May 18, 2002

Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones

(Yes, that's Rose Byrne back there)
2002 Review: Bad dialog and stiff acting. It makes me sad to think Lucas has only one more chance to make a good prequel.

  • Showcase Cinemas Randolph: May 18, 2002 [celluloid]
  • May 23, 2002 [Digital Projection])

2020 Re-Review: Why oh why did I see this movie twice?! Yes, 2002 was a pretty quiet year in my life: I went to the movies more in 2002 than any other year except 1995.

A few years back I watched Episode 1: The Anti-Cheese Edit on YouTube with my son (a huge improvement but alas illegal).
But apart from a few basic-cable moments, I hadn't seen any of Anakin Teenage Melodrama in 18 years.
We signed up for Disney Plus last week, and in a moment of late-night weakness, I watched most of Episode 2: was the acting and dialog as bad as I reported in 2002? How do the effects stand up 18 years later? How does it compare to the Disney sequels?
Yes, it's as bad overall as I wrote back then.
Hayden Christensen plays Anakin as a field of red flags. He's a victim of childhood trauma, for some bizarre reason he was forced to abandon his mother to slavery - are the Jedi supposed to be THAT cruelly ascetic? He demonstrates uncontrolled emotional instability throughout.
Poor Natalie Portman looks abandoned by her director. She repeatedly stares blankly at Christensen as if she is looking at nothing and hasn't yet been told what scene she's in.
It's beyond obvious throughout the prequels that Chancellor Palpatine IS the Sith Emperor, which removes all drama, AND makes the Jedi all look like ignorant fools.

The virtual sets Lucas was so obsessed with don't work. They don't integrate with the actors.

Also On Memorial Day, Through The Years

I have been to the movies on Memorial Day Monday 13 times in 24 years, but it's not a great track record. 

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