Although all covered up in CGI animation, “Star Wars: The
Clone Wars” may be considered the most terrible attempt thus far to make the
most of George Lucas’ original sci-fi epic’s notable popularity. The characters
look anything but natural and the dialogues have too much cartoon-like
stiffness.
Set between Star Wars Episode II and III, “Attack of the
Clones” and “Revenge of the Sith,” the first big-screen animated film of the
Star Wars franchise will serve as an introduction for the weekly television
series which is due to begin airing on the Cartoon Network and TNT this fall
with 30-minute episodes. In spite of the fact that the story is not at all new,
it is not a follow-up either. It is just part of the plot we are familiar to,
but has been “in the background until now,” director Dave Filoni said, as
quoted by Reuters.
Whereas the previous “Star Wars” movies mainly concentrated
on the evolution and achievements of the Skywalker family, Anakin and his son
Luke, “The Clone Wars” focuses on a three-year conflict between a separatist
group controlled by Count Dooku and a Clone army. If you are, however, wondering
if any Luke Skywalker or Princess Leia are involved in the story, find out that
they hadn’t been born yet when the Clone Wars started. Moreover, there will be
no Ewan McGregor, not even his voice.
The central conflict fumes between the Confederacy of
Independent Systems and the Galactic
Republic. What’s more,
Rotta the Hutt, Jabba the Hutt’s son, is abducted by a group of renegades and,
therefore, Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi move off trying to find some
real answers. They need to find Rotta the Hutt, although they have no idea of
where he might be or who could be behind the mysterious group who captured him.
It’s now novice Ahsoka Tano’s turn to join the crew, sent by Yoda to become
Anakin’s apprentice and burst through Anakin Skywalker’s impenetrable façade. Things
get even more complicated as villain Count Dooku gives full authority to his
minions, as well as Asajj Ventress, to hinder the Republic’s plans, setting off
a three-way war between the Galactic
Republic, the Confederacy
of Independent Systems and the Hutts.
The conflict, which was only referred to in previous
productions, eventually leads to freedom for the galaxy following many fights
between Jedi Knights, clone soldiers and androids. Moreover, “The Clone Wars”
also delves into the inhabitants and political set-ups of the time, while the
plot offers further conflict stories for the upcoming television series.
The George Lucas-co-produced movie, from a script credited
to Scott Murphy and television animation veterans Henry Gilroy and Steven
Melching, is the first “Star Wars” production to be distributed by Warner Bros.
Pictures and not by 20th Century Fox. Lacking the voices of
originators Hayden Christensen, Natalie Portman, Ewan McGregor and Frank Oz,
the movie will be offered a bit of continuity by Samuel L. Jackson, Christopher
Lee and Anthony Daniels, who play the voices of Mace Windu, Count Dooku and
C-3PO respectively.
According to director Dave Filoni, he was inspired by the
original “Star Wars”, plus Japanese Anime and 1960s marionette television
series “Thunderbirds.”
However, all of these may not be enough for “The Clone Wars”
to at least match the “Star Wars” prequels’ popularity and work of genius. The
new film may just linger under the unfortunate label “Solely for fans.”
