Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith

Released 19th May 2005, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith concludes the Star Wars prequel trilogy through the fall of the Jedi and the rise of the Empire. This film manages to tie a satisfying bow on the themes of political corruption and giving into one’s desires. One of the greatest successes of this film above the rest of the trilogy is its shifting focus from appallingly blocky dialogue (mostly) to much more visual, symbolic messaging to its audience. It really helps the narrative to flow whilst heavily emphasising the drama occurring on screen.

Ewan McGregor is still great as Obi-Wan Kenobi; he feels far more matured in this film yet far more emotive when needed. Ian McDearmid also rises to the far more influential role of Palpatine by providing stellar articulation of his dialogue; his delivery makes even the weaker lines iconic and meaningful. In a surprising turn of events, Hayden Christensen also delivers a performance of Anakin Skywalker far superior to that of Star Wars: Attack of the Clones. Whilst not Oscar-worthy, Christensen’s gestures and facial expressions are far more controlled and enable the audience to feel sympathy for Anakin and how he is being manipulated on all fronts. Everyone else do a good enough job; Samuel L. Jackson is good as Mace Windu, Natalie Portman is good as Padme, etc.

Once again, the visual effects are phenomenal with very few blemishes this time, especially considering its mid-2000s sensibilities. John Williams manages to rise to the occasion and produce, in my opinion, one of his best soundtracks from his career. Not only does he succeed in utilising appropriate pre-existing tracks, but he also produces many new tracks which serve the narrative whilst remaining memorable after the fact. Whilst some of the character work could have been better, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith succeeds in bringing its trilogy to a close in a way which maintains continuity with the original films; all while standing strongly as an independent viewing.