The Problem with Episode I was (besides a bit of silliness), that it introduced a completely new technology to create a world. The first time a film tried to create massive pieces supposed to look real in the computer, a technique first successfully utilized in the far superior "Lord Of The Rings" Films. After three years the second film should have concentrated far more on the story and used the technology naturally. Unfortunately this was not the case.
Episode II has a surprisingly good opening part, starting with the attempt to kill Amidala and the question, who is behind it, and when the assassin will strike next. The story goes downhill as soon, as it leaves Coruscant. It takes until the battle between Obi-Wan and the bounty hunter, for the boredom to end. The other problem is the soap-opera level of the portrayal difficult relation between Anakin and Amidala, which does not nearly have the intensity to stand up against the more technical part of the Film.
The acting in Episode II is surprisingly weak, particularly considering the quality of the actors involved, who have been far better in other films. This is a problem with George Lucas' directing, which seems too technical. Only the scene, were Anakin speaks to Amidala, after the incident starting his descent to the dark side is really good. Interestingly enough the computer generated characters have far better and more charismatic voices than the real actors, showing, once again, the importance of good voice acting for any role.
The action sequences also leave a somewhat ambiguous impression. They neither have the force of Bruckheimer Action, nor the fluid grace of John Woo. It seems George Lucas tried to aim for the second, but did not manage to go all the way. The resulting action pieces feel like someone put in a brake. The chase in the beginning seems to be heavily inspired by the Fifth Element, the asteroid chase is from The Empire Strikes Back (but not nearly as good), the arena fight is really obvious (Gladiator), and so on.
A problem of Episode I still not solved is the overdesigned feeling of the Film World. Many elements (particularly in Naboo and Geonosis) feel like they are there for their own sake, but do not fit in with the rest of the background and culture of their area. On the other hand Coruscant and Kamino do have a well-rounded feeling. The script takes too long to get to the point and leaves too many questions open in the showdown area. (I am not talking about the questions purposefully unresolved, because there will be a sequel.)
Another Problem in this film is the strangely imprecise camera. The director of photography seemed to have a problem making images of things not there on set and at the same time keeping the focus on what is important, leaving a feeling that the camera is, particularly in the calmer scenes, not really were it should be. The digital pieces at to the problem, particularly because they are in focus in many places, where they should not be. The film does have a certain entertainment value, but it is not a good film, not even compared to the other Star Wars movies.
Star Wars - Episode II |
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Alternativen |
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Detailed Ratings |
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| Storytelling: |  Good Opening  Boring middle part |
4 | |||||||||
| Characters: | Stereotypical characters with little personality |
4 | |||||||||
| Acting: | Mostly credible actors Little acting |
5 | |||||||||
| Camera: | Good images Sometimes off target |
5 | |||||||||
| Music: | Used narratively Good music |
6 | |||||||||
| Montage: | Good within scenes, but splits the threads too strongly |
6 | |||||||||
| Directing: |  Solid work for most part, but elements do not always fit |
4 | |||||||||
| Design: | Visually powerful Occasional elements do not fit |
7 | |||||||||
| Effects: | Create a World At times too obvious |
7 | |||||||||
| Action: | Undetermined style Mostly entertaining |
6 | |||||||||
| Sum: | Visually entertaining Weak narration |
54 | |||||||||
| Entertaining, but swallow, high-tech film | 5 | ||||||||||
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