So the waiting has ended. Or rather, the waiting has begun. After the lukewarm Episode I, anticipation for Episode II was at a rather low level on my part until the spectacular Trailer A (Breathing) rekindled my interest. But Episode II definitely left me wanting for more. The only bad thing about seeing the movie at the charity advance premiere is having to wait 5 full days before I can see it again. And let me tell you this in advance, the worst thing about Attack Of The Clones is the way it leaves you madly anticipating its sequel.

So let me recap some important light and dark side points about the movie without any spoilers first. As if you needed any help in deciding whether you want to see the movie ;-)

The Light Side (unspoilt):

• Speed. Star Wars has always been about speed, and this movie has it in spades.
• Surprises. If you've managed to avoid spoilers like I did, this movie is going to surprise you more than one time. There were several moments that had me going "F***, this ain't happening!"
• Humor. Okay, there is some slapstick in here too, but it's not as bad as in Episode I. And the trademark dry humor we expect from Star Wars is definitely here.
• Acting. Hayden Christensen may look a bit silly when he makes googly eyes at Amidala, but otherwise he's a very convincing Anakin. I was quite impressed.
• The look of the thing. Amidala's new wardrobe is stunning. Anakin's costume (which already sets him apart from the Jedi order) is a definite "wanna have" item. The ships, the planets, the cities, etc - this movie is a feast for the eyes.
• The story. One of my complaints about Episode I was that basically, when the movie ended nothing had really happened. Not so here. Things are happening all over the place, Palpatine's machinations are a pleasure to watch and the galaxy changes considerably during the course of the movie. Plus, there's Anakin's development. I remember George Lucas once saying that when people saw Episodes I through VI in order, they'd feel pity for Vader when he storms aboard Tantive IV in Episode IV. So far he has won that bet halfway.
• The action. Lightsaber fighting at its finest. Chases. Battles. The works.

The Dark Side (unspoilt):

• Speed. At times this movie it just too fast. It makes you dizzy. It becomes difficult to concentrate. Too many things happen onscreen at the same time and the eye can't decide which of these to be riveted on. Gives you a lot of incentive to watch the movie several times, but there are scenes where less would have been more.
• Special Effects. Now, don't get me wrong: I'm not saying the FX are basically bad. They look great. But they stand out. There are times when the CGI looks like the cutscenes from a computer game, making suspension of disbelief take a hard blow. In my opinion, the purpose of special FX is to make the world of the movie seem real, and this is definitely not achieved in several crucial scenes.

Now for a more detailed analysis. From this point forward, I'll assume you have either seen the movie or found out about the plot in advance, so I'll definitely dish out SPOILERS. You have been warned.

Spoiler Review

The movie starts with a big bang. The assassination attempt at Amidala took me completely by surprise. Okay, there was no way in hell she could have died in the explosion (after all, I'd seen her in the trailers), but it was still a shock, and beautifully executed. It really sucks you into the movie right from the start. And then the plots begin to take form: Anakin courting Amidala. Amidala getting to know the grown up Anakin. The assassination plot. The political machinations. The clone army. Anakin's estrangement from Obi-Wan and the order. Beautiful plots they are, and beautifully intertwined. There were several times where I wondered just how far reaching Palpatine's plans and influence are. He got Amidala out of the way on Coruscant so Jar Jar (yecch) could be cajoled into advancing his plan. But why did he insist on Anakin going with her? The way Anakin received visions of his mother, urging him to go to Tatooine, was incredibly reminiscent of Vader using Leia and Han as bait for Luke on Bespin. Was Tatooine a trap? Was Shmi's death part of a plan to turn Anakin to the dark side? Was Amidala supposed to die on Tatooine? Or is Palpatine devious enough to already know that Anakin's feelings for Amidala will estrange him from the Jedi order?

Anakin is very believable throughout the movie. His arrogance and thirst for power come across very well. His anger at Obi-Wan for "holding him back" is totally believable when you see the way Obi-Wan treats his Padawan (and is promptly chastised by Yoda for having fallen to arrogance too). The death of his mother and the revenge he takes out on the sandpeople is touching, gripping, and, again, totally understandable. His vow to become "the most powerful Jedi ever" is chilling. especially since we already know the way this vow is going to come true. And considering that Anakin has not been to Tatooine in ten years, you have to ask yourself why. Did he never utter a wish to visit his mother? Unbelievable. So the order - through the person of Obi-Wan - probably refused him on the grounds of a Padawan not being allowed to have any attachment to his past life. And Anakin will always believe that he could have saved her if he'd gone to Tatooine earlier. It does not surprise me that he will be turning his back on the order. I would probably do so too if I were in his place. That's not to say I didn't like the Jedi in Episode II, of course. I LOVED them. They kick absolute booty, and they do it with style. I was amazed that we actually see heads roll - so far George Lucas has gone to great lengths to avoid graphic violence in Star Wars movies. The action in this flick is incredible. The beautiful choreography of the fighting Jedi. Jango Fett kicking the living daylights out of Obi-Wan. Mace Windu laying down the law. Amidala dodging the machinery on the conveyor belt - a scene lifted straight out of classic ego shooters. Anakin wielding two lightsabers. And Count Dooku still holding him at bay with no effort at all.

And then there are the beautiful parallels to the classic trilogy. Count Dooku's offer to Obi-Wan to "join me" and end the menace of the Sith practically reeks of Vader trying to turn Luke on Bespin. I already mentioned the way Anakin is lured to Tatooine. The would-be rescuers being caught and Amidala being the first to break free of her chains in the arena are a beautiful parallel to Luke and Han's attempt to break Leia out of the Death Star's detention block. Anakin and Amidala on the seaside resort terrace after Anakin has been fitted with his prosthetic arm is pure Episode V. Obi-Wan cutting in half the bounty hunter's weapon in the bar (Mos Eisley, anyone?). And there are lots of beautiful little allusions to later events. Anakin's shadow on Tatooine looking like he's already wearing the Vader helmet (look closely in the scene where only the shadows of Anakin and Amidala are seen). Did you laugh at C-3PO recognizing Anakin? "The Maker", indeed. One of a lot of little jokes that'll probably be lost on the majority of the audience ... My favorite definitely was Obi-Wan saying that Anakin is yet going to kill him one day. Visions of the future, eh? :-)

And boy, does this movie have some surprises in store for you. It starts with the bombing of Amidala's ship. Then there's the famous kiss from the trailer, the kiss you've been waiting for, and it turns out that this is not THE kiss as Amidala pulls a Scully to Anakin's Mulder. Anakin losing his arm had me gasping, in sympathetic pain as well as in shock. After the scene where he wields two sabers, I was so sure he would punch Dooku's ticket. And then of course there's Yoda fighting. I have no clue whether there was any dialogue after Yoda ignites his saber because the only thing I heard during the rest of the duel was the roaring applause of the audience :-)

The movie does have its drawbacks. I already mentioned problems with the CGI effects. The battle on Geonosis (the mechanized one, not the arena battle) looks like a video game, not like a movie. Well, at least it looks like a good video game. Think Xbox. Do not think PlayStation ;-). Some of the CGI creatures have problems too. One that really got on my nerves in no time at all is the hole in Dexter's shirt. The way the shirt moves and the way the skin underneath moves just don't fit. It's a small thing, but it caught my eye and immediately jolted my mind back into reality, taking away from the scene. But I would be unfair if I didn't mention how great some of the other FX are. The asteroid chase is wonderful. The sonic charges nearly take you out of your seat if you're in a theater with a good sound system. By the way, I was amazed that there was no music during the asteroid chase. I assume this was a decision made to give the sonic charges even more impact. The blue light on Kamino, the red light on Geonosis - subtle touches that make the worlds more alien and at the same time more believable. Yoda was more convincing than ever before. I'm not 100 percent sure after seeing the movie for the first time, but I could swear he has tears in his eyes when he feels Anakin dipping into the dark side as he takes his revenge on the sandpeople.

It's not as if the plot didn't have any holes. For example, why did Jango Fett use a dart manufactured on Kamino to take out his hired help? Use any other weapon and Obi-Wan would never have found the clone army. Unless the army was supposed to be found ... which would imply Palpatine wanted to sacrifice Count Dooku and the Trade Federation right from the start. And you have to wonder at his long term planning. If the clone army was ordered ten years ago, that would have been at the time of the Naboo conflict. Where did Palpatine get the resources for this? I don't believe a project as huge as this can be ordered COD. Did Palpatine have an insane amount of Sith assets he sold off to pay for the clones? Did the Trade Federation pay for it? There are a couple of questions here the movie should have answered, but didn't. It's things like this where the plot gets muddy, and the movie doesn't give enough answers for the questions it throws in your face. Obi-Wan being too stupid to figure out that Kamino had simply been deleted from the maps? Puh-leeze. This makes for a cute scene with the little Padawans, but make sense it does not. And if there's a planet that can churn out a million clone troopers at a time, why haven't other worlds raised clone armies yet? Or, to look at it from another angle, what does Kamino's clone industry do if no one orders an army? Leaving those huge installations idle for decades at a time until an order of this magnitude comes in seems like a surefire way of killing the planetary economy to me. Or was all this built just to create this special army? Then why is Kamino famous for its clone production? Then there's Owen Lars being Anakin's stepbrother. What gives? Not only does this directly contradict the Episode VI novelization (which isn't canon, I know, but was sanctioned by Lucasfilm), it also makes the idea of hiding Luke on Uncle Owen's farm even more silly than it was before. Or here's another one: was the final scene between Anakin and Amidala a secret wedding? An engagement? Or was it neither? Then again, speculation about these details will give us something to do in the years until Episode III rolls around, and I think it's going to be a looong wait....

The final verdict? Nothing is perfect, and the problems with this movie are forgivable. Star Wars movies are action movies, and thus plot holes can be overlooked as long as they don't take away from the immediate enjoyment of the movie. The FX problems are irksome at times, but if you're willing to get into the spirit of things it's still a roller coaster ride the whole way through. Overall, it's still a straight "A" in my book. The magic of Star Wars, which was so sadly missing from The Phantom Menace, is back in full force here. Not Nobel prize material (in fact, I'm only giving this movie two shots at an Academy Award - costumes and score), but enough to put you on an adrenaline high that doesn't wear off for 24 hours after the movie ends, and to make you itch for Episode III the way The Empire Strikes Back left you itching for Episode VI. Let us hope Episode III isn't as much of a letdown as Return Of The Jedi was....