LUCASFILMS LTD
By Mary Williams
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
[email protected]
Breathe a huge sigh of relief. “Star Wars ““ Episode
II: Attack of the Clones” is way better than “The
Phantom Menace.”
Taking the prequels to a new level is this dark action romance
that combines the cheering-in-your-seat fun of the original,
“A New Hope,” the sense of impending doom of
“Empire Strikes Back,” and the smooth computer
generated look of “The Phantom Menace.” The film is not
without its flaws, but it is a leap toward the quality of the
original trilogy.
Taking the story closer to what must be a depressing
“Episode III” ““ presumably about Anakin Skywalker
becoming Darth Vader ““ “Episode II” shows the
conflict within Anakin, his budding romance with Senator Amidala
(formerly the queen) and the breakup of the Republic.
Fortunately, this heavier material is paired with far better
acting. Hayden Christensen as Anakin is a welcome relief after the
disaster that was Jake Lloyd in the same role in “Episode
I.” Christensen has the chance to show off, too, since the
character in this episode has much more depth than the pod-racing
twerp Lloyd played. As for the rest, Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan
Kenobi is fabulous as always, and it’s also nice to see more
of Samuel L. Jackson as Mace Windu, a member of the Jedi Council,
after his small role in “The Phantom Menace.” Ian
McDiarmid deftly plays the calm and creepy Supreme Chancellor
Palpatine, and Natalie Portman is decent as Amidala, though her
acting pales in comparison to Christensen’s.
While these actors added significantly to the film, some of the
most enjoyable characters were the non-humans. Yoda (voiced by
Frank Oz) in all his scenes is a particular highlight. As a fan
favorite, he gets more time onscreen this time around, and every
minute is entertaining. C-3PO and R2-D2 once again provide
particularly enjoyable comic relief, though at times it feels like
Lucas is relying on this tried and true device to get some
laughs.
One non-human that will be bringing groans from the audience is
Jar Jar Binks, who makes his return even after Lucas was harshly
criticized for the character. Still irritating but hardly in the
story, he is slightly less annoying than in “The Phantom
Menace.” This is probably due to the fact that he is less
obviously the sole coward in a series about bravery (even C-3PO
came through in spite of his fear, after all).
The action sequences ““ and there are a lot of them ““
recall the spirited fight scenes in “A New Hope.” This
time around, the audience gets to see more of the Jedis in action,
which is always fun. There’s more person-versus-person
fights, which are definitely more enjoyable to watch than the
droid-army-versus-Gungans battle of “The Phantom
Menace.”
There is also more political maneuvering in this film than in
the last, which adds meat to the story. There is substantial
interaction between the Jedis and Senate, and more is spent on the
back-room dealings of the Trade Federation and various corrupt
figures.
One disappointment, shared with “The Phantom
Menace,” is that this movie does not stand on its own the way
any of the original three do. Having not seen “Episode
I,” or more importantly, the first trilogy, would be
detrimental to enjoying “Attack of the Clones.”
However, the fact that some prior knowledge is required is not
really the problem. Rather, it would be nice to be able to pop in
“Episode II” 10 years from now and get a film that is
independent as well as a member of a series.
Overall though, it seems that Lucas has learned from his
mistakes in “Episode I” and has produced a follow-up
that, while problematic at times, is fun to watch and yet more
weighty in its subject matter.