So we finally arrive at the last entry in the prequels. Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones, were the first two pieces of evidence that Mr Lucas was more master craftsman than effortless storyteller. The power of his productions has been his ability to submerge the viewer in his fully realised galaxy. In Revenge of the Sith, the detail of his vision gave his huge planets great depth and battles an urgency unseen in the two films that came before. But ultimately, for all of Lucas' technical powers, it is the story, the space opera, that draws the audience back again and again. And make no mistake, this is the story we've all been waiting for. The Clone wars are finally coming to an end but troubles are only just beginning for the Jedi order. The devious plan of Senator Palpatine/Sidious needs but a new apprentice for his plan to be complete. Anakin Skywalker seems the only one likely to join him.
This time around, Revenge of the Sith keeps more to the things that made the original trilogy great. Towards the end of the first scene we see the saga's single most audacious shot since the Star Destroyer in Episode IV- and it becomes clear that Lucas and the rest of his gang have raised their game considerably. ILM have really done a great job in finally nailing the SFX. There are 2,200 effects shot in Sith- more then Menace and Clones combined- and there's not a single bad shot to be seen. Also, Gavin Bouquet's production design is spot on-with the best sets and designs you'll see in any of the movies. Revenge of the Sith is a great movie. It's as if it took Lucas 2 tries to get comfortable in the directors chair and can now actually apply a bit of style to the proceedings. Lucas himself admitted that 60% of his original outline was slated for this Episode. Which means that all the unanswered questions that made the first two prequels passable in first place are finally answered. As a sequel to the prequels, Revenge of the Sith is more then anyone could of hoped for.
We also finally get some decent acting for all the cast and not just from the CGI Yoda. Hayden Christensen and Natalie Portman seem more comfortable with Ewan McGregor finally nailing the role Of Obi-Wan. Hayden has bulked up and lowered the tone of his voice-which gives him a lot more screen presence then Clones. Support is reliable for Samuel L Jackson, Frank Oz and Christopher Lee but the best comes from Ian Mcdiarmid, since this is the film that brings Emperor Palpatine out of the shadows and into the center stage. Yeah, he's a little over the top but does his best to make the Dark side sound seductive. Unfortunately this is where the movie fails.
Anakin's conversion to the Dark side is rushed through during the boring middle act where he seems to keep bouncing from Palpatine to Mace Windu like a teenager who is unsure of what to do next. And when that big moment finally comes- when Anakin pledges is allegiance to the Dark side- it is utterly unconvincing. Thankfully the 3rd act more then makes up for it, with the twin lightsaber fights and John Williams epic score proving that Revenge of the Sith is the darkest entry in the saga.
Revenge of the Sith was never going to hit the heights of A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back, but what film can? If you go into this film expecting to be entertained by the frantic action, lavish set pieces and the classical themes that made the original films so memorable – the light saber, the Force, Yoda, space battles, good versus evil – then you won’t be disappointed
0 comments:
Post a Comment