Sunday, August 17, 2008
A+E, Movies, Reviews

‘Star Wars’ franchise strikes out with ‘Clone’ saga

 

Sadly, many Americans know more about the long ago, far far away galaxy of “Star Wars” than our own. They can fill you in on the backstory of “Star Wars: The Clone Wars,” a feature-length preview of the Cartoon Network series that begins in October.

During the three-year gap between “Attack of the Clones” and “Revenge of the Sith,” the Jedi send Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi to rescue crime lord Jabba the Hutt’s young son, who’s been kidnapped by Count Dooku’s Separatists.

The voice talent is mostly unfamiliar—i.e., they work cheap—with the exception of Christopher Lee, Samuel L. Jackson as Mace Windu and the venerable Anthony Daniels, Lucas’ good luck charm, encoring as C-3PO. The syncing of their voices to the visuals often makes “The Clone Wars” resemble a badly dubbed foreign movie.

There’s a major battle every five minutes, most of them lasting four and a half minutes. Unless you’re a child with ADD, it’s sheer monotony, whether it’s a dogfight, a light saber duel or whatever. But “The Clone Wars” is intended as a gateway drug to get kids hooked on “Star Wars.” As Obi-Wan says, “It’s part of a Jedi’s responsibility to help train the next generation.”

Had “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” opened on May 24, 1977, it might have had the same impact as the first “Star Wars” film, which changed the world the next day. In the current movie universe, its star shines very faintly indeed. 2 STARS—Steve Warren