Reasons Why 'Star Wars: Attack Of The Clones' Was Good (And Why It Wasn't)
When it comes to Star Wars Episode 2: Attack of the Clones, there were many mixed reviews concerning the movie. At the time of the release of the movie, it was not received well among critics and among older fans who fully experienced the Original Trilogy. We have found out recently with the release of the Obi-Wan Kenobi series that the younger generation of fans really enjoyed the Prequel Trilogy and enjoyed this movie. We are going to discuss the reasons why some fans really enjoyed the movie, didn’t like the movie, and what it added to The Skywalker Saga as a whole.
What Was Good: Origin Story of Boba and Jango Fett (Sort Of)
In the Original Trilogy, you have this mysterious, bad character known as Boba Fett. You don’t know much about him except that he appears to be awesome, is a bounty hunter, has some sort of past relationship with Darth Vader, he’s directly employed first by Jabba the Hutt, and has a very disappointing ending by falling into the Sarlacc pit because of Han Solo’s lucky hit. Of course, his story is drawn out in detail in the new The Book of Boba Fett Disney+ series and in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, but he was always mysterious.
RELATED:
In Episode 2, you get the first peek into his childhood and where he comes from. You find out that he is the son of Jango Fett who is also a bounty hunter and was the original owner of Boba Fett’s armor before it was colored differently. You find out that the clone army, on which the Imperial Stormtrooper’s armor is based, are just clones that are identical to Boba Fett except they age exceptionally faster. Boba Fett was a direct clone of Jango but without any aging speed.
His story in this movie ends with Jedi Master Mace Windu cutting off the head of Jango Fett. You assume that this is one of the things that pushes Boba Fett to lean toward being a villain and a bounty hunter taking jobs that involve helping the Empire. It was a good adage to this movie and divulge some details of the past of the mysterious Boba Fett.
What Was Good: Seeing So Many Jedi In Action
After a long and uneventful movie, you have an awesome ending. The final conflict that begins the Clone Wars takes place in the arena. After Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Padme fight off those creatures that were meant to kill them, Mace Windu walks through the back hallway and holds his ignited lightsaber up to Jango Fett’s throat to hold him off. There is that great back and forth between him and Count Dooku which ends with the entire arena showing multi-colored lightsabers all around.
It was the first time we had seen many of those Jedi open their lightsabers and here we get to see them all in live-action. It was awesome seeing all those Jedi running towards those many droids. It was a good cap to a rather boring movie as a whole. To me, this was a fantastic and exciting point of the movie.
What Was Not Good: So Much CGI
This movie is littered with CGI. Every single one of the clones and droids were CGI. When I would imagine being a Jedi as a kid, slicing and destroying droids, it was fun, and I had a good time. If you have seen the BTS for Attack of the Clones, that is exactly what all those Jedi actors did. As a kid, this didn’t bother me but when looking back there was no danger and suspense to this final war. You have a bunch of faceless clones, fighting a bunch of faceless droids, and there is no danger.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars added emotion and suspense to when clones die by making them out to be more than just faceless clones. They are real people and soldiers with real emotions. But when you look at the movie on its own, there is so much CGI. From the clones to the droids, to the ships, to the terrain, CGI was everywhere. It was a fad back in the day, but it is nice that now there are so many more practical effects.
What Was Good: Hayden Christensen’s Acting (Sort of)
I almost put this under a “Not So Good” section, but after some thought, I moved it, and this is why. The idea was to create a younger Anakin Skywalker that was a frustrated teenager. A teenager that was pulled away from his mom at a young age, is frustrated because he has all this power but doesn’t have the discipline to harness it, and he is in love with Padme but is kept from pursuing a relationship because of the Jedi Code.
Many hormones and frustration are coursing through Anakin’s midichlorians, I mean veins. While it felt at times that the acting done by Hayden Christensen left some to be desired, after considering it, he did a fantastic job acting like an awkward and frustrated teenager by making the audience feel that awkwardness. So, I would say that his acting was a good part of this movie.
What Was Good: Fills In Some Story Holes And Mysteries
During this movie you hear of a Lord Tyrannus posing as a Jedi being the middleman for paying for the Grand Army of the Republic, partnering with a Jedi Master Syfo-Dias. All of this took place without the knowledge of the Jedi Council. All of this should have been a multitude of red flags for the Jedi that something was going on. Just a few years earlier the Sith make their sudden appearance and kill one of their most skilled duelists in Qui-Gon Jinn, and now this random army has been purchased by a mysterious Jedi and another Jedi who has been missing for years? In all of this, you begin to see how Darth Sidious plans to destroy the entire Jedi Order.
You see how the Clone Wars that Obi-Wan told Luke about started. You see the beginning of Boba Fett. You see the beginning of the Imperial Army that caused terror and destruction across the galaxy in the Original Trilogy. There are many of these little holes that are filled in by this movie if you are paying attention and not falling asleep. That brings us to the next “Not So Good” thing.
What Was Not So Good: Diplomacy
Whether it is Jar Jar Binks calling for the Republic to issue the Grand Army or Count Dooku walking down the hallway talking to what will be the Separatist leaders asking them to join the Confederacy of Independent Systems there is an unnecessary amount of diplomacy and talking.
It was an issue in Episode 1, the continual talking and deliberating instead of action and suspense. It is an issue in Episode 2, where there is this lull once Obi-Wan leaves Kamino and there is simply watching and listening to people talk about leaving the Republic. There’s going to be some sort of talking, but there could have been more action in the middle of the movie.
What Was Good: Opens Many Stories Possibilities
Some of the stories that were made possible by this movie have been divulged through books and in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars series. From the backstory of Syfo-Dias to Count Dooku’s fall from the Jedi Order to his history as a Jedi Master, to how the clone army was paid for and made possible by the Dark Lord of the Sith right under the nose of the Jedi Council. There is a slew of potential stories that were made possible by this movie.
This movie overall was very mediocre, especially when it comes to the standard set by Star Wars movies. There were periods when the action was fast-paced, and it was exciting to watch. Some examples are the fight between Jango Fett and Obi-Wan Kenobi, the battle in the arena between all the Jedi and the Battle Droids, and Yoda dueling with Count Dooku. But there were also just as many boring moments such as all the diplomacy and talking. When considering the rest of the movies in the saga this movie was mediocre but still better than it was originally received by the fanbase.
READ NEXT:
Sources: Wookieepedia, CBR