By Malachi Daraja
NYT Institute

It is the beginning of the Empire. It is the end of an empire. The last installment in the Star Wars saga, Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, finally shows Anakin Skywalker’s transformation into Darth Vader and the establishment of the evil Galactic Empire. The movie brings the space drama full circle, effectively bridging the gap between the prequel and original Star Wars trilogies.

Revenge of the Sith is not to be taken lightly. The computer generated graphics have created one of the most realistic virtual universes in cinematic history. The fight scenes are so intense that for the first time in its five-movie history, Star Wars received a PG-13 rating. This movie is easily the darkest episode in the Star Wars saga.

Hayden Christensen returns as the brooding, impatient and powerful Anakin Skywalker, whose life has never been more difficult. Padme (Natalie Portman), who in the last film he secretly married, announces that she is pregnant. To make matters worse, his Jedi teachers Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor), Mace Windu (Samuel L. Jackson), and Yoda (voiced by Frank Oz) decide to use Anakin to spy on Chancellor Palpatine, his long-time political mentor. Thus Anakin must quickly decide to whom his loyalties lie.

Revenge of the Sith’s cast does incredibly well with what they are given to work with. Saying that the dialogue is weak at times gives it too much credit. When Anakin and Padme exchange loving words on a balcony, the lines are so stale it is all a fan can do to not openly laugh.

Still, the movie does have those rare moments when a line encapsulates both the scene and echoes real life issues. Watching her character’s beloved Republic fall before her eyes, Portman says: “So this is how liberty dies, to thunderous applause.”

Regardless of the poor writing, the movie receives huge theatrical help from its cast. Christensen’s portrayal of the angst-driven Skywalker is incredible, nearly outshining film veterans Samuel L. Jackson and Ewan McGregor.

Regardless of the films billing, the main star is definitely the special effects crew. From the Jedi-slaying General Grievous (voiced by Mathew Woods) to the final duel between Obi-Wan and Anakin on a planet covered with lakes of molten lava, the graphic designers had their hands filled bringing Lucas’s last Star Wars film to life.

However, the preoccupation with CG creations and tying up all the loose ends between the two trilogies makes the cinematography seemed rushed at certain points. It also neglects one of the most powerful aspects of any of the Star Wars movies, the musical score, which is barely noticeable for most of the movie.

Perhaps the strongest of the prequels to the original Star Wars films, Lucas’ Episode III is a fast paced roller coaster ride of spaceship dogfights, epic battles on alien worlds -- and it has light sabers galore. Despite whatever criticisms he will receive about the movie in years to come, he has already accomplished what he set out to do almost 30 years ago. Lucas has cinematically created a unique universe that is completely realistic within its own context, a universe that two generations have paid billions of dollars to be a part of, if only for a few hours. To nitpick about problems and failures in the individual movies will do little to tarnish his legacy. He has nothing left to prove.