Obi-Wan, one of the heroes of STAR WARS:THE CLONE WARS(2008).
© Warner Bros.

Mania Grade: B-
Movie: Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Rating: PG
Starring (Voices): Matt Lanter, James Arnold Taylor, Tom Kane
Written By: Henry Gilroy, Steven Melching, Scott Murphy
Directed By: Dave Filoni
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures

Related Links

0

STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS

Two specific things will determine an audience member's enjoyment of The Clone Wars. The first is an overall tolerance of the flaws from Episodes I-III: they're back and they haven't improved much with age. The second is the fact that this is, for all intents and purposes, a direct-to-DVD release, serving as a de facto pilot for the Cartoon Network series this fall.

The good news is that the sheer spectacle on display probably justifies a multiplex viewing, provided that bad dialogue and annoying characters aren't too infuriating. Director Dave Filoni has a very good sense of the Star Wars universe, and the endless fight scenes of The Clone Wars hold an inventive visual kick. They center around Anakin Skywalker's efforts to rescue the kidnapped son of Jabba the Hutt, which will secure an alliance with the Republic and let clone troops move safely through Hutt space as they battle Count Dooku's Separatist droid army. Anakin is joined by Obi-Wan Kenobi, of course, along with the stalwart R2-D2 and a really irritating new Padawan apprentice named Ahsoka Tano--fifteen, spunky, and inclined to give people annoying nicknames like "Sky-Guy" and "Artooey." Like any proper Mary Sue, she exists mainly to steal valuable screen time away from the other characters, though she has a nice look to her and her exasperating qualities eventually become numbing.

Unfortunately, the script can't do much beyond spell out the basic plot details, hindered by tin-ear delivery and groaners of the "warm-and-soft-not-like-sand" variety. The story itself is serviceable, but the dreadful dialogue makes it harder to get into the proceedings. The Clone Wars is further burdened by the fact that we know how it's going to come out. Attack of the Clones is behind it, Revenge of the Sith is in front of it, and there's only a little space in between to really do something exciting. Filoni is game, but without a better sense of character or conversation, he really has the cards stacked against him.

None of that is new, of course. Episodes I-III exhibited such flaws in great abundance, and for better or for worse, this is where Star Wars seems to have settled. That may be enough to turn a lot of people away, but for those who don't mind the problems of the recent films, The Clone Wars still works as diverting entertainment. The tone stays light and upbeat, and the sight of Jedi mowing down combat droids by the ton never gets old. Filoni uses a slightly exaggerated physical style similar to the 2D animated shorts from a few years ago, which look nice and seem to fit the universe very well. His battle scenes are imaginative, and the various planets Anakin and his friends travel to have a certain flair. The Clone Wars sports some vocal trump cards too: the always-welcome Christopher Lee returns to voice Count Dooku, and Sam Jackson and Anthony Daniels have cameos as Mace Windu and C-3PO, respectively.

That may not be enough to get over the film's hurdles. There are plenty of them, to be sure, and those fed up with the series' recent shortcomings should definitely give this one a pass. But for the undemanding, it retains presentable amounts of the energy and fun that have always been hallmarks of Star Wars. It makes for a good sound and light show, if nothing else. With Dark Knight pulling away and theaters becoming fairly quiet, there are worse ways to spend an evening than with Clone Wars.