Tonight I saw Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith. I made it to the theater at 6:15, just in time for the 6:30 showing and still find a good seat after plucking down my $6.50 (yes, that’s right, $6.50, and that isn’t even the matinee rate). Okay, this theater is not the Egyptian in Hollywood where I saw Empire for the first time, not by a long shot, and not even the theater in San Diego where I saw Star Wars what must have been at least seven times before its initial run ended. However, it’s the best came around if you don’t want to drive 50 miles and stand in line for hours, as most people have done.
Having settled in for the film, I waited as the theater continued to fill until about three-quarters capacity, and then the lights dimmed for the coming attractions, Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, which looks like it should be a great film, and then The Fantastic Four.
Silence fall over the theater as the main attraction started with the familiar theme and opening title that we have come to expect ever since Star Wars splashed across the screens back in 1977.
In brief, not since The Empire Strikes Back have we been treated to a SW film this intense, and this good. It is a must see, and not for the special effects, although the effects are an integral part of the film and are of the highest caliber.
This film is immense, and sets the stage for the original trilogy, now numbered episodes IV, V, and VI. The end of the clone wars, the rise of empire, and how the Jedi fell into the Lord of the Sith’s master plans resulting in their own demise. But we all knew that was coming ever since the first film came out so long ago.
And I have found myself thinking back to when I first saw the original set of films, and how much I enjoyed them, especially the very first.
Revenge of the Sith matches those films in quality and scope, and this film is intense, with plots and sub-plots within the Republic and the Jedi Council, building up to the unveiling of the Dark Lord of the Sith. At least for the Jedi perspective, and the "birth" of Darth Vader.
The fight scenes are well choreographed, the acting is excellent and this film is superior in every way to much of the schlock coming out of Hollywood these days.
See it on the big screen; it is well worth the price of admission. And yes, this one I plan to see again (unlike the last two).
