Lightsabers and Fanfare

Are you working or are you saja datang(just come)...I asked a sith...I saja datang. Ning Baizura was equally entralled by the man...I decided to take a picture with him...it's not everyday you have a picture with a Sith Lord...I asked him if he wants his face seen...he said to me...sith lord dwell in mystery and darkness...oh well suits him...in the cinema, lightsabers are waving in the air to much cheer and fanfare...if you haven't guessed it...I am watching Star Wars III : Revenge of the Sith.


A REVIEW
Irrespective of whatever whomsoever says of the movie Star Wars: The Revenge of the Sith, it will command a big and eager crowd; some who are even bedroom Jedi with battery operated light sabers. I am no huge fan of the star wars franchise but I like movies as a whole and that in itself already got me all going, psyche up to get myself into one of its first screenings in Malaysia on the 18th May 2005, opening day. Having successfully done so, I sit and await with anticipation. As the screen turns black, I can already hear the theme playing in my head, it had already etched itself in stone at the back of my mind.

As usual the movie opens with a short summary on the recent happenings of the force, placing the audience well into the hot seat of a political intrigue and quickly making them cinema chair politicians of sorts engulfing the movie as some urgent matter at hand. Having already establishing a core by which to work, the movie immediately goes for the million dollar shot with a fleet of spacecrafts in battle peppered with explosions and a roller coaster of a camera. However, under these eyeballing attractions there is still an emphasis to tell a story. I have heard remarks from some fans that Sith has a lousy story but I think that remark just undermines its clever modesty of having an unclouded and uncontrived underlying story. Afterall, the movie having already a predestined end has the allure of all prequels, seeing how things unraveled and slowly mount up to become what they are, gives a strange satisfaction that comes with deconstructing and reconstructing anything. Done intensely but quick with just enough consideration for plot and pace, I have no complains.

I did feel that George, seeing this is the last of the six films (unless he changes his mind and do the next three sequels) began to be more playful at heart giving the robots wounded moans that’s sounded like it came from a children rendition of death in a play. I laughed heartily when 3CPO got kicked like a trash can. Adding to this, there was also a lizard beast that was so cute! These elements may seem corny to some but hey, George and frequent collaborator Spielberg’s (he’s not on this film) aim was always to make Sunday matinees.

The acting. A mix between the outrages and the serious the acting is…and that’s not something easy to pull off. Imagine having dress like a Jedi holding a lightsaber and being an actor…it isn’t easy to bring the world of star wars alive because it’s neither comedy nor noir whereby the actor can just veer right over and be either extreme. It’s a costume drama sitting on the fence and the fact that dialogue comes off the screen with enough integrity as the actors donned wondrously outlandish costume living in a land of make believe is an achievement.

The visuals of this film are far more intimate with closer static camera angles that often over shoulders without much camera drift or really wide vista shots. The colours are also very much muted down with a smaller palette being used. (Another reason for the muted colours could be attributed to the fact that this film was shot on Hi-Definition Video and transferred to film for the print that I saw. Could have sparkled more digitally)This isn’t necessarily bad but it does make the film feel much less epical in scale for me.

All in all, Stars Wars: Revenge of the Sith is an enjoyable watch as you immerse in the wondrously vivid world of George and follow it’s political intrigue with knights and light sabers out to risk all for the nation or should I say Republic. As I got out of the cinema the queue for the next screening is testimonial to its following and draw… irrespective of whatever whomsoever says of the movie.

Linus Chung