The Best gets Better: Star Wars II, Attack of the Clones.

Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (2002) Directed by George Lucas.

This second installment of the Old Republic trilogy is the longest movie in the Saga. It is also the only one that did not win highest earning film of the year title. It also happens to be my favorite. Just barely (Return of the Jedi) but still, my favorite.

The story takes place over a decade after the first. Queen Amidala has completed her two terms as Monarch of the Naboo, and now serves them as their Senator. Obi Wan is a Jedi Knight, and an up and comer, and Anakin Skywalker is his Padiwan, now fully grown.

Fate brings them together again, as an assassin tries to kill the Senator. Instead, loyal Corde is slain, a decoy who ultimately lived up to her function. Chancellor Palpatine insists that she accept Jedi protection. To make it palatable, a pair of old friends, Obi Wan and Anakin.

The next assassination attempt only leaves behind a minor clue pointing to Kamino. But when Obi Wan goes to find the planet on the star charts, it is not there. But the gravity silhouette remains. The conclusion is inescapable, and so obvious even a child can see it. Someone has erased the system from the Jedi Archives. But only a Jedi could gain access. Something is horribly wrong.

Obi Wan is given the mandate to investigate Kamino, while Anakin accompanies Padme back to Naboo where she will be safer.

Obi Wan discovers a clone army being built by the elegant Kaminoans, based on a bounty hunter named Jango Fett, ordered by a dead Jedi Master, and intended for the use of the Republic.

The next leg of the journey follows Jango to Geonosis, where the Separatists are building a droid army. Now why would one bounty hunter be linked to both an illegal Republic Army, and its opposite number?

Meanwhile, Anakin and Padme, left to their own devices on Naboo, are falling in love. The only thing that disturbs their time together is their guilt, and Anakin’s nightmares about his mother.

Finally, he feels he has to rescue her. The couple flies to Tattooine.

There, Anakin must face his past as a slave, and falls prey to the Darkside of the Force.

But when Obi Wan gets himself in trouble on Geonosis, they are back in heroic form, and off to the rescue.

Forces are moving inevitably towards war, despite the best efforts of the Jedi. The fact that someone could conceal a clone army for over ten years proves the Dark Side is clouding their perceptions.

This movie is in many ways about the central tenant of the Jedi Order: A Jedi Shall Not Know Anger. Nor Hatred. Nor Love. The reason for this tenant is best contained in the first movie.
Yoda: How feel you?
Anakin: Cold, sir.
Yoda: Afraid are you?
Anakin: No, sir.
Yoda: See through you we can.
Mace Windu: Be mindful of your feelings.
Ki-Adi Mundi: Your thoughts dwell on your mother.
Anakin: I miss her.
Yoda: Afraid to lose her I think, hmm?
Anakin: What has that got to do with anything?
Yoda: Everything! Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering. I sense much fear in you.

And there is fear in Anakin. He fears for his mother. He fears he will never be with Padme. He fears that if he is with Padme, it will destroy them both.

He fears that he will never be out from under Obi Wan’s thumb, and he fears letting his mentor down. He fears no one will ever sense the greatness he senses within himself, and he fears that he will not live up to that greatness.

And he’s angry.

Which means he’s pretty much an average teenage male of the species. But Jedi are not allowed those luxuries; with their access to the force, even love can lead them to the Dark Side.

Part of the drama of this movie is that grim foreshadowing. We all know how it ends, going in. One of the pieces of foreshadowing I found very interesting, (and suspenseful, the first time around) was when Anakin’s hand got caught in the droid factory. I wondered if it would be severed at that point, because we know Darth Vader lost his right hand. When Anakin gave in to his rage against the Tuskan Raiders, we all knew the grim fate that awaited him for that.

One of the best things about the entire affair is now we understand the relationship of Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru. We can see the seeds planted, and understand how each came to be the people Luke knew. Owen was scared of Anakin, Beru pitied him.

The Attack of the Clones is all about the heights and depths that love can drive us to, and the pain that we inherit when we want what we can not have. It’s a tragic tale of the high price of being human.

Anakin is destined to bring balance to the Force. On one side of the equation are the Jedi, Millions, all dedicating to living a life without anger, with out hatred and without love. No strong emotions to lead one onto the path of the Dark Side. On the other side, the Sith. There are always two, never more or less. And they are totally driven by their passions. Perhaps it is Anakin’s destiny to not only reduce the numbers, but to open the path for responsible management of emotions in the life of the Jedi. Certainly, that seems to be the path that is laid out before him.

But here, now, he is not Darth, but Anakin, bright and precocious talented and mercurial, willing to risk everything for love. And who can not identify with that?

Part of the joy of this movie is its rich visual impact. Carefully designed, richly detailed, with an eye towards an alien feel, with classic design principles, the background of each shot do so much to bring out the feel that you are in a galaxy, far, far away. The costuming is delightful, no where more so than in Senator Amedala’s wardrobe. She always adds an element of richness.

The Architecture of Naboo is glorious and serene, round shapes and domes blending with the landscape. The harsh realities of Geonosis contrast with it, the barren overtaxed land, the organically produced hive city, and both bear no relation to the Urban Planet that is Corescant. Then add the sterile perfection of rain soaked Kamino…each location has a feel that tells you much about the people who live there.

The score also adds, each movement adding its flavor to the mélange. While unified in overall quality, each environment has its own tempo, its own feel that builds the mood.

The special effects…well, let’s face it, Industrial Light and Magic has pretty much written the textbooks in this field, and now the masters are allowed free reign to show off their best work. It’s phenomenal.

And some of the performances are wonderful beyond belief. Ewan McGregor has captured the very essence of Alec Guinness, making the transition believable. Samuel L. Jackson as Mace Windu; brilliant.

And while some critics have accused Hayden Christensen and Natalie Portman of not being very animated, I prefer to think of it as being subtle. When they are totally alone, out in the fields of Naboo’s lake country; there their emotions shine like torches. But where they would betray them, like on Corescant, there they are damped, subdued, subtle, but not missing. Some movie goers have gotten lazy. They want everything drawn for them in big primary coloured crayons; subtle shades escape their notice.

When you take each element of this movie; plot, pacing, script, sets, costuming, special effects, score, and performance, they add up to more than just the sum of their parts. An astonishing accomplishment and one I doubt we will see rivaled for many decades. I would give this movie that sixth star, if I could.


May The Force Be With You.

The New Frontier: Younglings.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Check out the other completely different Clone Wars cartoons.
Star Wars Clone Wars Volume One. and
Star Wars Clone Wars Volume Two.

Check out these Star Wars Novels:
Tatooine Ghost
Star Wars Legacy of the Force: Sacrifice
Star Wars Legacy of the Force: Invincible
The Cestus Deception.
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor

Check out these Star Wars Comics:
Tag and Bink Were Here
Jango Fett: Open Season.
Rites of Passage
Star Wars Rebellion: My Brother, My Enemy.

Check out my reviews on Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic.
Commencement
Flashpoint.
Days of Fear, Nights of Anger.

Check out the Future of Star Wars in Legacy:
Star Wars Legacy: Broken.
Star Wars Legacy: Shards
Star Wars Legacy: Claws of the Dragon
Star Wars Legacy: Alliance

The Star Wars Role Playing Game:
Star Wars Role Playing Game
Star Ships of the Galaxy
Threats of the Galaxy
Knights of the Old Republic Campaign Guide
The Force Unleashed Campaign Guide
Scum and Villainy
The Clone Wars Campaign Guide

Check out all the Star Wars Saga:
Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi