A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...

The final catastrophic battles of the Clone Wars are taking place galaxy wide – including one in the skies above the city-planet Coruscant, seat of the crumbling Republic and also home to the Jedi Knights. Chancellor Palpatine has been taken hostage by the nefarious General Grievous, leader of the droid army – the mechanized battle troops of the Separatist Alliance. Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) and Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) take on a desperate rescue effort, facing long odds to free Palpatine and destroy Grievous. It’s a daring mission, and Jedi Knight Skywalker will be forced to make a fateful decision. Faced with a choice between losing the one he loves or giving up his soul to gain the power to save her, Anakin will fall prey to the seductive temptations of the dark side of the Force.

This being the final film of the Star Wars saga it will always be scrutinized as part of the saga and never judged by itself. Someone will always be comparing it to the Empire Strikes back or the entire original trilogy, which is fair and unfair all at the same time. Alone the movie is a marvel it is a masterpiece a space opera grander than any of us could have ever imagined or hoped for. As part of the saga it is great but doesn’t really fit the original movies or heck the two previous prequels it so easily shows up. The thing about the original movies was they had magic a charm that just drew you in; they were star wars and that is why these movies stood the test of time. The prequels have lacked that magic but Revenge of the Sith recaptured a little of it with its grand fights, its marvelous action sequences and finally finishing the puzzle started 28 years ago. I will always be partial to the original trilogy as they were magical, while the new prequels have seemed too shiny too touched up and missing the whole rustic look and feel of the originals. But Revenge of the Sith was or should I say grand enough to save the prequels in my opinion and bring back the love of Star Wars to the masses hopefully.

Technically Revenge of the Sith will always be the most pristine of the Star Wars films as the action sequences were the most elaborate and beautifully done so far. From an epic twelve minute light saber duel to the best space battle scene of the entire saga the movie was action packed from start to finish. This is what Lucas had to have in mind when he decided to do the prequels with today’s advancement in computer generated graphics. But while the effects were the most elaborate it was the story that blew me away. The Star Wars movies have been known for a somewhat lesser story and plot with the best special effects to make up for it, but in Revenge of the Sith the story almost matches the effects. The betrayal of the Jedi has to be one of the most poignant scenes ever in a Scifi film as there were actually people crying when the Jedi fell. I mean the movie had its cheesy parts and utterly silly moments but for the most part the story was riveting as you felt for Obi Wan and Yoda the last survivors of a once proud society of warriors and protectors of the galaxy.

The Star Wars movies have always been panned for their lack of acting but it’s not always entirely the actor’s faults as Lucas has them speaking some of the most ridiculous things. Lucas can tell a story but he really struggles when it comes to the dialogue and that has always been reflected onto the actors. Ewan McGregor steals the show though as it is fitting the best actor of the old trilogy Alec Guiness played Obi Wan and the best actor of the prequels also played Obi Wan. Hayden Christensen who was blasted for his performance of Anakin in Clones gets to spread his wings a little as he is a good actor but the petulant teenager is just not what people wanted to think of when they think of Darth Vader. They wanted the Sith Lord in all his mighty fury and they got that in this movie. Natalie Portman and Ian McDiarmid round out the performances and give the movie the evil and heart it needed. I think I will always be old school and prefer the original trilogy and in my opinion the best movie of all time in the Empire Strikes Back but Revenge of the Sith might be my second favorite Star Wars movie and that’s saying quite a bit.
5 stars out of 5