GFA Review: Star Wars Episode III Revenge of the Sith

The circle is now complete. If you haven’t seen the movie yet, block everything out. The prequels, right or wrong- block them out. The spoilers, the books, the expanded universe, the comics, the hype, the cereal boxes. Clear them from your mind and take yourself to the first time you heard Aunt Beru say, “He’s too much like his father.” Or when Vader said, “The circle is now complete.” Or when Obi-wan said, “Now that’s a name I haven’t heard in a long time.”

Back then, we all wondered how things came to be the way they were. And each of us individually carried our own private version of Star Wars mythology. How we imagined- in our dreams, with our toys- how we imagined the galaxy far, far away came to be the way it was in the original trilogy.

This one- this movie- is for you. Personally. It is a big fat present with a bow on top specially gift wrapped for you. You who feared, doubted and secretly dreaded that the prequels wouldn’t live up to everything you had dreamt of. Henceforth there will be no more Star Wars movies and this one is our parting gift.

Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone,
Silence the pianos and with muffled drum
Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come.

Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead
Scribbling on the sky the message He is Dead.
Put crepe bows round the white necks of the public doves,
Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves.

He was my North, my South, my East and West,
My working week and my Sunday rest,
My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song;
I thought that love would last forever: I was wrong.

The stars are not wanted now; put out every one,
Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun,
Pour away the ocean and sweep up the woods;
For nothing now can ever come to any good.

—WH Auden

First off, the movie is just plain gorgeous to look at and the music is the most unique of all the Star Wars movies. The real magic of this movie, though, is that you know everything that must happen. And it does. Yet, for not a moment do you suspect the next move. The first half hour has moments when you will squirm in your seat. Uneasy love scenes and mismanaged humor will have you wondering if this is it. Do not fret- there is a point in the movie when something important happens. From this point on the movies switches gears from being an Attack of the Clones brand political hokey to a tragedy that has been 28 years in the making.

Lucas has played an elaborate chess game. For two and a half films George Lucas has only been placing his pieces in an intricate formation so that when we enter the final hour of Episode III we are blindsided at the rush of events as the film hurtles towards it’s inevitable conclusion. And oh what a magnificent climax.

Brave traveller- you must see it for yourself. But I will say this- the opening shot of the film is the most gorgeous and the final shot is the most emotional of any from the entire series so far.

There are things of which I may not speak;
There are dreams that cannot die;
There are thoughts that make the strong heart weak,
And bring a pallor into the cheek,
And a mist before the eye.
And the words of that fatal song
Come over me like a chill:
‘A boy’s will is the wind’s will,
And the thoughts of youth are long, long thoughts.

—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

NOTE: With sincere apologies to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and WH Auden for dragging them in to a Star Wars review. Their words, however, were more appropriate than mine to express how I feel. In truth, they had never, in fact, heard of Star Wars, let alone having written poems about it.

—Review by Devanshu Mehta