Film reviews
Title: Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
Director: George Lucas
Stars: Hayden Christensen, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman et al.
Reviewer: Matt Eccles
Rating (out of 10): 7
Review:
Many negative reviews incited by Star Wars Episodes I and II were countered with the entirely reasonable argument that, despite the convolutions of their plotting, the movies are essentially state-of-the-art, vastly expensive children’s entertainment. However, this defence seems less persuasive when applied to Episode III, which is undoubtedly the darkest and most intense of the three prequels and has an advisory classification to match.
Fortunately, this film is also the most technically impressive, the most gripping and the most relevant in terms of the storyline. What George Lucas may lack in directing actors or writing dialogue he surely counteracts in his orchestrations of spectacular action sequences and sympathetic storytelling. Certainly, he at least has an undoubted ability to leave countless minors as engrossed as they are gob-smacked.
While Hayden Christensen (as Anakin Skywalker) and Natalie Portman (as Padme, Anakin’s wife) still seem uncomfortable with their roles, Ewan McGregor (as Obi-Wan Kenobi) gives an energetic performance and Ian McDiarmid’s portrayal of the rasping, insidious Supreme Chancellor Palpatine is compelling.
The melodrama and tension isn’t significantly reduced by the foreknowledge of Anakin’s demise and Darth Vader’s inception and, while this film may fall some way short of the sublime heights of Episodes IV and V, it does a fine job of bridging the chasm between the prequels and sequels nonetheless.
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