Attack of the Clones

I didn't manage to see the film in a digital theater but agree with Sugarbrie and Drubin about its artistic merits and with their specific criticisms. To this, I would add the following.

The earlier movies (IV-VI) reworked many elements from other films into a compelling science fiction adventure. From westerns there was the starkly drawn dichotomy between good and evil. Darth Vader in particular personified evil. The Emperor wasn't bad either. Darth Mal (I) didn't cut it nor do the other Dark Side figures in I and II. Irvin Kerschner, who thankfully directed "The Empire Strikes Back" in place of Lucas, did a great job on creating an ominous tone in that film to capitalize on the good/evil theme. Again, missing here.

Politics. There is unexploited potential for byzantine political machinations given that the Republic is being destroyed from within. While this might require some greater clarity about how the Republic functions, it could produce a much more gripping story that viewers felt more invested in (see previous point). Also, a more clearly defined set of questions about what is going on, who is aligned with whom, etc., would help set the stage for III. Doesn't Lucas watch old political films--or read the newspaper? I was very disappointed in I on this same point--though at least II is less of a rehash of IV-VI.

Final thoughts. It would seem the central issue in I and II should be the relationship between Obi-wan and Anakin. His turn to the Dark Side is the starting point for IV-VI. And Anakin later kills Obi-Wan (IV). Yet, their relationship is reduced to that of a rebellious teenager and overbearing father. And the dialogue for the "poignant" love story. . . .

Ben--I perhaps should have organized my thoughts somewhat differently and take some of your points. I grant that Darth Vader has to be the strongest of the Dark Side characters. What I was trying to get at is that "The Empire Strikes Back" has a nice and fairly consistent feel to it that is lacking in the recent efforts (and "Return" as well). I thought a more consistent feel, better foreshadowing, etc., would have contributed to the film and placed it more effectively as part of sequence building to Anakin's transformation we all know is coming. I think this would have made the movie more compelling for me. I concede your point about Anakin's internal conflict but for me the poor writing and acting detracted from it.

I do think, however, that the more complex background should make I and II somewhat different from the other films. Those films were set up with good vs. evil and the rebel alliance was small and focused on narrow goals (hence relatively few central characters). We knew the Empire was evil and didn't have to know how it got there or that way. And that was enough. Since I and II deal with a polity about to enter a civil war, I think a few more details about what is going on would be helpful. And could help improve the story. The trade war in I was not well treated. I am not saying that these things should simply make the plot more complex or detract from the Anakin story. But to create a greater sense of the workings of the Republic and the political intrigue that is going on would help the story and contribute to the consistent feel (of impending crisis?) I felt was missing. A shot of chaos in the Senate, groups of Senators arguing some point in the background, more references to other recent crises, a few references to the Republic's governance arrangements, etc., could suffice. The earlier films were very busy with all sorts of aliens and activity in the background. I and II have less of that, but their place could have been used to partially flesh out the larger background against which the central story is being told--with the aim of supporting rather than detract from the main plot. As someone else pointed out, these and the dialogue problems could be addressed by an outside director.

While I think these films require a different touch than IV-VI, there are precedents in literature and film that could be drawn on for these--as Lucas drew effectively on other precedents previously.

Mostly, I was disappointed because I wanted to be much more entertained than I was. I doubt I will ever watch I or II again but will probably return to I, II, and the opening part of III many times in the future. I was all the more disappointed because I felt these problems could and should have been overcome given the effort that went into them.