Revenge of the Sith: Deep, Dark and Freudian

Star Wars has come a long way. It started out as an unpretentious action movie inspired by cheesy old serials, Dune, and Kurosawa. With Revenge of the Sith, Star Wars has lost all the humble straight forward fun that made the films a success in the first place.

Special effects were always a big part of the Star Wars experience, but like the two movies that preceded it, Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones, the special effects in Revenge of the Sith are out of control. the special effects didn't slow in the old Star Wars movies and the Indiana Jones films didn't slow them down. They kept them moving. Speed is the greatest strength of films like these. Without it, the thin plot and poorly developed characters start showing through. Unfortunately, a generally brisk pace is broken up by a few unexciting and totally unnecessary effects sequences, (Kashyyyk, I'm looking at you), and some absolutely excruciating love scenes.

I always have a problem with the disconnect between CG creatures and real actors, and it's just as bad here as in the other prequels. I've no doubt many talented computer artists and animators poured countless hours into the film. While the CG is done very well, it is never even remotely convincing. Good prosthetic make-up and some light CG effects would be a fraction of the cost and a hundred times more real. The question is… why? "Because we can" is not a good answer and I don't believe that this is an elaborate way to pad out the resumes of a bunch of CG artists.

I think Lucas has lost sight of what makes Star Wars work. There is a reason movies like this are compared to roller coasters. Who likes a roller coaster that stops in the middle of a loop so that you can marvel at a goofy cartoon animal? Yeah, no one. I saw this film at a matinee showing with a theatre packed full of kids. Kids who promptly lost interest after the opening sequence and spent the rest of the movie running up and down the aisles giggling while their parents called after them impotently. This indicates a problem!