Redux: Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith.

Redux Review #144: Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith.

Cast: 
Ewan McGregor (Obi-Wan Kenobi), Natalie Portman (Senator Padmé Amidala), Hayden Christensen (Anakin Skywalker), Ian McDiarmid (Supreme Chancellor Palpatine), Samuel L. Jackson (Mace Windu), Frank Oz (Yoda), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), Kenny Baker (R2-D2), Christopher Lee (Count Dooku / Darth Tyranus), Jimmy Smits (Senator Bail Organa), Matthew Wood (General Grievous), Silas Carson (Ki-Adi-Mundi / Nute Gunray), Temuera Morrison (Commander Cody), and Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca) Written and Directed by George Lucas (#113 - Star Wars, #141 - American Graffiti, #142 - Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, and #143 - Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones)

Review: 
Countdown to 150 Reviews: 10, 9, 8, 7, 6...
At last, the end. The best of the bunch of prequels gets what I hope to live up to with the standard review, especially a redux - even if is more a blend of praise and slight criticism this time around. Enjoy.

Admittedly, finishing a trilogy can prove daunting, particularly when it is the culmination of a saga of a character as memorable as Darth Vader. This time around, there actually seems to be a real emphasis on making a tragedy alongside being entertainment. There are plenty of spectacle sequences along with a bit of depth - while also still having things to make light of. It isn't as inconsistent as the other two films, managing to find a heart of darkness that does seem to make this trilogy mostly worth it. For one thing, I actually seemed interested to view Anakin on screen beyond just lightsaber dueling. Sure, he always seemed to have problems with impulsiveness, anger issues, jealousy - and occasional lapses into ridiculous line reads. Christensen still struggles at times with the clunkier aspects of the dialogue at times - such as when he nonchalantly says to his wife that she'll die in childbirth. He shines best when conversing with McGregor or McDiarmid more so than Portman, who mostly is around just to linger in one set at a time without as much to really do. Their chemistry together isn't really too great, middling above teenage lyric posts on the Internet. McGregor proves efficient as ever, filling the noble roots set by Alec Guinness and completing the circle with charm. McDiarmid takes his time to go the ham of an actor on stage set by himself with Return of the Jedi (1983) - and I enjoy it just the same. Instead of being a phantom menace (pardon the pun) to the events around him, now he gets to be involved with actual fights, complete with snarls and cackles. Jackson gets something to do (and say), which I do enjoy when it comes to the film's key point for its first hour. Oz keeps the interest flowing as expected. Naturally, Lee is given four lines, disposed as quickly as expected from a trilogy that likes to jump from adversary to adversary before allowing its true puppet master to try and shine through. I would say that it might have been more interesting to have one villain throughout a whole trilogy before being disposed of (ignoring any sort of middle ground television show, of course) - but we're past that point of complaints, I guess. Smits is fairly serviceable; Wood is okay as a mediocre threat, which is quite the thing to say about a cyborg with four arms. Once the film disposes with the pretense of trying to build paper threats and actually showcases the true threat and Anakin's descent is when the film really does become an actual winner, complete with a worthy climax to alongside it.

I had forgotten to mention John Williams and his music score throughout these films, which it goes without saying are pretty well, but it really does shine here with the mood and pacing throughout the movie here, such as the aforementioned climax but also subtle moments such as the rumination sequence, where it carries a 90-second moment that shows off on a visual level with effective choice in composition. It isn't a perfect film by any means. It still meanders with wooden dialogue on occasion, while also feeling a bit too ridiculous with its justifications for Padme's fate (losing the will to live being a thing only a robot doctor would assume, I guess), but at least there is an actual sense of adventure present without being completely lost in a virtual screen. Sure, it does try to be a bit tidy with its ending, trying to seal things up with plenty of connections to before (much in the same vein that the other two had done), which does seem a bit overboard - but at least it sure has a well-done last shot to close on. Revenge of the Sith strives for a glut of action and story in a 140 minute run-time with plenty of drive and spectacle, managing to succeed on the last go on the prequel merry-go-round with very little in terms of hitches to interrupt the ride.

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.

Redux: Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones.

Redux Review #143: Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones.

Cast: 
Ewan McGregor (Obi-Wan Kenobi), Hayden Christensen (Anakin Skywalker), Natalie Portman (Senator Padmé Amidala), Ian McDiarmid (Chancellor Palpatine), Christopher Lee (Count Dooku / Darth Tyranus), Samuel L. Jackson (Mace Windu), Temuera Morrison (Jango Fett), Frank Oz (Yoda), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), Kenny Baker (R2-D2), Daniel Logan (Boba Fett), Leeanna Walsman (Zam Wesell), Silas Carson (Nute Gunray and Ki-Adi-Mundi), Ahmed Best (Delegate Jar Jar Binks), and Jimmy Smits (Bail Organa) Directed by George Lucas (#113 - Star Wars, #141 - American Graffiti, and #142 - Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace)

Review: 
Countdown to 150 Reviews, 10, 9, 8, 7...
As promised, a redux of the second prequel film. I described it as better than the first film, but not by much, and not much really does change, does it? At least these are reviews I can feel proud of, which I hope you enjoy.

These films, if distilled into a basic premise of the portrayal of the rise and fall of Anakin Skywalker, from adolescence to adulthood, could have made for some weird and wonderful tragic drama. The first film proved that trying to cover details from the past mixed with ill-advised story choices made for a film that collapsed under its own weight of hubris and anticipation from others. The only thing that changes this time around is that the anticipation is more of a dead calm, and the film manages to find time for improvement at the pace of a snail. While Lucas once again served as director and writer, Jonathan Hales was brought in to help co-write for the film, refining the script until right before production was to begin. The dialogue can't quite help the actors out again, a villain is introduced and wasted once again, and story motivations seem more appropriate for an opening film than a middle movie. You really could skip the previous movie and not really lose too much grip on the story, since you could basically sum up key events in one line or less. As I mentioned earlier, having to switch actors for your main character doesn't help matters, especially since the dynamic between McGregor and Christensen only really comes into focus on occasion. In trying to make a grander, more epic scale Star Wars with plenty of plot-lines, Lucas has succeeded in making two mediocre movies to drive his trilogy, finally finding some sense of focus by the time of its climax, with its Clone Wars aspect.

The film builds itself on the blooming relationship dynamic between Christensen and Portman's characters, having the passion of lines spoke by a computer program. A film romance works best when it actually seems the actors are truly invested in what the script wants them to say. The previous trilogy had a romance that was subtle without being overbearing in the slightest. Lucas wanted something more than just a scoundrel and a princess - a forbidden romance with a Jedi involved. Again, this works best when I actually feel that these actors really seem invested in what they want to do, and it slowly rises from slightly weird to slightly palpable, but that isn't enough in a film that plods along for 142 minutes. The acting still plays hit-and-miss, but McGregor and McDiarmid do turn out to be the key winners of the bunch, the former seeming much more interesting to be around with this time around - whether when bantering with Christensen like an odd couple or in battle, and the latter being as conniving as ever. Christensen doesn't fare too well with such a big role to fill as the eventual Darth Vader, feeling a bit too flat and occasionally grating, falling into the same trap as Lloyd had with being stuck with offbeat lines that make a shadow of a character. Portman is okay, but not too particularly inspired as the other side of the token, faring a bit better when running onto an action set than on some grass trying to talk about politics. Highlights include complaints about sand, attempts at humor that go hit-and-miss, and eventual action sequences on dusty planets that can't help but be like cutscenes once again. Lee is criminally wasted as the main adversary behind the true power, a character cut from bare cloth that isn't too particularly menacing, even with a legend like Lee. The fight with him and Yoda is amusing to picture and weirder to try and describe, since it's a CGI muppet against a mix of Lee (then in his late seventies) and a stunt double. Morrison is quiet, but alright for the necessary time needed. Jackson and Oz are given a few lines to carry, so that's a nice repeat of before I guess. The action sequences here doesn't seem as involving as one would hope, and the political drama is only slightly less pale this time around. The question isn't so much if this is a better film than the previous one as is it really a question of how it took so long to drive the story to some sort of meaningfulness. Lost in a shroud of effects, flashy costumes, and questionable motivations, Attack of the Clones is a mediocre sequel to a mediocre movie that is made lesser by comparisons of past and future of Star Wars films. I wasn't exactly bored by what I saw - I just felt much of the same mood that I did the last time.

Overall, I give it 6 out of 10 stars.

Jumper (2008).

Review #1064: Jumper.

Cast: 
Hayden Christensen (David Rice), Rachel Bilson (Millie Harris), Samuel L. Jackson (Roland Cox), Jamie Bell (Griffin O'Connor), Diane Lane (Mary Rice), Teddy Dunn (Mark Kobold), and Michael Rooker (William Rice) Directed by Doug Liman.

Review: 
It is only fitting that a movie like this involve teleporting, since the film seems to like getting away from itself, constantly shuffling between two modes: erratic and plain. I can't say that the idea of teleporting wouldn't make for a good film (The Fly (#710), anybody?), but I can't say that this movie succeeds, mostly because there isn't much fun delivered with its story nor its contents. The film is based of the book of the same name by Steven Gould, who also contributed to the story (with a screenplay done by David S. Goyer, Jim Uhls & Simon Kinberg), and I imagine that the novel must've had some sort of energy and life to it that must've felt appealing to try and make a movie out of. To say the film feels jumbled is an overstatement, such as the "Paladins", the villains of the film that don't really have much development besides some vague reasoning, or "jump scars", since I guess jumping leaves a trail (or something like that). This is a stunted narrative that can't make us care about what is going on; it's not so much that the film's plot is insulting in a dumb way, it's just that the plot is bland and not particularly involving, with a lack of focus.

In a way, the flatness of the characters means that you can't put all of the blame on Christensen, who delivers a stiff performance that in no way helps the movie get any sort of life, although his character isn't even easy to go for. His character never does anything that makes you really want to root for him, and if it wasn't for the hunting by the paladins, you could re-write him into a villain, complete with a bratty nature and an even more boring amorality, complete with his first lines of the film that describes how he was a normal person, a "chump, just like you" (good start). He doesn't seem to be a terrible actor, but he definitely isn't good in this film. Bilson doesn't bring much energy to a role that feels stiffer than a board, complete with no real chemistry between her and Christensen. Jackson can't really make this villain character anything other than a cliche - where his grey hair is the most noteworthy thing about him. I'd say Bell is the highlight - but that isn't giving the movie any real favors. The rest of the small cast is fairly standard, not doing anything too particularly amusing. The effects aren't terrible, but they also aren't anything that'll make the film any prettier to look at, particularly since the action sequences seem muddled and ridiculous (combined with no real stakes). Even the climax is dull, and the fact that it ends so anti-climatically and so lazily makes for a perfect capstone in this mess. You could likely have a laugh with this if you're in the mood to make fun of a paperthin plot, a cast that can't elevate said material, and 88 minutes to kill, but even re-watching RoboCop 3 (#006) over this dreck seems preferable.

Overall, I give it 5 out of 10 stars.