By By Michael Gleason
Well, George Lucas has finally gotten it right, and it only took him three tries. After the widely-criticized Phantom Menace (which unleashed the cinematic abomination known as Jar-Jar Binks) and much maligned Attack Of The Clones (which unleashed the cinematic abomination known as Hayden Christensen’s acting), Lucas has released a movie that delivers on the promise that the prequel trilogy once held: the story of how Darth Vader came to be. Revenge Of The Sith is a cinematic success, combining excellent visuals with a compelling story.
To be sure, though, not all is right here. Those who remember Attack Of The Clones’ chief problem (the love scenes) will find hints of it in this film. The movie still stops dead whenever Natalie Portman (playing Senator Amidala) and Hayden Christensen (playing Anakin Skywalker) are onscreen together; they stumble on dialogue no human would ever, ever say. Their love story strains the suspension of disbelief of fans who are willing to believe that everyone in space speaks English, and that traveling through the galaxy takes a few hours, tops. Thankfully, these moments are much fewer than those of its predecessor.
The main thrust of this movie is Skywalker’s turn to the dark side, and this is actually done well. Chancellor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid) expertly plays on Skywalker’s fears, turning what was once a relatively good Jedi into a lord of darkness. Christensen does an adequate job portraying a young man wracked with fear, open to taking the road of the dark side to “protect” those he loves. Ewan McGregor successfully channels Alec Guiness as Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin’s friend and mentor, and shows wonderfully the sorrow that Kenobi feels when his apprentice turns away from him. Indeed, McGregor was the sole bright spot of the previous movies and he continues his string of good performances here. Natalie Portman is largely absent, but is annoying in her (limited) screen time. One is forced to ask, though: why was she so bad in this trilogy, when she is generally accorded to be an actress of superb talent?
The action sequences are brilliant, much more tightly directed and exciting than the efforts of the previous two films. Battles actually feel like they have some weight, and do not just seem like fake, computer-generated effects. Lightsaber battles are much more real this time around, and actually carry consequence now. There is a real moment of emotional connection to the characters on the screen, a change welcome in this series of movies. The flaws of the first two movies have largely been eradicated, and for this Lucas deserves praise.
The film is scored expertly by John Williams, who, while not delivering any tunes quite as memorable as the Star Wars Theme, does an excellent job of tying the music to the action on the screen. He also superbly adds in musical tributes to the first film trilogy, helping to set the stage for the next film (the first original film). The musical touches are well done, and are perfectly timed.
In short, this movie is quite enjoyable, and is a fitting way to end Star Wars’ tenure on the big screen. We finally have a complete work to look at and evaluate. For the moment, though, we are done with adventures taking place “A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away.” Revenge Of The Sith ends the series on a high note.
Final Grade: B+