Well, after 30 years, George Lucas finally decided his tale the Skywalker clan is complete with the release of REVENGE OF THE SITH. I had the opportunity to see the movie for free, at a press screening. I saved $10.95 (Canadian) from the hands of Lucasfilm, and I'm glad I did.
If you HAVEN'T seen REVENGE OF THE SITH, I won't give anything away, but be warned that I feel you'd have to be living under some sand dune on a deserted island NOT to know what happens in this one. I mean, for Gawd SAKES the story's been known for over 30 years how Anakin Skywalker becomes the menacing Darth Vader. What wasn't known was how the story would play out on the big screen.
Before I go any further, I want to say for the record that I WAS a Star Wars fan.. WHEN I was 15, and the Original Trilogy was, well, original. I sat in the theatre with my jaw dropped open at the opening scene of A NEW HOPE, and for some reason, I was lured into seeing EMPIRE STRIKES BACK 10 times! Things started to change with RETURN OF THE JEDI, when I noticed that things in the Star Wars Universe just didn't feel, right.
I started to notice the dialogue, and the acting.. It just didn't have the same feel the first 2 movies did. In a single 2 hour stretch, I lost my love for Star Wars. There was something about RETURN OF THE JEDI that just didn't grab me like Episodes 4 & 5 did. Maybe it was the Laughter in the audience during Luke's big speech to Leia, maybe it was the fact that I'd seen it all before (another DEATH STAR, ANOTHER lightsaber duel between Luke and Vader, MORE Imperial Walkers), and I came to the realization that everything was old hat by then.
After REVENGE OF THE JEDI, my life went on.. I studied film in college, I got a job, my life went on and Star Wars just became a childhood memory.
Now, With the Final (?) three movies done, I can say that nothing in them have changed my mind about the Star Wars Series. PHANTOM MENACE and ATTACK OF THE CLONES were just mindless fill leading up to SITH. The fact that the Acting or Dialogue hadn't improved since JEDI didn't bolster my spirits any. So, I went in to the screening of SITH with low expectations set by Ep. 1 & 2, and in many ways it met them, but ultimately didn't surpass them. The dialogue was still painful, the acting seemed WORSE that in the first 2 movies, but it had action which made up for some of the shortcomings.
Here's my capsule thoughts:
The Turn to the Dark Side was too abrupt, and I couldn't buy it. To make it MORE effective, expand the movie by 30 minutes. THAT however would bring up the fact that it would be 30 minutes more of horribly bad dialogue to sit through.
Everyone is harping that the final words screamed by Vader are too pansy-like. What I haven't heard is HOW could it be handled differently? He was just told that HE caused the very thing he wanted to avoid. How should have he reacted?
Overall, my rankings of the six movies would be as follows:
Phantom Menace: F+
Attack of the Clones: D
Revenge of the Sith: C+
A New Hope: B
Empire Strikes Back: A
Revenge of the Jedi: D-
What do you readers think? How do the Star Wars movies compare in your life? What did you think of Sith? How could YOU improve on it?
Ultimately though, I will say I admire George Lucas. He had a story to tell, he told it, and told it the way HE wanted too.
Now, I can return to my regular life, enjoying my childhood memories of being taken to a long time ago in a galaxy far, far, away, if only for a little while.
So, my flame retardant suit is on, and the comments are open. Leave a message, and stir up some debate. This blog will be for my comments on current films playing, and I'll try and post as often as I can
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