|
'Clones' is digital at its best
By STEVE PERSALL, Times Film Critic
© St. Petersburg Times
published November 14, 2002
DVD: New and noteworthy for digital players
Star Wars: Episode II -- Attack of the Clones
[Photo: Twentieth Century Fox]
As the intergalactic struggle continues in Star Wars: Episode II — Attack of the Clones, digital production values make the action more captivating than ever. |
Have you noticed that George Lucas' Star Wars series isn't as much fun anymore? Ever since the filmmaker turned back time to show how everyone we loved (or loved to hate) in the first three movies got there, paying for Jedi excitement seems more like a duty than a thrill.
Lucas' latest bid for revenue is a two-disc version of Star Wars: Episode II -- Attack of the Clones, absolutely the fourth-best chapter in the Skywalker saga, because Episode I -- The Phantom Menace was such a disappointment. True believers in the Force will gobble up every detail, while casual fans will find a few qualities to recommend.
Disc one contains the sharpest transfer to DVD that I've seen. It makes sense, because Lucas filmed Attack of the Clones with high-definition digital video cameras that practically painted each frame with state-of-the-art precision. Adapting that format to DVD provides remarkable detail that rivals Lucas' vaunted release of the film in digital cinema-equipped theaters.
The advantage is that now viewers can use their pause buttons to freeze some of the extraordinary images for closer inspection. One complaint about Attack of the Clones upon its release was that Lucas zipped along so rapidly, we couldn't notice everything. That isn't a problem anymore.
Lucas and six of his sight and sound technicians contribute an audio commentary track that is more interesting than some of the movie's dialogue. It's also a smart move to identify each commentator along the way, an idea other DVDs seldom employ during group discussions.
Disc two is devoted to bonus material that includes eight scenes deleted from the theatrical version. Play them with Lucas' introductions, which explain why they were cut, mostly because of pacing concerns and duplicated information. Only the most devout Jedi disciples need to see Senator Amidala (Natalie Portman) addressing her colleagues or Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) doing forensics work on a would-be assassin's dart.
Two documentaries produced for the DVD set are informative because Lucas' digital approach hasn't been attempted before. Ben Burtt's analysis of his sound effect techniques and "State of the Art: The Previsualization of Episode II" are more concise than the overblown full-length homage to Lucas' character animation. Skip to the Yoda parts on that one.
Other featurettes focus on the plot, giving too much credit to the puppy-love romance between Amidala and Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) and not enough clarity to the political intrigue Lucas keeps concocting. A half-dozen short subjects produced for the Internet examine the digital cinema revolution Lucas champions, plus location scouting, spaceship designs and a Tiger Beat-level tribute to Christensen.
My favorite bonus can be found hidden in "Dex's Kitchen," a mockumentary detailing the career of R2-D2, rising from ash can to international movie star. The tongue-in-cheek revelations include Richard Dreyfuss discussing his feud with the beeping hero and Samuel L. Jackson questioning whether the droid's accent is genuine. Francis Ford Coppola admits he wanted to hire R2-D2 for the Michael Corleone role in The Godfather, and Steven Spielberg had him in mind for Saving Private Ryan "as a beach obstacle."
If only the movies Lucas made these days were that much fun.
* * *
Fine actors; bad company
Bad Company (PG-13)
Chris Rock plays a dual role as a Central Intelligence Agency spy and his street-hustling twin brother. When the former is murdered, the latter is recruited by the CIA to pose as his sibling during a mission to retrieve a stolen nuclear weapon. Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins takes one of his occasional paycheck roles as a veteran spy assigned to indoctrinate the rookie.
First impressions: "Pairing urban Rock with urbane Hopkins sounds like a mismatch made in heaven. Such good company deserves a better script than Bad Company.
"The film's main glitch is that Rock must subdue his madcap energy for much of the movie, first as the straight-laced agent, then as his brother imitating him. This turns Rock into just another action figure, not the subversive force of human nature he can be. He still finds a few laughs in (director Joel) Schumacher's schlock, but Rock should be keeping better company."
Second thoughts: One of the few flops in a record-setting summer at the box office, earning less than half of its reported $70-million budget.
Rental audience: Fans of the two stars willing to forgive their slumming.
Rent it if you enjoy: The Man with One Red Shoe, Enemy of the State.
Back to Weekend
© 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111
|
