There are two things about which I have been very vocal when it comes to Star Wars. First, that the prequels are not only “better than people think”, but also that they are actually good, full stop. Second, that the vast majority of the Expanded Universe is a tiresome, repetitive, derivative pile of crap. So, where does Star Wars: The Clone Wars land in this equation? Thankfully, on the side of the prequels. It has a lot more in common with George Lucas’ second trilogy than it does with the myriad of comics, novels and video games that make up the bulk of the material (if not the profit center) tagged as “Star Wars”.
For one thing, it unashamedly knows the true intended audience for Star Wars: children. Just as Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is the most comedic and straight-up fun-loving Indy film, The Clone Wars is the most specifically aimed-at-children mass market Star Wars product since the Droids and Ewoks cartoons of the eighties. (Both of which I like, by the way.) Director Dave Filoni knows his Star Wars and strives to keep things on track.
For another thing, The Clone Wars tends to ignore much of the establish Expanded Universe material concerning the nature and specific actions of the Clone Wars themselves. Now, EU hater that I am, I don’t approve of this just because it contradicts the events of the EU, but because it signals that the upcoming The Clone Wars television series (like the prequels) will not be held back in its storytelling just because someone else has already covered similar territory. After all, even if The Clone Wars is a box office disappointment (as it seems it may be), it will be seen by more people than read any Star Wars book or comic. The creators of the film and series should not be tied down to material that would be incomprehensible to their intended audience.
These are the kinds of things that I appreciated in the prequels. It implies an interest in “the audience” (in the abstract) without a sycophantic desire to cater to “the fans”, as so many other media franchises do.
So I approve of the approach taken. But that doesn’t necessarily mean I’ll enjoy the final product. After all, I think it’s great how the people behind the current Doctor Who revival have gone about their work, but I’ve mostly disliked the results. Again, it’s fortunate that The Clone Wars works for me, with mostly just nitpicking to be found.
First of all, the big question: the visual look. Lucas has stated that he was inspired by the look of the old Thunderbirds “Supermarionation” puppets and, thusly, the characters have a look that suggests they are carved models. Some reviews have described their movements as “stiff”, but I would say they are “stylized”. Mostly, they work. After years of watching Pixar films, it did take some getting used to. But after a few minutes, I easily settled in and found it no more distracting than watching a stop motion production like the old Rankin-Bass TV specials. Only in a few places where the characters walking animations seemed unnatural did I think the style harmed the film. Basically, if they smoothed those more casual moments out, I’d have no complaints about it at all.
The film’s plot is deceptively simple: Anakin Skywalker and his apprentice are sent on a search for the kidnapped son of Jabba the Hutt to try and smooth things over with the Hutt clan. Meanwhile, Count Dooku and his forces try to cause a rift between the Hutts and the Republic. But it, like the Invasion of Naboo from Episode I, is merely a framework for a grander scheme masterminded by the Sith. More than just an excuse to string events together, it serves as a focus for the relationship between Anakin Skywalker and his young charge, Ahsoka Tano. It performs that function well and the relationship between the two Jedi is actually given more screen time to develop than Anakin and Padme received in the main films. This basic plot also gives plenty of opportunities for more scheming from Dooku and a bit of a focus on his follower Asajj Ventress, a Sith-like character from the previous cartoon series and other EU projects.
Performances are strong pretty much across the board. Obviously, the few returning actors (Christopher Lee as Count Dooku, Samuel L. Jackson as Mace Windu and the ubiquitous Anthony Daniels as C-3PO) have their characters down pat. Returning from the old Clone Wars 2D cartoon are James Arnold Taylor as Obi-Wan Kenobi and Tom Kane as Yoda. Both are fine, but are really just doing impressions of other actors, so don’t stand out. Matt Lander, on the other hand, does not try to imitate Hayden Christiansen as his Clone Wars predecessor did. As such, he gets to define the character for himself and ably stakes out different territory than Hayden. This is less true for Nika Futterman, whose Asajj Ventress is a bit less complex than the previous incarnation, and Dee Bradley Baker, who takes on the voice of the clones, who actually are more differentiated here than in the main films. In both cases, the new voices are similar enough to the originals to mesh well, but don’t stand on their own. Ashley Eckstein voices the only completely new major character, Ahsoka. She successfully establishes the young Jedi trainee, without making the introduction seem forced.
There’s a lot of humor in The Clone Wars and, judging by the consistent laughs I heard from the audience, it’s not just my opinion that it feels natural and not just interjected for its own sake. Most of the humor comes from two sources: the dim Battle Droids and the young Rotta (son of Jabba) the Hutt. The Battle Droids are in full, goofy, Episode I mode and their simplistic brains are utilized to their full effect. And the baby Hutt proves the source of a great deal of legitimate humor, not just the kind you’d expect from a Nickelodeon or Dreamworks film. (All right, I’ll say it. Poop jokes.) There’s some of that, of course. (He *is* a baby, after all), but there’s lots that isn’t quite so base.
And I think it goes without saying that the action sequences (and there are plenty of ‘em) are strong, easily standing up with most of those from the series proper. The lightsaber duels are not quite as thrilling, but at least they don’t go way over-the-top, as the Tartakovsky series did, instead keeping things in line with the films.
But don’t let me imply that The Clone Wars is not without its problems. The easiest one to spot is that the film never quite completely kills the sense that it’s just three episodes of the upcoming television series edited together. It’s not as bad as those made-for-video movies hacked together from episodes of Droids and (especially) Ewoks, but the three episode structure is still clearly there: Anakin and Obi-Wan fight a battle, Anakin and Ahsoka grab the baby Hutt, Anakin and Ahsoka return the baby to Jabba. Three episodes, three acts of the film. Neat, tidy, but all too obvious.
The other major complaint I have is with one of the characters introduced in the film. If you’ve been watching the media attention, you know who I’m talking about; Ziro the Hutt, Jabba’s uncle and the most disturbing* Star Wars character of all time.** Unlike with Jar Jar, this time I totally get the problem and agree that the character should have been approached from a different angle. If you haven’t seen the film, let me set the stage. Picture Jabba the Hutt, only painted purple and pink, with feathers on his head, heavy make-up and sounding like Truman Capote. Yes, it’s just as hideously garish as you are thinking and I couldn’t wait for each respite from his on-screen presence.
But the one that hurt the film the most in my eyes was the music. Kevin Kiner may be a fine composer in his own right, but his music for The Clone Wars just doesn’t feel like Star Wars. I get the idea that Lucas and Co. were interested in making the film feel different than the primary saga, but this stuff goes too far afield. No 20th Century Fox logo I can live with. No opening crawl I can accept. But those strange sounds where beautiful John Williams music should be could’ve killed the deal. Thankfully, The Clone Wars doesn’t rely on Kiner as much as the original films rely on Williams, so it’s not a complete ruiner. I couldn’t help but think how much better a guy like Jeremy Soule (who did the music for the Star Wars: Bounty Hunter video game) would have been. He could do something completely new, but that fit in with the proper Star Wars themes.
The rest of my complaints are nitpicky kinds of things: the aforementioned animation glitches, the “newsreel” opening being a bit too much, too many nicknames (Ahsoka calls Anakin “Sky Guy” twice – twice too often.), etc., etc. Overall, Star Wars: The Clone Wars is a pleasant, entertaining spin-off from the Star Wars series. As long as they keep in mind what the film is (an action-adventure for kids), there is plenty of enjoyment to be had for fans and non-fans alike.
*That’s the word my nephew and I decided on: disturbing.
**And that’s including a humanoid green rabbit and a guy who drinks through the top of his head.