O.K. so I finally saw it. Let me start by saying that my criticisms of the previous prequels continue in this last installment. CGI was overused. Actors get lost in front of a green screen. Some creatures, ships, and robots were hokey, superfluous or over the top. The story was a bit convoluted compared to the neat simplicity of "A New Hope" and "The Empire Strikes Back"

But... this was the first prequel worthy of "A New Hope" and "The Empire Strikes Back".

Some of the CGI scenes were mind-blowing in a "Bladerunner"/"The Fifth Element"/"Lord of the Rings" way. The emotional content was staggering for a Star Wars film with some truly jaw dropping moments. Natalie Portman seems to be able to channel spirits in her performance. It was crushing to see Anakin's slow decent into the dark side. !!SPOILER!!



When Anakin kills the children at the Jedi temple I was shocked...his grief and pain at the thought of losing his wife truly drove him nearly insane. When Padme says "there is still good in him" it is a heart-breaking denouement.


I actually liked Hayden Christensen as Anakin and Ewan McGregor seemed to relish his role as Obi-Wan in this movie. I'll bet you'll never look at the old man in the brown robe in "A New Hope" the same way again.

Certain things in the movie were totally predictable.

The widespread use of droids and aliens as the target of jedi slaughter was a conscious effort from making Jedi appear ruthless murderous assassins. It allows Jedis to slice and dice without offending the audience.

Obi-Wan's showdown with Grievious was totally a set-up to make us believe he could hang with Anakin in the final battle. Since in almost all previous battles Obi-Wan was ineffective and his skills paled in comparison to Anakin's.

Question: Why do the Jedi seem to have lost all sense of anticipation and the ability to sense other lifeforms, intent, etc. in these prequels? All the jedi should have been able to sense Padme's pregnancy and so forth.

It was good to see that Mace Windu wasn't just a blowhard and that Samuel L. Jackson kicks ass in all universes. ("YEAH, I KILLED THE SITH AND I HOPE THEY BURN IN HELL!!!!!" )

Tiring Yoda's sentence construction has become.

General Grievious sucked.