire Strikes back, however, Attack of The Clones ends on a darker note, but more of that later. Another similarity between the plots of the 2 films is the characters beginning as a group and then splitting off into 2 sub groups, allowing for the action to flick between them. The character then reunite for the ending of the film, culminating in a spectacular fight.
Lucas has retained his penchant for old style optical wipes between scenes, rather than the usual cut or cross fade. This harks back to the old Saturday morning series such as Flash Gordon that he apes.
The film is quite self referential, containing characters from all the other films. Aunt Beru and Uncle Owen, Lukes murdered relatives from the first film are shown, in the original set of the home on Tatooine, Bobba Fett is introduced as a small child. Here, one of the themes of the film emerges. His father, Jango Fett - another bounty hunter, is killed, leaving him orphaned. Anakin Skywalker - Darth Vader to be, also sees his mother die - leaving him orphaned to - both characters being forced through these events down a path to evil - Anakin through his rage - directed at the Tuscan Raiders who kidnapped and killed her. Lucas is possibly pointing towards the idea that family equals stability equals goodness. Many characters are brought in for cameos, such as the slave trader who lost Anakin to the hero's in the last film. The only way he could become more of a stereotype of a Jew would be if he suddenly bust into a rendition of Fagin's "Got to pick a pocket or two"! There are many glimpses of characters and equipment or vehicals from the other films to excite anally retentive fans.
The film also contains references to the vast marketing industry behind the series. In one scene, we see the video game of the pod racing from the last film in the background. One scene where Anakin and Princess Amidala are trapped in a droid factory is clearly destined to be made into a video game - just you wait, This cynical exploitation of the films merchandising power does grate a little, but then I'm sure the game LucasArts release will be a great one!
There are several in-jokes, such as the line "I have a bad feeling about this" which keeps appearing in the films, and Obi-Wan telling Anakin that "You'll be the death of me" - predicting his fatal lightsabre fight with Darth Vader in the first film.
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The special effects are, as you would expect, awesome, showing off all the new tricks in film SFX that have emerged in the last few decades. Lucas has always led in this field, and still does.
This is the fastest moving film of the five so far, never giving up the pace for more than a couple of minutes, the chase of the assassin Zam Wessel at the start of the film setting the standards - it's like BladeRunner on speed crossed with a Bond Film, Zam being killed just before revealing the identity of her employer.
The Jedi are given their highest priority yet, giving us more insight into their role. Obi-Wan is presented as a bit of a detective, sent on missions to investigate events in the galaxy. Ewan McGregor shows what a good actor he is, aping Alec Guiness but claiming the role as his own.
Mace Windu - Samuel L Jacksons Jedi warrior, with his (self requested purple lightsabre) kicks ass, but nowhere near as much as Yoda. He is a revelation. By the time we see him in the second film he is old and past his best but in this we see a spectacular lightsabre fight between him and Christopher Lee (always an amazing bad guy). Lets just say it has to be seen to be believed!
Jarjar Binks is given a much lower profile in this film, due to poor response from audiences in the last film, and thank goodness. He was an example of one of Lucas's flaws as a film maker. He has a tendency to include characters for their cuteness factor (see Ewoks for further evidence of this) Dialogue is his other weakness, but this seems to have been dealt with in this film. "You can write this shit but you sure as hell can't say it George!" as Harrison Ford in supposed to have said! This film is all the stronger for having less light moments, although those that are are very good such as C3PO's various misfortunes involving him losing his head and gaining a battle droids head. The darkness of the film gives it a sense of gravity, leading, as we all know, to Anakin's downfall in the next installment. This is dealt with well, with his increasing impatience at his training, and the burst of fury at the death of him mother. His turmoil at the death of his mother and his involvement with the Emperor to be can be seen to be taking their toll, making him arrogant and prone to outbursts of temper. Yoda can see what is happening, feeling his pain but is powerless to stop it.
The acting in the film matches the special effects, each character being better fleshed out than in the last one, allowing for them to develop.
This is a superb film on all counts, taking you into it's world for it's duration and barely letting go at the end. It is a return to form after the less than brilliant last installment and leaves us breathless for the next one! Get out and see it!
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