This article was originally published at the venerable Coffee With Kenobi
Attack of the Clones was on TBS the other
day. I dutifully and joyfully put it on. This under-appreciated episode
of the Saga is much maligned, and I think that is wrong. While viewing
this visually stunning masterpiece, I realized that I was reciting all
of the lines along with the movie. Like some people sing along to
“Bohemian Rhapsody,” “Sweet Caroline” or “Frankenstein,” I find that
speaking along with these movies is comforting and helps me to find new
depth in them. So then the question arises: How can we see these movies
for what they are, and not what we expect them to be? By this I mean an
even more basic question. Can we ever see these movies new again?
For the past decade we have been treated to The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels,
each of which has offered new insights to Episode II (among other
things); and I would say that it has made it an entirely different
movie. So, I ask myself, can I see this movie fresh, or is it constantly
going to be colored by preconceived notions that I, myself, bring to
each viewing? What if I had seen Episode II after the various cartoon
series? And if I had, what would have changed? Certainly not the
cinematic output, but me. I would have changed with more insight, or
having been at a different stage in my life.
