Release Date:
Thursday, May 19, 2005
The Force is back! You have to hand it to George Lucas. After the first two disappointing Episodes, the director has found new creative life by turning to the dark side and adding a "13" to his standard Star Wars PG rating. As a result, audiences are treated to the most exciting lightsaber duels of the entire six film series and a compelling look at how Anakin Skywalker turned into Darth Vader. Uttering lines like, "I'm not the Jedi I should be. I want more," Hayden Christensen's transformation into Vader is truly chilling—a performance so creepy he makes Scott Peterson look like Mr. Rogers. With limbs flying through the galaxy in record numbers, Lucas has stopped making films like a 9-year-old playing with his Star Wars toys at home and has finally channeled his inner Sith. Sure, that cute little R2-D2 does his Toys"R"Us best to be likeable comic relief, but this film doesn't pull any punches—particularly in a gruesome fight between Samuel L. Jackson's Mace Windu and Emperor Palpatine, in which Jackson gets the shaft. Literally. But while the plot of the movie has few surprises—Episode III drops us off right at the doorstep of the original 1977 Star Wars—it's the journey that matters, not the outcome. Watching Anakin turn into a berserk serial killer with a permanent Halloween mask is what solidifies this one as a true summer masterpiece. Lucas even has the balls to bring Jar Jar Binks back to the party, but wisely decides to keep his mouth shut this time. Gather up your Wookiee pals and check it out. It's the thrilling middle to a great story.