Star Wars: Episode III – The Revenge of the Sith premiered on HBO this weekend, so I finally got around to watching it. How was this movie well reviewed when it came out? It was both too long and too short. Too long in that there were far too many scenes that were just boring, and too short in that the most important plotline in the movie — the seduction of Anakin by the Chancellor — was drawn in the crudest fashion possible. Then there’s the fact that the Jedi, who theoretically wield an enormous amount of power and authority, are required to be perhaps the stupidest group of people in the universe, with Obi Wan Kenobi leading the parade of idiots. I thought they were supposed to be wise?
Overall, I thought the movie was written lazily, executed poorly, and was downright tedious. Hayden Christiansen remains the worst actor of all time. Thank goodness I didn’t see it in the theater.
My Netflix ratings for the Star Wars movies are:
- Episode IV – 4 stars
- Episode V – 4 stars
- Episode VI – 3 stars
- Episode I – 2 stars
- Episode II – 2 stars
- Episode III – 2 stars
The only thing that saved Episode III from a one star rating were the fight scenes that included Yoda.
June 5, 2006 at 1:39 pm
The only thing that saved Episode III from a one star rating were the fight scenes that included Yoda.
I thought the opening battle sequence was pretty stunning, but that might be one of those things you have to see on the big screen. I thought the Yoda fight ended a little too anticlimactically. Anyway, you are right on about everything else. The only saving grace of any of the three prequels is one or two action scenes.
Just wait till the TV series.
June 5, 2006 at 4:53 pm
After Episode I, I have made it my personal goal in life to not see the remainder of the films.
I’d rather watch THX-1138, which was just released on DVD. I’ve heard it’s a bit tedious, but for different reasons. Plus, it’s easier to excuse tedium on your freshman outing.
June 6, 2006 at 5:56 am
I had been thinking that my frustration with the prequels rested in not immersing myself enough in the Star Wars universe — that for folks who followed the games, books, comics, and Wookipedia they’d be grand.
Then I rented Clone Wars Volume 2, which manages to make a story you know the end of really exciting. (Doubly so, since I watched it long after seeing Ep3.)