Star Wars Reconsidered: Revenge of the Sith

The greatest tragedy of the Star Wars prequels is perhaps something that is only indirectly the fault of George Lucas: it’s that so many have grouped the third installment Revenge of the Sith along with the first two and dismissed it as another of humanity’s great atrocities. Going into this film, fans were already so disillusioned that they felt they were watching this last one just for the sake of finality. It wasn’t enjoying a movie as much as it was homework, and they left convinced that they had just seen George Lucas ruin their childhoods once more. However, these people are making the fatal error of dismissing a mostly terrific film. That’s right. I said “terrific.” Any bad in Revenge of the Sith is disposed of early, and what’s left is a brave, visually exciting and heartbreaking finale that ties up all the series’ loose ends in an incredibly satisfying way. If the first two prequels were an uneven mixture of the good George Lucas and the bad George Lucas, this film leans decidedly on the “good” side of the equation.

I’m not the only one that feels this way. A trip through Rotten Tomatoes will show you just how on board with the film most critics were. My feelings can best be summed up by A.O. Scott’s very positive review for The New York Times, where he even goes as far as to call Revenge of the Sith the best Star Wars movie that George Lucas directed. I will not go that far, but there’s no denying that something clicked for Lucas between the CGI frenzy of Attack of the Clones and the emotional punch of Revenge of the Sith. Perhaps he recognized his faults in the first two, or—more likely—this was just the story he was waiting to tell all along. The final act of this film was the very reason we sat down for the prequels in the first place, and now Lucas would finally get a chance to put it all onscreen. Similarly, that is part of the thrill of Revenge of the Sith: we’ve heard all about how the Empire and Darth Vader came into being, and now we get to see it. Against all odds, it does not disappoint.

It helps that in Revenge of the Sith, George Lucas is using CGI effects for good rather than just for the heck of it. In particular, several scenes in Attack of the Clones felt lifeless because there was no human element to them. The chase scene through Coruscant was just an excuse for Lucas to create a gigantic, weightless CGI landscape. While Revenge of the Sith doesn’t use less CGI, it typically is used to create more convincing and imaginative worlds that our characters can play in. Minimal time is spent riding speeders through Coruscant-like voids, and the universe created in Revenge of the Sith is a welcome return to the Star Wars universe of old.

However, I will admit that the film doesn’t begin all that promisingly. The first dialogue exchange between Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi is exceptionally wooden, and the subsequent battle has moments that evoke the more annoying aspects of The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones. The cutaways to R2-D2 comic relief aren’t good for anyone, and Lucas just seems to be up to his inconsistent ways again. If there’s one thing that is a clear improvement from the outset, it’s that the special effects do indeed seem to have a lot more weight to them. The first shot, which follows Anakin and Obi-Wan as they fly into battle, is pretty stunning, and Lucas throws in a few moments to prove once and for all that he’s more or less done with the kiddy stuff. (R2-D2 antics aside.) One shot in particular is pretty stunning, as one of the clone’s ships is destroyed and we see as his body flies out into space. While I have some problems with the ways Lucas uses CGI in the Star Wars prequels, there’s no denying that he’d never be able to pull off such a moment without this technology.

That’s part of what makes the CGI work in Revenge of the Sith so refreshing when contrasted with the first two prequels and many other mainstream blockbusters. In The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones, Lucas’ use of CGI felt like it was there just for its own sake. In Revenge of the Sith, there’s a clear(er) method to the madness. Does he still overdo it at points? Sure. Maybe I’m grading on a curve? Also possible. But I was much more immersed moment to moment while watching Revenge of the Sith than I was with either of the first two prequels. Once we get past this troublesome opening act, the film is nothing but a series of memorable moments than rank among the best in the series.

At times the moments are powerful in spite of the way they are written and acted; two things that Lucas still hasn’t quite nailed down. The dialogue and performances are a problem throughout the series—even the original trilogy—but I’m not entirely sure why it seems so much more glaring in the prequels. Perhaps Lucas had grown rusty as a director, as between A New Hope and The Phantom Menace he had not stepped behind the camera once. That’s 22 years between directorial efforts, and there are only a few people on this Earth who could go from zero to sixty after such a long time. George Lucas probably isn’t one of them. There’s no denying his technical expertise or imagination, but in his couple decades off his knowledge of how to deal with actors and give them smart things to say somehow disappeared. When his characters aren’t shouting clichés, they are calmly laying out the film’s themes and story. During the climactic confrontation between Anakin and Obi-Wan, the following exchange takes place:

Anakin: I should have known the Jedi were plotting to take over!
 Obi-Wan: Anakin, Chancellor Palpatine is evil!
 Anakin: From my point of view the Jedi are evil!

Well, thanks for the recap, George. This isn’t convincing dialogue; it’s a recitation of plot points. In case anyone went to the bathroom in the last hour or so, Revenge of the Sith neatly lays out all that has happened over the course of the film. Anakin helpfully informs Obi-Wan of his position—that he has been told of the Jedi’s evil intentions—which is followed by Obi-Wan’s statement of the obvious. However, all of this is just a set-up for Anakin’s glorious turd of a line, which I suspect Lucas got as a suggestion from a focus group of fifth graders. Not only is there no reason for dialogue here, but Lucas literally chose to write the worst possible line. It’s like he feared that the audience lost track of what was happening in the last ten minutes. The only thing more infuriating for Anakin to say would be something to this effect: “When you took me from Tatooine, I thought I was going to be a great Jedi. I was a tad stubborn, but I always thought I was fighting for the good of the universe. Unfortunately, I fell in love with Padmé and now I’m about to be a father. I let fear get the best of me, so Chancellor Palpatine brought me to his side with promises of ultimate power. Also, he convinced me that y’all were evil and now here we are on this freaking lava planet fighting each other to the death. Ain’t life strange?”

Yet against every odd in the universe, the crucial moment that comes not two minutes later is still incredibly powerful. You’d think one of the most irritating lines of dialogue in cinematic history would derail such a scene, but Lucas is able to pull himself out of the muck surprisingly quick. When Obi-Wan leaves Anakin for dead, it is a profoundly sad and moving occasion. I cannot fully explain why; it just is. The third act of Revenge of the Sith is made up of several of these moments, all of which are far more satisfying than anything that was done to set them up. Revenge of the Sith is a bleak, bleak movie, and it goes against most of the rules of mainstream moviemaking. That Lucas stuck to his guns and made it as bleak as possible—the film earned a much talked-about PG-13 rating—is an admirable decision. When contrasted to the grating kiddie humor seen in The Phantom Menace, it’s absolutely night and day.

Let us not forget the main reason Revenge of the Sith works so well: the story that was told in the prequels was, is and always will be fascinating. The series of events in all three films is very convincing as storytelling, and I’ll bet in writing the outline was magnificent. In many ways, it’s a far bolder story than was told in the original trilogy. (No, they’re not better films.) As a whole, the Star Wars saga is one about the cyclical nature of society and government, and how dictatorships lead to democracies and back again, and how evil can come out of ostensibly good intentions. The original trilogy—and the next three films I’ll be discussing here—is just the happy ending. A wonderfully entertaining happy ending, but the happy ending nonetheless. The prequels are the story of how the universe was plunged into the darkness that began the original trilogy, and that’s a far more daring story to tell. If Lucas was able to execute them a little better as a whole, they could have been one of the great filmmaking feats of all time.

As it exists, Revenge of the Sith is still a pretty great film, and it often acts as a reminder of George Lucas’ potential as a storyteller. There’s a reason that he’s been so invested in the Star Wars universe for the vast majority of his career; this is a world that’s been in his head for a very, very long time. With the prequels, he was finally able to tell his story, his way without interference. That kind of complete creative freedom is so rare, even if there are times in these prequels that I wish there was someone else to give Lucas some input. As Roger Ebert says in his Revenge of the Sith review: “George Lucas has achieved what few artists do; he has created and populated a world of his own.” At its best moments, Revenge of the Sith acts as a reminder of how beautiful and rare such an achievement is. I understand why so many dislike these prequels, but I will never understand why they feel so personally betrayed by them. These are George Lucas’ films, and he can do with them whatever the heck he wants. You don’t have to agree with every decision—I certainly don’t—but I can never identify with someone who gets so enraged whenever the topic of the prequels comes up. There’s little denying just how fully-realized the Star Wars universe is, and the way Revenge of the Sith brings the saga full circle is both impressive and satisfying. Most of those who criticize could never even come close to thinking up such a massive story.

Though I will admit I could do without Darth Vader’s prolonged “nooooooo!!!” But give the man a break. He’s going through a tough time.

Next time: Luke Skywalker grows up, and the Death Star’s construction is completed… but with one rather glaring architectural flaw.