You're gonna be bothered by how cool I am.

Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones

This second installment of the Star Wars prequels has taken a beating too since its release. And again, there are certainly things that could have been better, but in watching it again - now that we have all six movies - I think it's quite strong.

What struck me the most is how well it avoids the Act 2 Pitfalls of so many "middle children" of a series. It doesn't feel like filler between the first and third film at all, and I'd forgotten how very much HAPPENS in this movie. There's a much better balance here between the emotions and the action than in Phantom Menace, and perhaps even Revenge of the Sith. I thought Lucas did a great job weaving the threat of the Federation and the rise of Palpatine with Anakin's slow-but-sure steps toward the Dark Side.

I distinctly remember sniggering at what I called at the time "the frolicking sequence" with Ani and Padme on Naboo when I first saw this. However, I do think the romance - in this one at least - was fairly well done. It's heavily focused on, but it's not just cheesy "I wub you" stuff (despite the aforementioned frolicking). There is a real tension there, because they absolutely shouldn't be together. And yet they absolutely should be together, you know? There are a few moments when it feels false or forced, but ultimately I think Christensen and Portman play it well. He's the brassy, pushy, cocky-yet-still-unsure-of-himself younger guy, and she's slightly older and quite a bit wiser. I think it makes an interesting romance.

Probably one of the bigger complaints against this film is the casting of Hayden Christensen as Anakin Skywalker. Many people would argue that his weakness as an actor killed the movie, but I think he played it exactly as it should have been played. Anakin, in this part of the story, is still a kid. He whines about how unfair things are and thinks he's way cooler than he actually is. One of my favorite little moments in the movie is when Ani and Obi-Wan go into the bar to look for Padme's attempted assassin. Obi-Wan sends Anakin to look for her while he gets a drink at the bar, as if to say "Okay, now go and contemplate all the ways in which I am awesome and you are not." While Jake Lloyd sounded clunky and awkward saying lines that were too "old" for him (not to mention all those "Yippee"s - I wanted to shout at him "Stop saying whee, nobody says whee!"[/mst3k joke]), Christensen kind of took that "annoying kid" thing and used it in a way that makes sense for the character. Because Anakin is still an annoying kid, but you can see why now - he's gotten a taste of how powerful he could be and he's become intoxicated with his own potential. He's kind of ... irritating by design.

Which brings me to what I perhaps love best about this movie - Anakin's character arc. Lucas may have gotten some things wonky, but this is ultimately a story about Anakin's journey, and you can just TELL that Lucas has known for a long time exactly the steps it took to bring Anakin from Padawan prodigy to being a blink away from archvillain territory. It starts with his arrogance (well, probably before that, but that's not a theory I'm ready to share at this point :P), his impulsiveness and frustration at not being allowed to live up to his potential. We see his attachment to Padme, an attachment we know is forbidden for a Jedi, and his arrogance, impulsiveness, and frustration bleed over into this aspect of his character as well. And once we see his mother's situation on Tattooine, it has all come to a boil, making the way clear for anger and hatred to take over. And I *love* how, when he's confessing to Padme about killing the sand people, you hear strains of the Imperial March in the score.

Another thing that has bothered some fans is that the galaxy of the prequel era seems more technologically advanced than the later era of the original trilogy. Ships are shinier and planets more elaborately cityscaped (did I mention how gorgeous this film looks with all that color and all that lovely scenery?). But I think that may be by design as well. In the prequels, we're seeing the last gasp of a free galaxy before the Empire takes over. Once the Empire is in power, planets are oppressed and the pallette is subdued. It may not have been intentional, but it's possible that Lucas planned it that way.

Oh, and peachespig? I'll see your Qui-Gon/Obi-Wan/Darth Maul lightsabre fight and raise you Yoda vs. Dooku. One badass little green dude that is.