A response to a reader on my review:

Re: Re: A couple of defenses

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Originally posted by GOOCH

After 10 years of training????? Besides, Anakin keeps saying that Obi-Wan has been 'like a father' to him. Did you think your Drill Sergant was like a father to you?

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You don't know my Dad!! But, I understand your point. And agree that it could have been better presented. I suppose for people that are fans(not meant to imply you are not a fan especially since you are an acknowledged Sci-Fi geek ) and intuitively know the situation it is easier to overlook the flawed writing et al.


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Originally posted by GOOCH
The problem is, if he ought to be in stalker mode because he's going to be Darth, why doesn't Padme take out a Restraining order...as opposed to marrying him???? Really, did anyone else get the feeling in the first 45 minutes of the movie that the only way we were ever going to end up with Luke & Leia was if he forced himself on her? She *treats* him like a stalker. And why wouldn't you? He wasn't exactly trying to charm her. And that's the point. OK, so it might have been believable to have Anakin pursue Padme in a kind of 'stalker' mode. But there's no way its believable that she would respond to that. And she doesn't. But then, suddenly, she does. The script kills any opportunity for these two to build a realistic chemistry.

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Agreed on the script again being the problem in setting up the scenario, I would have like to have seen a more vulnerable Anakin (I think that is what the Anakin dream sequence on Naboo was attempting to do) combined with Anakin making a big save of Padme during another assination attempt or other harrowing situation. But, I still like the stalker mode for Anakin. JMO.


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Originally posted by GOOCH

Seriously, though, this merely highlights the absolutely *idiotic* decision in Epsiode I to turn what was very mysterious and mystical concept (one of the great triumphs of Star Wars: to combine Arthurian mysticisim with science fiction) into so much dumb technobabble. Whoever told Lucas that he needed to 'explain' the Force, should be shot. (ok that's a little much. But he should definately be fired *and* ruffed up a bit). Of course, that leads us to this whole virgin birth thing and....nah, let's not even get into that. My blood is boiling as it is.

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Concur. I will bring my lightsabre and you bring the blaster!!!


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Originally posted by GOOCH

BTW, just as an aside, in both movies the Jedi mention that the 'prophecy' is that the sort of 'Christ-like' figure of the Force would 'bring balance to the force'. Well, since the Dark Side had been pretty much wiped out (remember from Episode I: there hasn't been a 'Sith' Lord in thousands of years), all the Jedi were good, and the Republic was in peace...didn't it occur to these guys that this *must* necessarily mean that this 'savior' is going to be propping up the *Dark* Side. Exactly why should they want 'balance' in the Force? I'd say that the 'imbalance' in the Force, with all the good guys winning, was a pretty darn *good* thing.

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Excellent point that frankly I had never thought of. It would appear that could be exactly what happens.


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Originally posted by GOOCH
Which brings up the obvious question that I raise: WHY DIDN'T HE GO TO FREE HER FROM SLAVERY 10 YEARS AGO? There's just no reason for such a dumb oversight.

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I shared your feeling on this point. That seems very sloppy. Particularly for such a pivotal point in the movie.


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Originally posted by GOOCH

I think they *had* to leave the scene out where Anakin is supposedly killing all these women and children. Look, if you are comitting mass murder, you aren't 'making a journey' or 'starting on your way' to the Dark Side. YOU ARE ALREADY THERE! Way, way, way there! And that's a big problem. The fact is, we shouldn't have seem him doing anything of the sort *before* he's turned to the Dark Side. That's because he *shouldn't* be there yet, and only someone way way on the Dark Side of the Force would do such a thing. Hell, none of the Dark Side guys (Darth Mal, Darth Dooku) have done anything that bad. Padme is clearly a good person. I'm not about to believe that she's going to get involved with a mass murder. And that's why Lucas had to leave out that scene. There is no way we can buy Anakin as even a troubled kind of hero if he leaves it in...and we certainly won't be buying Padme as his future bride. Of course, it shouldn't have gone down that way at all. They throw in the 'women and children' thing for effect. But there's just no need from it. By merely acting out of anger against the crimminals who commited his mother's murder, Anakin is starting down on the Dark Path. Remember what Yoda said, "once you start down the Dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny" and "hate is the way of the Dark Side" (yes, I knew that from memory, yes, I'm a sci-fi geek, so yes, you can quit snickering now, ). So we don't need him to become a mass murderer. We only need him to act out of anger. Out of hate. Luke starts down the 'dark' path by merely getting angry at 'Darth' and starting to aggressively attack him. Darth and the Emperor have killed his Aunt & Uncle, are trying to kill his friends, and are trying to rule the entire Galaxy with an iron fist. Yet if he tries to defeat them because he's angry at them...or because he hates them...then he's startring down the Dark path. That's where he realizes that he was making the same mistakes his father had, and that he didn't want to go that way. So, in other words, the mass murder of the TR's is overkill. And it completely destroys the dynamic of the film.

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Well, I would argue that if they are going to describe it that might as well have added another fight scene. If they just wanted to leave the scene as is, he should have fought his way out of camp with his mother and skipped the whole women and children thing altogether.

How about this for a way to handle two problems. This scene and the whole Padme/Stalker mess.

Anakin disobeys his orders and goes to save his mother from slavery (I know 10 years later but work with me) Padme accompanies him and he sets out to free her. It appears she has been captured by TR and he and Padme continue searching. They are ambushed by TR and he makes a huge save on Padme keeping her from being captured as well, he finds mom in the encampment, she dies and Padme tries to comfort him. He eventually snaps and goes out to kill the remaining TR (all male fighters) showing Padme his darker side. I don't know something along those lines where she sees Anakins weakness and his vengence.


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Originally posted by GOOCH

But having said that, I did enjoy the film. D.GOOCH
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Nice analysis. And, trust me, you aren't the only geek, I can remember when I was 9 after seeing Star Wars I made my Grandma drive all over souther Illinois to find a Jawa figure to complete my collection. Yep, call me a geek.

REVIEW OF STAR WARS EPISODE II: ATTACK OF THE CLONES
*** Stars out 5
I did enjoy Attack of the Clones more than Episode 1. I think my expectations were much lower given the first movie debacle. That said, I think it could have been a *much* better Movie. Some criticisms:


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1.) Huh? Jedi's can't fall in love? Can't marry? Since when? I don't seem to recall Obi-Wan mentioning this little tid bit to Luke when he said he wanted to 'become a Jedi like my father' (and you'd think, given that his *father* was a Jedi, this would be an important point to bring up). And if Jedi don't marry, and the Force is a genetic trait (see that whole mitichlorion nonsense from the first movvie, oooh!), exactly how does it get passed down? Or is it OK for Jedi's to sleep around...but just not to get into any serious relationships.

2.) The kid they got to play Anakin was hardly adequate. I didn't buy his play of emotions. He never sold me on any kind of 'love' for Padme...it seemed more like an obsession. But part of it might have been part of the next problem...

3.) The script. It was A-W-U-F-U-L. Just as bad as the first one. They try to make up for it with all those cutting from scences to scenes...but you just don't buy these characters. They all seem schitzophrenic.

a) One moment Anakin and Obi-Wan are chumming around...the next Obi-Wan is dressing him down in front of everyone (for no apparent good reason that I could get...Anakin's suggestion that they try and figure out who the heck was trying to kill Senator Padme seemed like a pretty darn good idea to me...alot better than sitting there passively and waiting for the killers to come. It isn't as if they were forbidden from investigating...and since when is it bad for a padawan learner to think indepdently?

b) Again we are supposed to get the impression that Anakin is too reckless. But frankly I'm on his side when he is *asked* for his opinion on an issue as a Jedi, and Padme makes this big deal about how he's not a Jedi yet. First, that's nonsense. Obi-wan was constantly refered to as a 'Jedi' in the last movie. What Anakin isn't is a 'Jedi Master'...but he sure as heck is a Jedi. And if he wasn't, so what? He was asked for his opinion, and Padme jumpin in there just made me want to tell her to 'shut up, b***h! Mind your own!'

c) And how about this love relationship, anyway. The script really doesn't work for us there. Unlike the mutual sort of 'anger' that developed into a love between Leia and Han that worked so well...this one seems to be all over the place. One minute Padme is treating Anakin like a stalker. You expect her next move to be to take a restraining order out on him. Next, she's all lovey-dovey with him. Huh? And you never really *feel* like this is a relationship. Like its a love story. The awful 30 minutes of them just hanging out in the grass (ugh, ugh! I wanted to get up an leave! Ick! I've seen B-rated soft porn flicks with better relationship scenes). Maybe its because we know Anakin is a bad dude (and isn't it nice how Padme overlooks the little fact of him being a mass murder in deciding to marry him). I think its just that they hired the same script writers from the first one. Proof that incompetence is not always a bar to a good career.

4. Is Anakin just dumb? He's been a Jedi for 10 YEARS. And he waits until he's had weeks and months of bad dreams about his mother, the galaxy is in an inter-planatary crisis, and his mentor is in big trouble...to FINALLY go see about his mom? Was there *some* reason in the last 10 years he didn't hop on a starship and get his mother out of slavery? It isn't as if she was living a life of luxurey...she was a slave!!! And he's on pretty good terms with the Jedi Council, the Senate, and Naboo. What, no one could fork over the money to buy his mother out? And we are supposed to believe this?

5. Did anyone else agree with Count Dukoo that the Republic is pretty useless? Anakin mentions it himself. This is supposed to be some great defense of democracy...but so then why is it the Republic that is trying to prevent other planets from freely *leaving* it? This gov't is frozen by indecision (though why the Senate was supposedly 'deadlocked' on sending troops itself...but had no problem voting to give the Chancellor dictatorial powers so that *he* could send troops is beyond me), it can't defend its members...and some of the members want out. Wouldn't it be the 'democratic' thing to do to...let them? Ask yourself, if it weren't for all the moral cues given to you by the movie (the Dark side, the attempted murders of the Jedi, etc.)...would you be a supporter of the Republic? I sure wouldn't.

6. So Naboo has a Queen. But she's elected and term-limited. And they seem to always elect teenagers. Okey Dokey....

7. Jar Jar Binx was in the movie. Nuff said. (though, happily, he wasn't in much of it. )

8. So were we supposed to be playing the game of 'how many parallels between this movie and Empire can you pick out'? Is anyone else annoyed by this formulaic adherence? We have Cloud City (except this time its in the ocean...everything else seems the same). We have the obligatory hanging by one arm from outside Cloud City (except this time its Obi-Wan and not Luke). We have the trounce through the steel-work setting with all the molten metal and sparks flying (except instead of it being a carbonite plant, it is a droid-making facility). We have the love story (except this time its not Leia and Han, but Padme and Anakin). We have the saber battle between the good guy(s) and the bad guy(s)...and the bad guy wins (except this time its Anakin and Obi-Wan against Dooku, instead of Luke v. Vader). A young skywalker gets his arm lopped off (except this time its Anakin, not Luke). Now, at least there was some stuff that broke away from the formula (it was less formulaic than Episode I)...like the investigation into the attempt to kill Senator Padme. But there were way too many as far as I'm concerned.

9. Uh, exactly why were they trying to Kill Padme? I never did figure that out...

10. Did anyone else realize that almost 2/3rds of the first two movies has been shuttling Padme, back and forth, between Corisant and Naboo?

SOME Pluses:

1.) Yoda frickin ruled!

2.) The CGI battle scenes at the end were awesome. As well as the saber fights. Top notch!

3.) I think that McGregor played Obi-Wan quite well.

4.) Storm Troopers as good guys. And Yoda in command. Now there's a surprising switch!

5.) Padme. In that white Leia-knockoff jump suit. With her....showing through her...(yeah, you guys know what I'm talking about. ). D.GOOCH