Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones is my least favorite film in the franchise. I did not care for it fifteen years ago when I saw it in theaters four times, and I do not care for it today. I can only describe how I feel about this movie by saying that it is only slightly better than The Phantom Menace.
Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones is the second chapter in the Star Wars saga, and tells the story of Obi-Wan Kenobis' investigation into an assassination attempt on Senator Amidala. During this time, Anakin Skywalker and Padme pursue a forbidden love. I have conflicting feelings about this film. I have never been one of these film fans that compares a sequel to its predecessor. I think that is unfair because I think every movie in an ongoing franchise should be judged on its own merits, and not on whether or not it is better than the film that came before it. That being said, The Phantom Menace is so unspeakably awful that you cannot help but hope and think to yourself, "I hope this is better than the last one". Even though I have never enjoyed Attack of the Clones, I do feel that there are more enjoyable ELEMENTS to this film than The Phantom Menace, and this makes the film marginally more watchable. So let us begin with the enjoyable elements first.
I absolutely love the planet and creature design in the film. From Geonosis to Kamino, the worlds and the creatures that inhabit them are quite interesting and visually spectacular. World building has always been one of George Lucas' strengths. Also, as before, the sound design is top-notch. Every machine, gadget, and creature has its own unique sound that brings the Star Wars universe to life. The action sequences, what action there is, are also quite well done. The last forty minutes of the movie has some of the best action in any of the Star Wars movies. What makes these sequences so unique is the way the camera is used. The way the camera quickly zooms in on the clone troopers, the tracking shots that follow the missiles, all of it is spectacular to witness. For me personally, I also find Boba Fetts' (Daniel Logan) origin quite interesting. Everyone just assumed that because of the armor he wears in the original trilogy that he was a Mandalorian, but in fact he is an unaltered clone of Jango Fett (Temuera Morrison) who is an established bounty hunter, and not Mandalorian either (he stole the Mandalorian armor on a previous mission that is not in the films). Seeing a young Boba Fett co-pilot the Slave I is a wonderful tie-in to the original trilogy. I also like that we see Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) fight Jango Fett without the use of his lightsaber. Up until this film, Jedi have always used their lightsabers in combat, but this film shows that the Jedi can actually put up a fight in hand-to-hand combat as well. Later in the film, we see the classic Lars homestead from A New Hope. I love this sequence because see things that make us nostalgic, like the blue milk and the workspace where Luke Skywalker first saw Princess Leias' hologram message, but we also see some connections to the Skywalker family as well. We learn that Owen Lars (Joel Edgerton) is Anakin Skywalkers' (Hayden Christensen) stepbrother, and that Owen Lars actually owned C-3PO (Anthony Daniels) for the first time when he was a young man. I also enjoy the fact that we learn a bit about Count Dookus' (Christopher Lee) history. We learn that he was once Yodas' (Frank Oz) apprentice, that he was Qui-Gon Jinns' master, and that he and the Geonosians actually collaborated on the design of the Death Star. I am also a defender of Yoda using a lightsaber in combat. I have constantly heard from other Star Wars fans that Yoda should not have a lightsaber. My question is why not?? He is a Jedi Master!!! Of course he would have a lightsaber, and the battle he has with Count Dooku is most impressive. Unfortunately, this is where the list of positive things ends for this movie. Now let us move on to the negative aspects...
The problems with Attack of the Clones start with the fact that the movie picks up ten years after The Phantom Menace, and a different actor plays Anakin Skywalker but the same actress plays Padme Amidala (Natalie Portman). That makes no sense. Why does this movie take place ten years after The Phantom Menace? An even bigger question would be why The Phantom Menace takes place so long before A New Hope? I cannot wrap my head around this concept. Also, the Jedi seemed to have given up on the Sith Lord they were looking for in The Phantom Menace. That seemed to be a big deal for them, and I do not understand why this was not part of the film. Also, why does Jango Fett hire Zam Wesell (Leeanna Walsman) to kill Padme? Why does he not do it himself?? Also, when Obi-Wan Kenobi is flying through the air on the assassin droid, why does Zam Wesell shoot the droid instead of shooting Kenobi??? During that chase scene, Obi-Wan says, "I hate it when he does that", referring to Anakin jumping out of the speeder to catch Wesell. I thought that Jedi did not feel hate?? Another thing that gets under my skin about this movie is that the Republic starts making the Clone Army BEFORE the Separatists start building their droid army!! This completely negates Yodas' feelings when he says, "Begun the Clone War has" because the Republic started the whole bloody thing!!! Speaking of Yoda, how does he not know about the planet Kamino but some random buddy of Obi-Wan Kenobi named Dexter Jettster (Ronald Falk) knows all about it???? And who the blazes is Sifo Diyas??? I feel like that character was meant to be some sort of pivotal plot point, and it just failed miserably. Also, for the love of Odin, Padme needs to stop calling Anakin "Ani". I let that pass when he was 9 years old, but he is 19 now. Stop it. Also, why does Anakin Skywalker take Padme Amidala home to Naboo to hide from the people that are attempting to kill her?? Would it not make more sense to just keep going about your everyday life as if nothing is happening?? From the assassins' point of view, taking her home would create an opportunity for her to be exposed. Another thing that bothers me, and it pains to talk about this, are the visual effects. Some of the visual effects, particularly in the arena fight, are horrendous. I would love to know who let this movie get past Editorial because it is quite clear that the actors are acting against a green screen background. Later, in the scene where Anakin tells Padme what he did to the Tusken Raiders, Anakin yells, "He's holding me back!" and then proceeds to throw something small across the room. This is just laughable. If I was as aggravated as Anakin was, I would have turned that place upside-down with fury. Also, there is a scene in the film where Yoda is instructing a class of younglings on how to use their lightsabers. Why are these children standing so close together wielding these weapons??? It is a miracle that nobody had a limb severed. Towards the climax of the film, Anakin and Padme stumble into a droid factory for what serves as an absolutely unnecessary action sequence. And why is C-3PO there??? Why did he leave Tatooine?? Oh, right. Because Owen Lars needs to not recognize him twenty-three years later when he buys him from the Jawas. However, do you want to know what particularly grinds my gears??? The fact that Mace Windu (Samuel L. Jackson) says, "We're keepers of the peace. Not soldiers." and then willingly leads an army of clone troopers into battle against the droid army of the Separatists!!! Also, in the battle in the asteroid field between Jango Fett and Obi-Wan, Jango Fett literally hits every single thing around Obi-Wan except Obi-Wan himself!!! How in the name of the Republic is this possible?!?!?! Also, at the end of the movie when Obi-Wan and Anakin attempt to capture Count Dooku and bring him in for questioning, Obi-Wan and Anakin leave the arena to go into battle, but Count Dooku is still right there in the underground section of the arena!!! They want to bring him in, and yet they just left the location where he is staying!!!! The climactic lightsaber duel between Anakin and Count Dooku is filmed atrociously. This is a sword fight. I do not want to see close-ups of the actors' faces the entire time!!!! Also, in the scene where Yoda is mourning the beginning of the Clone Wars, all the chairs in the Jedi Council Chambers are mysteriously missing. Did Yoda just use the Force to remove them??? What happened?!?!?!? And why are C-3P0 and R2-D2 (Kenny Baker) at Anakin and Padmes' wedding?? I guess it makes sense for R2D2 to be there, but C3PO would blab his head off about their wedding which is supposed to be a secret.
Whew. Okay, I was wrong. There are even less enjoyable things about this film than in The Phantom Menace. Seriously, where was the Script Supervisor this whole time??? I understand that George Lucas wanted to make these movies his way, but someone should have the power to say, "No, George. That's stupid." Now, let me talk about a couple of casting decisions that I actually support.
I actually like the way Hayden Christensen portrays Anakin Skywalker. He plays Anakin as someone who always has an undercurrent of darkness that cannot wait to be released. I personally enjoy this aspect of Christensens' craft because we realize that Anakin was truly destined to become Darth Vader. The scene where he tells Padme about murdering the Tusken Raiders is particularly haunting. If it were not for the creepy way he occasionally looks at Padme, I would have loved his performance. Christensens' scenes with Ewan McGregor, Ian McDiarmid (Chancellor Palpatine) and Natalie Portman are also well done, and provide good foresight into the future of all of these characters. I personally feel that this is an underappreciated performance by Christensen.
Samuel L. Jackson plays Mace Windu. Windu is a man who is calm and able to control his emotions, but when the action starts he is one of the best Jedi Knights in the Order. This is a well-rounded performance by Jackson because he plays Windu as someone who sets an example for the rest of the Order. Windu uses the Force for knowledge, not to attack. Of course, Jacksons' action sequences are the best part because we get to see him do what he does best. I remember hearing cheers of applause in the theater when Windu decapitates Jango Fett. I personally think this is an excellent performance by Jackson.
George Lucas is the director of Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones. As I mentioned before, the action sequences are incredibly well shot. The problem is that there is not enough of it. I think this film falters from focusing on the love story too much, and also the fact that there is no substance behind the droid factory sequence. If these problems had been fixed, this would have been a better movie. I also enjoy the romantic scenes between Anakin and Padme. The dialogue is over-dramatic, yes, but that is because Anakin is struggling to deal with his feelings. The problems with this film are with the script, not the direction. In my opinion, Lucas does a fine job with this film.
Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones is the worst film in the saga. It has enjoyable elements, but overall it is a bland film that suffers from plot issues. If you want to learn about Anakins' past as Obi-Wans' apprentice, then you will like the film for that aspect. Otherwise, you are better off skipping it.
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