At the start of Revenge Of The Sith, we are treated to a
spectacular space battle over the skies of Coruscant, the capital planet of the
Republic. The Clone War is still raging, and Chancellor Papitine (Ian McDiarmid)
has been abducted by General Grievous, a fearsome droid warrior fighting on the
side of the separatist movement. Jedi Knights Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) and
Annakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) assault Gervious' warship in order to
rescue the Chancellor. After fighting their way through heavy gunfire in their
fighters, the Jedi barely manage to get aboard the ship in one piece. But once
they do, they encounter an old enemy, Count Dooku (Christopher Lee) and finish
the light saber battle that they started with him at the end of Attack Of The
Clones.
Although Grievous narrowly escapes, things still look bad for those in the
Separatist Movement, who are steadily losing the Clone War to the forces of the
Republic. Yet when the wheezing droid contacts Darth Sidious, he is given new
orders to move the remnants of the Separatist forces to a secure location so
they may regroup, along with assurances by Sidious that the master plan is still
going very well. Meanwhile things are also looking up for Annikin, whose wife
Padme (Natalie Portman) is expecting their first child. Annikin also experiences
good fortune in his work as a Jedi Knight by becoming the favorite son of
Chancellor Palptine, who wants the young Jedi to represent him on the council.
But Annikin is plagued by constant, horrible nightmares, dark visions of Padme
dying in childbirth. Unsettled, he swears do to anything and everything he can
to prevent these dreams from coming true.
Revenge Of The Sith is more dynamic, energetic, and
all-around entertaining from the very first frame of film. It pulls together the
story threads from the first two films of this trilogy and creates a visually
stunning film that serves as the true prequel to the original Star Wars films.
Even though you pretty much know how it's going to end--after all, there's only
one route that Annikin Skywalker must take--it's showing how he gets there that
makes this film so fascinating to watch. Veteran actor Ian McDiarmid finally
has a chance to shine as his character is brought to the forefront of the story,
and the explanation for why he looks so different as Darth Sidious is finally
revealed in a stunning sequence where Annikin at last goes over to the dark side.
While Hayden Christensen's performance is better in this film, as he plays a
more sullen, malice-filled Annikin, he still can't hold a candle to his co-star
Ewan McGregor, who is still a far better actor.
McGregor, as Obi-Wan, can still out-act most of his co-stars--both human and
CGI-created alike--just by merely raising his eyebrows. And pity poor Natalie
Portman, who, while playing a pregnant Padme this time must now stay at home and
miss out on all the grand adventures. There are some major plot holes in the
story, particularly at the end. But the special effects--a combination of CGI and models--are
just as amazing as ever. And the production design, which creates alien worlds
in such a dazzling, yet realistic manner, deserves an Oscar. As with the other
Star Wars prequel films, the DVD is well-worth owning, since there's a second
disc containing a multitude of special features. Yet this time, the DVD of Star
Wars: Revenge Of The Sith is just as worthwhile owning for the movie itself
rather than simply the special features alone.
--SF
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