Review

Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
Lucas lets loose his imagination and creates a fully realized universe in the first part of his trilogy prequel. Episode 1 follows Jedi master Qui-Gon Jinn (Neeson) and his young apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi (McGregor) through many lands and fights for the federation, where they also discover Anakin Skywalker (Lloyd), the future Darth Vader. Planets as diverse as the opulent Naboo and the gridlocked Coruscant are rendered with such detail that multiple viewings, as with all Star Wars films, are mandatory. It's dazzling to the eye and the ear, especially a Ben-Hur style "pod race," the completely computer-generated characters, and a climactic saber showdown with mysterious henchman Darth Maul. However, as the title "Episode One" suggests, it's very much in the style of an old cliffhanger, complete with wooden characterizations, overplotting, and only occasional action sequences to break the monotony. Additionally, the Jamaican Roger Rabbit, Jar Jar Binks, is the most annoying creature since Barney to grace the screen. The simple, mythic elements of the previous films are missing here, replaced by rote superheroism, even as the art direction and effects set new standards for filmmaking. Lucas has said he wanted to make a film for kids to enjoy; instead, he has made a film that's merely juvenile.

Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones
To paraphrase his THX tagline, Mr. Lucas is listening: Jar-Jar is out (almost), Yoda with a lightsaber is in, and Boba Fett (the original trilogy's cult hero assassin despite his lack of screen time) gets a really cool dad. The silly plot (about a big vote) takes a backseat, as it should, and instead propels the characters from planet to planet, with confrontations at many steps of the way. Young Anakin has grown up; he's not yet Darth Vader, but he's getting there. However, Christensen plays him like a rebel without a cause: all James Dean method acting in a King's English world. On the other hand, McGregor (as Obi-Wan) has this thing down, reading the serial's lines with the reverence of Shakespeare, while giving the little jokes (like an aside to Anakin: "You'll be the death of me") a James Bond flourish. The effects are terrific, as always, and will likely look even better on DVD, since the entire film was shot (and, in a few theaters, projected) digitally. Yoda is now completely computer generated and not a muppet, which is a letdown until a climactic showdown where he shows what The Force is really made of. Despite all this good stuff, Anakin and Amidala's affair (leading to Luke and Leia's eventual conception) takes up entirely too much time and is very flat; unrequited love (like Han and Leia) is always more interesting. Still, it's a step up for the series, perhaps setting the stage for a final installment that will be completely, unabashedly worthy of the Star Wars name.

Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
Call it Darth Lucas Strikes Back: The sixth and final Star Wars film is an exhilarating adventure that closes the circle of a sprawling space opera launched nearly thirty years ago. It's the first film of the prequel series to engage the emotions as effectively as it tingles the senses. Sith technically isn't the third film of a "trilogy" insofar as it is the pivotal stanza of one massively overblown and densely plotted overture — one that necessitated two movies' worth of exposition. Yet for all of the tedious plodding of Episodes I and II, surprisingly little of it is essential here. After a rousing opening space battle, we're served more Phantom Menace-type wind-bagging and stale romantic blather left over from Clones. Then it's on to the juicy stuff: Pressures bearing down on whiny, petulant Anakin Skywalker have nudged him to the brink of the Dark Side and we finally learn the Machiavellian details of what made him become Darth Vader. This makes for a grimmer Star Wars adventure than we're accustomed to, and the film's PG-13 rating is justified with action sequences of increased ferocity that contain some of the grisliest imagery Lucas has conjured yet. Portman and Christensen remain catatonic but at least McGregor and McDiarmid (as stalwart Obi-Wan and insidious Palpatine, respectively) deliver performances that are playfully nuanced and juicily hammy, respectively. The glimmering visual effects are superlative and maestro John Williams delivers a titanic choral-and-orchestral score. Despite a few vexing plot gaps that will incense fastidious fan boys, Lucas manages to tidy the important things up and smartly align with the start of the original Star Wars. And he just about makes up for Episodes I and II. Just about.

Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope
A little while ago and not too far away, a man nearly reinvented the American film industry. Dialogue, characters and situations from Lucas' trilogy have crept into the American psyche since this blockbuster first appeared on movie screens. One reason for this influence is the fact that Lucas himself was drawing on the myths and fables present in American film throughout its history, particularly in early serials and later Hollywood westerns. The story (based on Kurosawa's The Hidden Fortress): a group of motley adventurers must rescue a princess from the clutches of an evil tyrant, and then rally their forces to destroy his empire. What Lucas did was to combine this primal story line with dazzling (and cutting-edge at the time) special effects, sound, production design and an otherworldly galaxy of alien characters, thus making it appealing to everyone with a taste for adventure, fantasy, romance or fable. The "Special Edition" features new footage.

Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back
This second and arguably best installment of George Lucas' Star Wars trilogy picks up the story as the Rebellion, fresh from its destruction of the Death Star, is consolidating its power and internal structure. An Imperial probe droid soon interrupts their work and puts them on the defensive against a newly reorganized and newly vengeful Empire, led by the evil Darth Vader. The Rebel leaders disperse, Luke heading off to a swamp planet to complete his Jedi training, in order to be prepared for the inevitable confrontation with Vader, and Han and Leia taking an extended detour with the droids through an asteroid belt and a city in the clouds. By far the darkest of the trilogy, Empire sustains a high level of tension throughout the film, especially since there exists the real possibility of evil triumphant. Discarding the western clichés of the first film, Empire improves upon the original and leaves the viewer wanting more, more, more.

Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi
The sixth and final chapter in George Lucas' Star Wars series lives up to its expectations as a nail-biting battle for the galaxy, but does not surpass Star Wars or The Empire Strikes Back. Featuring great special effects, it is also unfortunately the most commercial. The film begins with our heroes attempting to repair the damage of the Empire's strike back, by rescuing Han from the abode of the gangster-slug Jabba the Hut and getting Luke a new hand and a completion to his Jedi training with Yoda. The story then shifts to the Rebellion's grand plan: to destroy the new Death Star, the Emperor and Darth Vader in one final assault. A bit sappy, perhaps, but the audience of the original Star Wars grew up between the first and third movies, and was not the target audience of Jedi.