Star Wars: Episode 3 - Revenge Of The Sith (2005) Review

Star Wars: Episode 3 - Revenge Of The Sith (2005) Review 

 Now we are here to the end of the prequel trilogy with The Revenge Of The Sith, yes this is the film that sees Anakin Skywalker turn into Darth Vader which at the time was probably the most anticipated film ever and the first film I remember vividly seeing in the cinema so this film was a big part of my childhood and this is my review for the film. The premise of the film sees Obi-Wan & Anakin sent to rescue Chancellor Palpatine from The Sepratists and aim to use their powers to try and end The Clone Wars. 

Main Character

I gave Hayden Christensen quite a bit of flack for his performance as Anakin Skywalker in Attack Of The Clones but I think he did a much better job in this film which is really important as he is clearly thr most important part of the film. You can see the progression that he has gone through since the previous film and it is interesting seeing him in his prime as a Jedi, you see from early on that he is really conflicted between the light and dark side and it is really great to watch. Ewan McGregor is back as Obi-Wan and he is fantastic, he is very charming and charismatic in the film and comes across as not just a wise Jedi but a good friend to Anakin. Their friendship is better represented in the film and it makes the ultimate split feel really emotional and you get invested in their final confrontation. 

Supporting Characters

Natalie Portman is back as Padme and she seems to have a smaller role in the film and I thought this was her best performance of the trilogy, don't get me wrong there is still the cringworthy romantic dialogue but it is in the film less. Their relationship feels a bit more natural in this film and I thought Padme managed to add to Anakin's story in the plot and it was a decent performance from Portman with what she was given. Ian McDiarmid as Chancellor Palpatine hasn't had huge roles in the previous two films but he is a huge presence in this film, his relationship with Anakin is the most captivating part of the film and it just adds more and more layers to the characters and his performance really worked for me. Frank Oz voicing Yoda was really good, you see that Yoda is still at his wisest but he has even been decieved and it shows exactly what the events are that lead to Yoda having to go into exile where he is in the original trilogy. 

Story

The story in this film sees Anakin's turn to the dark side and I thought it was interesting for the most part, seeing his and Palpatine's friendship grow really works for their dynamics, especially when you know where it is leading to. Also I thought the film made the Jedi a bit more mysterious and untrustworthy, there are times that you kind of see Anakin's point of view which does work. However, I feel like Anakin's turn happen's really quickly, he goes from a strong Jedi with a few issues to being a Sith Lord hunting down Jedi in about 15 minutes which felt way too quick and i thought it took away from the actual turn as a whole. 

Script

The script for this film is the best one of the prequels, the emotion is written much better in this film, there are some truly emotional moments and dialogue that are handled fantastically well and rise this above a bland movie. However, that awful cringeworthy romantic dialogue is there at times, though less it is still there and it does affect some scenes as it is hard to get invested when it sounds so ridiculous and like nothing any human would say. 

Style

This film's style has some really exciting action scenes, the battle scenes all feel huge in scale and keep you on the edge of your seat. Also the use of editing and John Williams score allow some truly memorable and impactful moments so credit has to be given there. There are also some good lightsaber fights, the one between Anakin & Obi-Wan is easily the best and shows two Jedi truly in there prime. However, it might seem like a silly critcism but maybe the film could have done with a few less lightsaber battles, every other star wars film before this pretty much had one lightsaber fight, but this film has 5 different lightsaber fights some are good (Anakin & Obi-Wan) and some are bad (Palpatine & Windu). They could have tried to be a bit more creative and have some force battles instead of just focusing on the lightsabers. 

Overall

Overall this is a good end to the prequel trilogy, it is easily the best film of the three. Though if you are not a Star Wars fan already I am not sure it is worth sitting through Phantom Menace & Attack Of The Clones just to get to this fim, but if you do you will find a good film with some very memorable moments.

Rating - 7/10