$5 popcorn.com movie reviews - Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones

Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones
(May 2002)

If you haven't seen this movie yet, go now! Really, I mean it. I'm not kidding. Stop reading this review, turn off your computer and go to your closest theater right now.

Star Wars is back and the Force is strong with this one. The first half of the movie drags a little as we are reintroduced to the now Senator Padme Amidala (Natalie Portman), Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor), and a grown-up Anakin (Hayden Christensen). However, the second half of the movie kicks into high gear with explosive CGI sequences and more Jedis than we've ever seen before. The last 30 minutes of the movie also contain a scene that will have all Yoda fans standing up and cheering.

We now know why this little guy is THE Jedi Master.

This movie brings back the fun banter that the original trilogy had. C3PO takes his rightful place back from Jar Jar, as comic relief. His one-liners may sound a bit cheesy, they always did, but I liked them nonetheless. The real heart of the movie revolves around Anakin's struggle between dealing with his emotions and his duty of being a Jedi Knight. It's here we witness the first glimpse of him becoming Darth Vader and we begin to understand why. We also see Anakin's unbridled attraction for Padme and her reluctance to get romantically involved with him. We see a strong and self-confident Amidala. She is a born leader and it's her strength that we will later see in the rebellion and in Leia. There is so much to see in this movie for all Star Wars fans. So many questions answered, and posed, and so much foreshadowing I could go on and on, but it's best for you to experience them yourselves.

Even non die-hard Star Wars fans will get something out of this movie. They will surely notice some stiff acting and clunky dialog, but the story is complete and will entertain you if you give it a chance. The rest of us will be awaiting the summer of 2005 anxiously to see the final installment of the series we love so much.

Rating: PG for sustained sequences of sci-fi action/violence.