Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
This film was one I enjoyed in the cinema and still think is un-ironically quite good, but I will attempt to justify these feelings rather than simply fan-boying.
The themes in this film are fascinating to me. The fall of the Republic and the Jedi had been set up in Episode I, and we all knew it had to happen given the nature of these films as Prequels. We learn that Chancellor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid), having been voted emergency powers at the end of Episode II is more or less running the "Republic" as an autocrat at this point. The parallels between Palpatine and Caesar are clear and interesting, an ambitious, charming man who slowly seizes control, using war, temporary position, and terror as a means to do it. The collapse seems avoidable at so many points, despite we as the audience knowing what's going to happen, which reflects good storytelling. Not only this but it has some clear commentary on US politics from the early 2000's including the Iraq War and the War on Terror. Whatever the film's flaws, it has a worthy message both as a 'Still-Relevant' social commentary, and as a way of making ancient history engaging. It was, admittedly, a bit underdeveloped, and there are some interesting deleted scenes that expand on these themes that I feel shouldn't have been cut, but I can't help applauding the effort. Episode III, and the Prequels as a whole, were incredibly counter-cultural. The flaws of Democracy and its relationship with Tyranny, straight out of classical philosophy, are not often explored in film, certainly not in major, big-budget Sci-Fi films like Star Wars.
As for the film as a whole, it certainly has its flaws. Bad dialogue returns like a bad case of mould on a bathroom ceiling, which can ruin the tension of many important moments, especially the infamous "No" from the newly suited and booted Darth Vader. Many memes have been created that expose these corny lines, mostly from Anakin (Hayden Christensen), Padme (Natalie Portman), and Palpatine. These definitely detract from the film as a whole, iconic though they remain. Aside from this we have some woefully under-developed villains. Based purely on the films, Count Dooku and General Greivous get hardly any screen time and little to no backstory. To be fair to the film, these "characters" are there mostly as powerful forces for our protagonists to overcome, and didn't need to be terribly complex, but Dooku in particular had such potential as a great villain (being a fallen Jedi and Qui-Gon's former master) if he'd been fleshed out that I do think this is a problem.
Palpatine, Anakin, and Obi-Wan (Ewan McGregor) are the only ones who seem to make meaningful choices and receive development in this film. Palpatine is running the show as he has been all along, that's interesting and Ian McDiarmid has such fun with the role that it's very hard not to enjoy his character. Anakin gets constant and much needed development. We see him at the start of the film as more mature than in Episode II, risking his own safety to help those around him. The Anakin we see here is more believably the "good friend" that Alec Guiness mentioned in Episode IV back in 1977. We see his conflict throughout the film as well. We understand his frustration with Jedi, and see why he might be drawn to Palpatine. Some of the changes are a bit sudden in their delivery (10 minute gap between "It's not the Jedi Way!" and Killing Kids), but we see and understand why Anakin becomes Darth Vader. He was afraid to lose his Wife, and that attachment caused him to forsake everything else he cared about, and ultimately it destroyed him. Obi-Wan is also a character in this film. He finishes his arc started in Episode II by finally giving Anakin the recognition, praise, and love he had always wanted from him. Obi-Wan becomes the wise mentor and father figure that he wasn't in either of the other prequels. This development adds to the tragedy of Anakin's fall. The supporting cast are a bit lack-lustre in this one, Samuel L Jackson in particular struggles to make his lines work, but I feel this is mostly a problem with George Lucas's script and direction.
So what else? I liked the things that everyone else liked. The opening sequence in space is darn cool, as is the "Tragedy of Darth Plagueis" scene with Palaptine and Anakin. The closing scenes setting up episode IV are beautifully shot and scored and are just pure Star Wars magic. The action throughout is done well and is interesting to watch, even if the sabre duel between Anakin and Obi-Wan drags on a bit too long for my taste. As for what I didn't like, I think it'll be relatively uncontroversial. The clunky dialogue, the "She's Lost the Will To Live" moment with Padme and the over-use of CGI all detract from this film, along with what I've all ready talked about. None of these are a deal-breaker to me, but I can see why they would spoil the film for other people.
The Prequels then:
The Prequel Trilogy to me are tragic. In terms of their themes, their characters and in terms of the films themselves. They had so much to say, and so many ideas to talk about, but the delivery was just not there. George Lucas did his best, but his weaknesses (most notably bad dialogue and an over-reliance on CGI) prevented them from being good in the way that people wanted them to be. If the Original Trilogy is a masterpiece, a huge painting by a great master that changed the world, then the Prequel Trilogy is the attempt to do better. It was ambitious, and interesting and artistic, but ultimately it couldn't compare to the original work. That is the greatest tragedy for any artist. To make an early masterpiece and spend the rest of your career trying to do better, with success being impossible. We can all think of ways these could have been improved, but for what they are, I enjoy them, and probably always will do.
If you've read my reviews so far, I thank you, sincerely. Episode IV should be up tomorrow, I'll come back to the TV series and Spin offs after my Episode VIII review.
This film was one I enjoyed in the cinema and still think is un-ironically quite good, but I will attempt to justify these feelings rather than simply fan-boying.
The themes in this film are fascinating to me. The fall of the Republic and the Jedi had been set up in Episode I, and we all knew it had to happen given the nature of these films as Prequels. We learn that Chancellor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid), having been voted emergency powers at the end of Episode II is more or less running the "Republic" as an autocrat at this point. The parallels between Palpatine and Caesar are clear and interesting, an ambitious, charming man who slowly seizes control, using war, temporary position, and terror as a means to do it. The collapse seems avoidable at so many points, despite we as the audience knowing what's going to happen, which reflects good storytelling. Not only this but it has some clear commentary on US politics from the early 2000's including the Iraq War and the War on Terror. Whatever the film's flaws, it has a worthy message both as a 'Still-Relevant' social commentary, and as a way of making ancient history engaging. It was, admittedly, a bit underdeveloped, and there are some interesting deleted scenes that expand on these themes that I feel shouldn't have been cut, but I can't help applauding the effort. Episode III, and the Prequels as a whole, were incredibly counter-cultural. The flaws of Democracy and its relationship with Tyranny, straight out of classical philosophy, are not often explored in film, certainly not in major, big-budget Sci-Fi films like Star Wars.
As for the film as a whole, it certainly has its flaws. Bad dialogue returns like a bad case of mould on a bathroom ceiling, which can ruin the tension of many important moments, especially the infamous "No" from the newly suited and booted Darth Vader. Many memes have been created that expose these corny lines, mostly from Anakin (Hayden Christensen), Padme (Natalie Portman), and Palpatine. These definitely detract from the film as a whole, iconic though they remain. Aside from this we have some woefully under-developed villains. Based purely on the films, Count Dooku and General Greivous get hardly any screen time and little to no backstory. To be fair to the film, these "characters" are there mostly as powerful forces for our protagonists to overcome, and didn't need to be terribly complex, but Dooku in particular had such potential as a great villain (being a fallen Jedi and Qui-Gon's former master) if he'd been fleshed out that I do think this is a problem.
Palpatine, Anakin, and Obi-Wan (Ewan McGregor) are the only ones who seem to make meaningful choices and receive development in this film. Palpatine is running the show as he has been all along, that's interesting and Ian McDiarmid has such fun with the role that it's very hard not to enjoy his character. Anakin gets constant and much needed development. We see him at the start of the film as more mature than in Episode II, risking his own safety to help those around him. The Anakin we see here is more believably the "good friend" that Alec Guiness mentioned in Episode IV back in 1977. We see his conflict throughout the film as well. We understand his frustration with Jedi, and see why he might be drawn to Palpatine. Some of the changes are a bit sudden in their delivery (10 minute gap between "It's not the Jedi Way!" and Killing Kids), but we see and understand why Anakin becomes Darth Vader. He was afraid to lose his Wife, and that attachment caused him to forsake everything else he cared about, and ultimately it destroyed him. Obi-Wan is also a character in this film. He finishes his arc started in Episode II by finally giving Anakin the recognition, praise, and love he had always wanted from him. Obi-Wan becomes the wise mentor and father figure that he wasn't in either of the other prequels. This development adds to the tragedy of Anakin's fall. The supporting cast are a bit lack-lustre in this one, Samuel L Jackson in particular struggles to make his lines work, but I feel this is mostly a problem with George Lucas's script and direction.
So what else? I liked the things that everyone else liked. The opening sequence in space is darn cool, as is the "Tragedy of Darth Plagueis" scene with Palaptine and Anakin. The closing scenes setting up episode IV are beautifully shot and scored and are just pure Star Wars magic. The action throughout is done well and is interesting to watch, even if the sabre duel between Anakin and Obi-Wan drags on a bit too long for my taste. As for what I didn't like, I think it'll be relatively uncontroversial. The clunky dialogue, the "She's Lost the Will To Live" moment with Padme and the over-use of CGI all detract from this film, along with what I've all ready talked about. None of these are a deal-breaker to me, but I can see why they would spoil the film for other people.
Action: 8/10 (could have been more practical and restrained in places)
Plot: 7/10 (Great ideas, mired by some bad decisions and poor execution)
Message/Themes: 10/10
Dialogue: 6/10 (improved over episode II but some of it is pretty horrendous)
Characters:7/10 (main characters are well developed, but side characters can be one-dimensional)
FX: 7/10 (Decent, but too digital)
Overall Enjoyment: 8/10- I think Episode III is an enjoyable film, a worthy addition to Star Wars and despite being flawed, it's something that I will definitely come back to again.
The Prequels then:
The Prequel Trilogy to me are tragic. In terms of their themes, their characters and in terms of the films themselves. They had so much to say, and so many ideas to talk about, but the delivery was just not there. George Lucas did his best, but his weaknesses (most notably bad dialogue and an over-reliance on CGI) prevented them from being good in the way that people wanted them to be. If the Original Trilogy is a masterpiece, a huge painting by a great master that changed the world, then the Prequel Trilogy is the attempt to do better. It was ambitious, and interesting and artistic, but ultimately it couldn't compare to the original work. That is the greatest tragedy for any artist. To make an early masterpiece and spend the rest of your career trying to do better, with success being impossible. We can all think of ways these could have been improved, but for what they are, I enjoy them, and probably always will do.
If you've read my reviews so far, I thank you, sincerely. Episode IV should be up tomorrow, I'll come back to the TV series and Spin offs after my Episode VIII review.
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