Star Wars Episode III - see it

Saturday night we saw the 10:45p showing of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. We saw it at the Cinerama, a great old c.1960s theater restored recently by philanthropist/technologist/billionaire Paul Allen (of EMP fame). We arrived an hour or so early to wait for seats (we already had tickets, purchased online), and - by my guesstimation - were probably behind 300-350 people who had already showed up by that time (9:30p). There were a few people in costume, but as it had opened Thursday, this was much more of a weekend movie-goer crowd (though certainly a Star Wars-faithful weeend-movie-going crowd).

The movie was great. I'd definitely give it a "must-see" if you're a fan Star Wars or an interested observer of cultural phenomena. It is certainly the best of the new "prequel" trilogy, and did a great job completing the story of Anakin's transition to Darth Vader. The acting, as in Episodes I & II, was not stellar, but could be overlooked given the compelling story and outstanding visual effects, imagery, and impressive music. Yoda was fantastic, and Obi-Wan and Palpatine were also some of the best characters to watch. Anakin and Padme remained the hardest actors to watch, especially as the Anakin-to-Darth Vader transition offers such an opportunity for rich, robust character development (which was not taken advantage of as much as it could/should have been in my opinion). The music was outstanding (John Williams outdid himself), and the allusions and tie-ins to Episode IV (The Movie that started it all) were very, very well done (including a great cameo of James Earl Jones as Darth Vader's voice). We left the theater wanting to go home and watch the original on video (which we did Sunday evening), to see Luke, Leia, Obi-Wan, etc. - and to watch with a different eye now that the whole story has been told. They're great, and fun movies, and remain, in my opinion, one of the seminal tales of an entire generation. I don't know that the new ones will have the same enduring effect, but hopefully they will provide another generation with links to a classic tale that has shaped the "Star Wars generation" of which I consider myself a part.

It was a fun, and good movie. If you take it for what it is, overlook the sub-par acting and the love scenes between Padme and Anakin, and enjoy a good story, it is definitely worth seeing in the theater. I'll see it again. And buy it on DVD. :)