(Beware of possible spoilers)
Scott here! I just got out of a screening of Attack of the Clones and I?m still in a bit of a daze. Three years of anticipation, website coverage, speculation, and spoilers all culminated in the last 2 hours and 20 minutes I just spent in the theater. What did I think of the movie? I enjoyed it. It was good entertainment. Did I love it? I?m going to have to see it a few more times before I can say one way or the other. I?m a bit biased. But everyone I talked to unanimously agreed that we liked it better than Episode I. This movie felt more like the classic trilogy than the first prequel. As of now, I?d say I like the films in the following order starting with my favorite: The Empire Strikes Back, A New Hope, Attack of the Clones, Return of the Jedi, The Phantom Menace.

From this point on, beware of spoilers.

I was very familiar with the story of Episode II before going in. I read the script, studied the plot points, read the novelization, and everything else before I went in. So the movie made perfect sense to me. Others in the audience had a hard time comprehending what was going on. They were confused by the clones, separatists, and everything else.

Visually, Attack of the Clones is far superior to Episode I. The planets are cooler, the aliens are more interesting, and the ships are more stunning. Coruscant is revealed to be a much more interesting and rich planet. The opening scene of Padme?s ship flying through the clouds is awesome. Through the chase scene we get to explore the industrial parts of the planet as well as the lower street levels. The Outlander Club was a mixture of disappointments and surprises. There was unfortunately no club music in the scene like there was in the cantina. However, look for cameos of Ahmed Best, Anthony Daniels, and George Lucas? kid in the club. (Interestingly, beyond these cameos, I didn?t see any other cameos or easter eggs in the movie. I?ll have to look harder next time.) You?ll also spot the first intergalactic thong in the film (is that OK in a PG movie?). Dexter?s Diner was a highlight which showed a different side of the planet. Dexter Jettster himself was a fun hit with the audience. Kamino was also an impressive highlight and a cool new planetary addition to the Star Wars Universe.

As you?re well aware, the final battle is the highlight of the film. It brings the ?wars? back to Star Wars. It totally blows away the final battle in The Phantom Menace. Memorable scenes include a Trade Federation Core Ship being blown out of the sky, Attack Gunships landing with troops, and a chase over the Geonosis dunes with Count Dooku and the Gunships. The Gunships are my favorite new vehicle from the film.

If you ever wanted to see a Mandalorian in battle, Jango Fett truly delivers. His battle with Obi-Wan was incredible and promises to be one of the best fight scenes of the summer. Unfortunately, his final showdown with Mace Windu ends up being rather anti-climactic. I had hoped for more though he gives them a run for their money. Jango and Boba Fett also have an incredible space battle with Obi-Wan in the Jedi Starfighter. It features an incredible new weapon called the sonic bomb which delivers devastating and impressible results. I?m sure the sound effect for it blew out Ben Burtt?s speakers.

For me there were three things that Attack of the Clones REALLY had to accomplish for me to love it. The first was for me to like Anakin. Hayden Christensen succeeded with that. I thought he did a fine job. He handles the action well, makes good goo-goo eyes with Padme, and portrays the tortured soul well. I really bought his dancing along the lines between the Dark Side and Light Side. His eventual reunion with his mother ends up being the most intense and dramatic moment of the prequels so far.

The second hurdle was for me to believe the romance between Anakin and Padme. This was a mixed bag. I thought Portman and Christensen had great chemistry, especially in the final battle. I believed they were really in love. However, I didn?t like everything leading up to that moment. Their romantic dialogue made me really cringe. It was bad. I also had a hard time believing they could fall in love in such a short time.

The third thing was to make me believe that Christopher Lee and Yoda were formidable warriors. They succeeded here. Christopher Lee was fantastic as Count Dooku. He was imposing and as dark as you would hope. Through liberal use of doubles and effects, they make him look pretty good in the final fight. Yoda also looked great in the final battle. His appearance brought cheers from the audience. I never in a million years would have thought he would look cool in a lightsaber fight, but he was awesome. People kept asking me why he used a cane if he could move that fast, and I had to keep explaining that he was using the Force. It might be a sticking point for some viewers. As for the CG Yoda, I have always been a fan of the ESB puppet. However, I thought Yoda looked good in CG in this film. You could always tell he was digital, but he looked good. It was still a point of debate among fans after our screening.

I?ve got to add that I thought Ewan McGregor was great in this film. He has a lot more material to work with and also has numerous funny scenes in the movie. It adds a lot more dimension to him and makes him much more interesting than he was in Episode I.

Here are some other quick, general thoughts:

- I thought the final lightsaber battle in The Phantom Menace was better than the one in Attack of the Clones (excluding Yoda vs. Dooku). The fight between Maul, Qui-Gon, and Obi-Wan was choreographed better than the one between Dooku, Anakin, and Obi-Wan.

- The droid foundry scene was one of the high points of the film. It is not only visually stunning, but funny and intense at the same time.

- Even though Jar Jar was barely in the film, his appearance in Episode II was like fingernails on a chalkboard. I honestly didn?t think he was that bad in Episode I, but this time around he was absolutely horrible. He really is the embodiment of the problems of TPM. I realize that he ends up being a pivotal figure in Palpatine?s rise to power, but that doesn?t make him more tolerable.

- Mace Windu?s appearance in the arena drew cheers from the crowd. Kit Fisto and Aalya Secura got a surprisingly generous amount of screentime.

- I love C-3PO and Anthony Daniels, but I felt his scenes in the final 30 minutes were a bit too much. The time is spent with him freaking out over the battle and making bad puns about being decapitated.

- Some of the sound effects seemed recycled. Many of the ships sounded like tweaked pod racers. Zam Wesell?s blaster sounded like shots from another gun in an earlier film.

- I wasn?t fond of the love theme from Attack of the Clones, but it has grown on me after seeing the movie. I don?t think this is the best soundtrack, but it gets the job done.

You may be interested to note some scenes that were cut from the film:

- Anakin no longer says he was looking for a speeder with a ?gonzo? color.

- Padme?s dramatic entrance into the Senate after the assassination attempt is gone.

- The scenes with Padme?s family are still gone.

- The scene of Padme and Anakin riding off on a shaak from the meadow is cut.

- The trial of Anakin and Padme on Geonosis is cut out.

- Jocasta Nu?s speech about Count Dooku and the Lost Twenty was cut.

This being noted, there's an excellent chance that we didn't see the final version of the film tonight. The version on May 16th could easily be slightly different.

That?s all I can think of for now. As I mentioned, I?m still in a bit of a daze. But I?ll reiterate that I enjoyed the movie and I think it was a significant improvement over Episode I. Start lining up for May 16th.

You can check out all of TFN's AOTC Reviews below (may contain spoilers):

• TFN AOTC Review 1 (Carter)
• TFN AOTC Review 2 (Scott)
• TFN AOTC Review 3 (Steven)
• TFN AOTC Review 4 (Josh)
• TFN AOTC Review 5 (Chris)
• TFN AOTC Review 6 (Joel)