Hollywood hues
By George

The latest Star Wars Episode III is recommended only for die-hard fans, says Ervell E. Menezes

SO the Star Wars juggernaut rolls on and on, just another case of Hollywood regurgitating its old films and we have Star Wars Episode III Revenge of the Sith, which will hopefully be the last.

It’s three decades of the same theme and one must admire filmmaker George Lucas’ perseverance. But then what would he do with his Industrial Lights and Magic (ILM) special effects company if he did not indulge in his favourite razzle-dazzle, FX style.

When Obi-Wan Kanoubi (Ewan McGregor) tells friend Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) "Sith lords are my specialty," it is a kind of declaration of war against the Sith lords. It is the Jedis versus the Sith lords. Not much later you find Kenoubi commending him for his action. "You did well, Anakin," he says but their friendship falls victim to the power struggle.
The young Jedi knight Skywalker is being wooed by Chancellor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid) against the Jedi Council of which Skywalker is supposed to be "the eyes, ears and voice."

It is a struggle for power and though Master Yoda tells Skywalker "train yourself to let go of everything you love," it is easier said than done.

When Padme (Natalie Portman) tells Skywalker "something wonderful has happened" (no prizes for guessing correctly) it further complicates the issue. He’ll be banned for fathering his child. Thankfully, there are some good lines about power and its abuse, which were quite absent in the earlier films. It endows the film with a cerebral touch and this provides some relief from the super-gadgetry and orbiting of spacecraft to say nothing of the weird creatures, some as archaic as Spielberg’s dinosaurs.

The falling out between friends can be likened to that of Charlton Heston and Stephen Boyd in Ben-Hur though it is not in the same class. But it gives the film some body to detract from the Star Wars juggernaut of special effects which almost lulls one into slumber. R2D2 and C-3PO, old favourites to many, provide some relief but the operative word is "some."

Samuel L. Jackson makes a brief appearance as Mace Windu and Christopher ‘Dracula Lee’ continues to do his thing but they are like moths about to be extinguished by the flame as the key triangle comprises Kenoubi, Skywalker and Padme.

Can Skywalker become the Dark Side or Darth Wader ? That is the million-dollar question. And what of Padme and her undying love for him. What does Kenoubi have to say about all this? This slim story is set against planetary escapades where laser swords are used like cutlery and heads roll and/or are knocked off like nine pins.

It is like a never-ending story which even the climax seems to prolong the agony with its supreme simplicity. Not everybody’s cup of tea.

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