Star Wars Episode 3: Revenge of the Sith
George Lucas
Quick View: The Galactic civil war has been raging for years, and Anakin and Obi-wan have been at the center of it all. Taking the life of the man who had taken his hand,
Anakin begins to feed slowly off the negative emotions inside him. Will his hatred for the Jedi Council and respect for the insidious Palpatine be enough to turn the Jedi Prodigy to the dark side? Will Obi-wan have what it takes to save his apprentice from the temptations? WILL JAR JAR FINALY BE KILLED OFF?
Full Review: Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith is the final installment of George Lucas’ Prequel trilogy of his Sci fi saga, Star Wars. This movie is by far the most mature and well made installment of the trilogy, with quality storytelling and bearable angsty-ness from the script. Although some line deliveries leave much to be desired, Revenge of the sith offers a fitting end to the series with the answer to the question “How did Anakin Skywalker become Darth Vader?”
This movie takes place a few years after the end of the previous movie and the Clone War is entering its final stages. A mature Anakin and an aging Kenobi fly their way into the ship which holds the captive chancellor of the republic. Fighting their way through the ship, Anakin and Obi Wan find their way to the chancellor, only to be met by count Dooku. After fighting with the sith lord, and Obi Wan being rendered unconscious, Anakin defeats dooku. Being prompted by the chancellor, and with anger from losing his arm to the sith, Anakin beheads him, beginning upon the long road that is the young Jedi’s downfall. After escaping, Anakin meets up with Padme only to be told the news that she’s pregnant. Anakin begins having nightmares, and goes to Master Yoda for guidance. Obi wan is sent to kill the leader of the separatist droid army, which will end the war. Meanwhile, The chancellor tells Anakin that the dark side holds the power to save his wife. Anakin tells the Jedi of this and they try to assassinate the chancellor, who is infact the sith lord they have been looking for. After coming close to ending it, Anakin intervenes, telling Mace windu that to kill palpatine is against the jedi way. Anakin then disarms Windu and palpatine deals the final blow. Anakin submits himself to palpatine, and the dark lord names him Darth Vader. Vader assaults the Jedi temple with a clone army, killing most of the young Jedi there. Order 66 leads to the clone armies turning on their jedi and assassinating them all. Yoda and Obi Wan survive, and each goes to confront the sith lords. Yoda fails to defeat Darth sidious, but Obi Wan manages to cripple Anakin, leading to the young sith’s tragic injuries. The story ends with Obi Wan delivering Anakin’s son to his uncle and aunt, and Vader receiving his iconic suit.
The character development, although rushed at some points, works well with the pacing of the story. Each character plays their part, and the story unfolds before the audience, slowly connecting the puzzle pieces and giving the fans the answers they have been waiting for. Overall, the characters mesh much better, and the performances are overall improved. Hayden Christensen really makes the character his own, and his acting has greatly improved in it. His emotional acting in both the chancellors office scene and his fight with Obi-Wan on Mustafar really make the character feel like the protagonist of a tragedy.
Setting, as usual, is superb, from the metallic halls of the droid ship to the volcanic wasteland that is Mustafar, Revenge of the Sith delivers the expected Star Wars beauty in location. The space battles are absolutely breathtaking, and the visuals are far superior to the previous films. The clothing and props are well designed, and as a cosplayer, absolutely lovely to look at and wear. The only real drawback to the film is the script which Hayden Christensen is forced to work with. Although we see a glimpse of brilliance from him in a scene or two, some of the lines he is made to deliver just don’t work, and this supposedly mature Jedi knight still comes off as a whiny brat. Still, this is easily the best installment of the prequels, and is a fitting end to the trilogy.
Overall, the stunning visuals, shocking twists, and melancholy ending leaves us somewhat in despair, but as Aunt Beru and Uncle Owen stair at that horizon off in the distance, we are left with one last glimmer of hope.
Final Score: 8.5/10