Revenge of the Sith **1/2

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[WARNING: Spoilers]
Despite the fact that everyone already knew how it was going to end, Episode III was the most anticipated chapter in the Star Wars saga yet, and posted the opening week box office numbers to prove it. This was the pay off after sitting through Jar Jar Binks, pod races and whatever other digital BS that Lucas wanted to throw at us. Little Anakin is now all grown and ready to turn to the dark side, and I was there opening night May 19th with my fellow geeks to witness the event.

The first 15 minutes felt like a 3D ride, and for a moment the epic outerspace battle that opens the film brought back the magic and wonder of the original trilogy. Anakin and Obi-Wan slice and dice their way through the bad guys with R2-D2 providing the comic relief. And it's all downhill from there.

There is certainly more action in this installment -- it is supposed to be the fall of the Republic after all -- but when characters stop to have mechanical plot-advancing dialogue with one another, particularly Anakin and Padme, it's cheese factor 10 Mr. Sulu! Not that the original trilogy didn't have its own goofball moments, but among the puppets and models they took on a ramshackle charm. I blame Lucas and the fact that this film was shot 100% digitally; it had to have an effect on the actors' performances. Natalie Portman is not the ditz she comes off as in this film. The showdown between Obi-Wan and Anakin near the end is more compelling, though Anakin's ultimate transformation into Lord Vader is somewhat anticlimactic.

RotS garnered a PG-13 rating for intense sci-fi violence. Anakin beheads Count Dooku in the early going, and in implied offscreen action murders a group of Jedi younglings. Also, Obi-Wan severs all of Anakin's limbs in their heated duel. Most kids have seen worse in video games, but I think the rating was warranted.

Overall, Episode III: Revenge of the Sith succeeds as an action-packed conclusion to the series of prequels, but fails to live up to the original trilogy. There are a few glimpses of things to come in Episode IV and beyond, including the Millennium Falcon (keep your eyes peeled when Anakin and Obi-Wan return after defeating Count Dooku), a cameo by Chewbacca, and a bare bones Death Star.