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Rated PG (Sci-Fi Action Violence
Throughout, Brief Language and Momentary Smoking)
Running Time: 1 Hour & 38 Minutes
Cast (voice)-
Matt Lanter-Anakin Skywalker
Ashley Eckstein-Ahsoka Tano
James Arnold Taylor-Obi-Wan Kenobi/4-A7/Medical Droid
Tom Kane-Yoda/Narrator/Admiral Yularen
Nika Futterman-Asajj Ventress/TC-70
Ian Abercrombie-Chancellor Palpatine/Darth
Sidious
Corey Burton-Ziro the Hutt/General Loathsom/Kronos-327
Kevin Michael Richardson-Jabba the Hutt
Samuel L. Jackson-Mace Windu
Anthony Daniels-C-3PO
Christopher Lee-Count Dooku/Darth Tyranus
Catherine Taber-Padmé Amidala
Dee Bradley Baker-Clone Troopers/Captain Rex/Cody/Fox
David Acord-Rotta the Huttlet
Matthew Wood-Battle Droids
Directed by David Filoni
 |
| Maybe a better title would be "Star Wars: The Cash-Grab." |
The last time we saw a "Star Wars"
film in theaters was in 2005, when George Lucas completed the saga with the
release of "Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith." Three
years later, Lucas is at it again with the release of the animated film
"Star Wars: The Clone Wars," which takes place between the events of
Episodes II and III and serves as a prequel to the new animated series
premiering on Cartoon Network this fall. It was originally intended to air on
television as three separate episodes but when Lucas saw the preliminary
footage, he decided—right then and there—for a theatrical release. Although it
offers plenty of lightsaber action for kids, "The Clone Wars"
ultimately feels like a blatant cash-grab in a franchise that should’ve ended
with the live-action films.
The Clone Wars is now in full swing following
the Battle of Geonosis in Episode II. Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi (voice of
James Arnold Taylor) and his apprentice Anakin Skywalker (voice of Matt Lanter)
are battling Separatist forces on the Outer Rim world of Christophsis (blatant
reference to Christopher Lee?), a battle that is soon won thanks to the timely arrival
of Anakin's new padawan learner Ashoka Tano (voice of Ashley Eckstein), much to
Anakin's chagrin. Yoda (voice of Tom Kane) tells Anakin that Jabba the Hutt's
son Rotta has been kidnapped, part of a plan by Count Dooku (voice of
Christopher Lee) and his Dark Jedi apprentice Asajj Ventress (voice of Nika
Futterman) to force the Hutts into the Clone Wars. Anakin must team up with
Ashoka and safely return Rotta to his father before Dooku succeeds in carrying
out his plans.
First off, I just want to say that I'm a
hardcore "Star Wars fan" but my expectations weren't very high for
this animated film; I mean I wasn't expecting "A New Hope."
Obviously, the story isn't going to be like the live-action ones since this is
an animated film aimed at younger audiences yet it mostly works and I was mildly
engaged. However, there’s always that nagging feeling where you know what’s
going to happen given the fact that the entire saga has already been told.
Since Ashoka Tano doesn't appear in any of the films, fans wouldn’t be far off
if they were to predict that she meets a horrible fate before the events of
Episode III. While the dialogue is tolerable, the characters have a tendency to
constantly remind viewers of what so-so can do. An example would be Obi-Wan repeatedly telling others that Anakin is one of the best pilots in the galaxy. Maybe it’s to make
sure kids followed the movie easily but I certainly didn't need so many reminders.
Some of the dialogue is rather cheesy and borderline stupid, with a battle
droid exclaiming at one point, 'Concentrate fire on Sector 113274265!' (Yes, I
memorized the exact number). This prompts another droid to say, 'Fire at Sector
1132...what was that again?' and the other one grabs him and points, 'Just
fire right there!' The use of cutesy nicknames like 'Stinky' or 'Sky-guy' also
came off as rather annoying. Once or twice is fine but Ashoka just keeps repeating
it in every conversation! There's not a lot of drama to be found either as the picture
is very action-oriented. This is something the filmmakers could've worked on since
a feature film provides the necessary breathing room that wouldn't be available
on a twenty-two minute animated show on television. Alas, this was an
opportunity missed.
Many critics derided the animation but I
thought it looked appealing as it reminded me of wooden marionettes or action
figures. There's also some anime flavoring to it, as everyone—especially Ashoka—has
big, round eyes, to make her more appealing to kids, I assume. The score also
tries to imitate John Williams and yet stand on its own. Sometimes it devolves
into generic guitar action music. Although it's serviceable, there’s no effort
to make it distinctly feel like a “Star Wars” film. A lot of the elements I
consider part of "Star Wars" are also missing, noticeably the famous
opening crawl and well-known lines like ‘I have a bad feeling about this.’
Instead the film opens with some cheesy news announcement about the state of
the Clone Wars. Critics also complained about the action scenes lacking tension
but this I felt was the film's best aspect. The lightsaber battles were
especially engaging despite all the outcomes being predictable. If Count Dooku
or Ventress were dispatched, it would leave no framework for the cartoon and
contradict the films. I also liked how Ashoka reminded me of a younger Anakin. Both
are reckless, headstrong, and ready to prove themselves. A more in-depth
exploration of the characters' similarities would've greatly improved the
picture. I would've also liked to learn more about Anakin's feelings when he
returns to Tatooine but I guess this would've been too much for kids to wrap
their heads around.
Released on August 15, 2008, "Star
Wars: The Clone Wars" has received overwhelmingly negative reviews with a
paltry 18% on Rotten Tomatoes. One critic reminisced about 'how people talked
about the Star Wars prequels like they were the worst movies ever made, when
really, come on, they weren't that
bad? The Clone Wars actually is that
bad.' Roger Ebert wrote that it had ‘reduced [Star Wars] to the level of
Saturday morning animation.’ Honestly, I think it was a mistake to release "The
Clone Wars" in theaters because it automatically betrays its television
origins. Despite that fact, the film works with its target audience. “Star Wars:
The Clone Wars” is a blatant cash-grab for sure but I was mildly entertained
and parents, if your kid wants to go see it, just take them. There's nothing
wrong with Lucas trying to create a new generation of "Star Wars" fans. However, I strongly advise him to stop milking the franchise with these
back-stories since we already know how it all ends.
Final Rating: 2.5 out of 5
Ahsoka Tano: Master Yoda has a saying, old
sins cast longs shadows. Do you...know what he means by that?
Anakin Skywalker: He means, your past can
ruin your future if you allow it. But you forget it was Master Skywalker who
said, I don't want to talk about my past.
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