Revenge of the Sith is the picture the prequel trilogy had been promising to be for six years, and the fact that it largely delivers on that promise is both a achievement and a reminder of how much the earlier films squandered. George Lucas's third prequel is darker, more emotionally serious, and more coherent than either of its predecessors, and it contains sequences of power that the original trilogy would not have been ashamed of. It is not a perfect film. The dialogue retains the stiffness that plagued the earlier prequels, the romantic scenes between Anakin and Padme remain the trilogy's most persistent weakness, and the pacing is uneven in its middle section. But it is a picture that takes its subject seriously, that understands the tragedy it is trying to tell, and that delivers Anakin Skywalker's fall to the dark side with a conviction and an emotional weight that makes it the most satisfying entry in the prequel trilogy by a considerable margin.
At a Glance
Director: George Lucas
Runtime: 140 minutes
Starring: Ewan McGregor, Hayden Christensen, Natalie Portman, Ian McDiarmid, Samuel L. Jackson, Frank Oz
Release: 2005
Critics Rating: ★★★½ (3.5/5 stars, the prequel trilogy's finest)
Audience Rating: ★★★★ (4/5 stars, the prequel redeemed)
Review Breakdown
Plot
The Clone Wars are nearing their end. Anakin Skywalker, haunted by visions of Padme dying in childbirth, is seduced by Chancellor Palpatine's promise of the power to prevent death. The plot is the prequel trilogy's most coherent, with a clear through-line and a sense of tragic inevitability that the earlier films lacked. The Order 66 sequence is one of the most devastating passages in the saga's history. The final act, which bridges the prequel and original trilogies with considerable skill, is the most satisfying conclusion the prequels could have achieved.
Characters
Hayden Christensen is considerably better here than in Attack of the Clones, finding an anguish and a menace in Anakin's final hours as a Jedi. Ian McDiarmid is extraordinary as Palpatine, delivering a performance of theatrical relish and menace that is the prequel trilogy's finest acting achievement. His seduction of Anakin in the opera house sequence is one of the finest scenes in the saga. Ewan McGregor's Obi-Wan is given the trilogy's most emotionally demanding material in the final confrontation with Anakin, and he meets it with a conviction and a grief that makes the scene moving. McDiarmid is the defining performance, and his Palpatine is the prequel trilogy's greatest contribution to the saga's mythology. McGregor is as excellent as ever, and his final scene with Christensen on Mustafar is the emotional climax of the entire prequel saga. Christensen is more effective here than in Attack of the Clones, and his performance in the scenes following his turn to the dark side has a desperation and a self-loathing that gives Anakin's fall a human dimension the earlier films could not achieve.
Tone
Lucas pitches the picture at a register of operatic tragedy, and the approach is largely successful. Revenge of the Sith is the darkest Star Wars film, a picture that earns its PG-13 rating through the weight of its subject matter rather than through gratuitous content. The opening space battle is the most kinetically accomplished sequence in the prequel trilogy, and the Mustafar confrontation is the most emotionally charged. The tonal consistency is considerably stronger than in the earlier prequels, and the picture's willingness to commit to its tragic register gives it a coherence that The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones never achieved.
Meaning / Themes
The picture is most powerful as a study of how fear and love can be weaponised to destroy a person. Palpatine's manipulation of Anakin's terror of loss is the prequel trilogy's most coherent piece of dramatic reasoning, and the suggestion that Anakin's fall is the product of comprehensible human weakness rather than simple villainy gives the saga's central tragedy a moral complexity that the original trilogy's more mythic framework did not require. The parallel between Anakin's seduction and the Republic's transformation into the Empire gives the political and personal storylines a thematic unity the earlier prequels lacked.
Direction
Lucas's direction is the most assured of his prequel work, with a stronger command of dramatic pacing and a clearer sense of how to build emotional momentum than either of the earlier films demonstrated. The Mustafar sequence is the prequel trilogy's directorial highlight, a confrontation of scale and emotional intensity that gives the saga's central tragedy its most powerful visual expression. John Williams's score draws on the full breadth of the saga's musical history, weaving established themes into new contexts with a skill and an emotional precision that gives the picture its most consistent quality.
Cultural Reception
Revenge of the Sith received strong reviews on its release and was a major commercial success, grossing over $868 million worldwide. Critics praised McDiarmid's performance, the Mustafar confrontation, and the picture's willingness to commit to its tragic register, and it is now regarded as the prequel trilogy's most accomplished entry and a partial vindication of Lucas's creative vision for the prequels. Its reputation has improved steadily since its release, and it is now frequently cited as a significantly better film than its initial reception suggested.
Who Should Watch
Essential viewing for Star Wars followers and the most rewarding entry point into the prequel trilogy for those who found The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones disappointing. Revenge of the Sith delivers on the prequel trilogy's central promise with enough conviction and emotional weight to make the journey worthwhile.
Final Verdict: The prequel trilogy's finest entry and a partial redemption of the saga's most contested creative chapter. McDiarmid's Palpatine is the prequel trilogy's greatest performance, McGregor's Obi-Wan its most consistently excellent presence, and the Mustafar confrontation its most emotionally powerful sequence. The dialogue retains the stiffness of the earlier prequels and the romantic scenes remain a weakness, but the picture's commitment to its tragic register and the coherence of its central argument make it the most satisfying Star Wars film since The Empire Strikes Back.
0 comments