Review: episode III

If any of you have ever talked to me about Episodes I and II, you know that I find them painful to watch. From the wooden acting to the uninspired dialog, from the midiclorians to Jar-jar, from the poor pacing to the lack of character development, the first two movies leave a lot to be desired.

Needless to say, I had my reservations going into Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, but like all true Star Wars fans, I was there on opening night (technically, Thursday morning), laying down my hard earned duckets to make good on a promise made almost 30 years ago.

And, the result? A good movie, actually. Not a great movie, but on the whole, a good movie. The action sequences, which there are more of than in the previous two movies, actually work and draw the audience in. The storyline of Anakin finally matures and begins to payoff, as the audience is finally given someone to root for or against (depending on your point of view.)

Still, Episode III suffered from many of the problems of the first two installments, but less so. For example, there were scenes in Episode III where you could actually believe Anakin and Amedalla are in love with each other. Unfortunately, they never pull it off at the same time. Regardless, you couldn't say that at all about Episode II, where the two "lovers" seemed comically at odds with one another and yet the audience was made to believe they were in love.

In all, the flaws are minor enough that you can actually enjoy this movie. Does Episode III ever reach the excitement or drama of first trilogy? Sadly, no. But, iit does feel more like a real Star Wars movie than the previous two films. So, I am happy (and slightly shocked) to say that I can recommend it.

One final Star Wars thought about the PG-13 rating the movie received and whether it was warranted. In my opinion, given one particular scene, the movie did warrant the rating it got. This is both remarkable and unusual for a Star Wars film, which begs the question, "Was the scene / imagery worth it?" The surprising answer is a big "Yes!" The scene / imagery actually has the ability to change how the audience thinks about the character of Anakin / Darth Vadar, and consequently the entire Star Wars series overall. This is no small feat considering how much we already knew and loved /hated about the character before the movie even began. I have to give it to Lucas for having the balls to keep it in the final cut.

Ok, I Suck.

I admit I have been really delinquent with writing in my blog. (If you only knew how long those library books have been sitting on my kitchen counter!) I don't know if it is because the other issues in my life have been more pressing or if I just haven't had the passion to write or the words to express what I was feeling. It's still unclear to me. I know on a couple of occasions it was none of these reasons. It was the fact that I questioned whether it was appropriate to write about what I was thinking. In retrospect, I was probably overly cautious. In the end, I don't think I would have said anything that would have caused harm or hurt feelings. Next time, I will likely just share my thoughts and not worry so much about how they will be interpreted.

To catch you up on the past month, a lot has happened. About 3 weeks ago, my girlfriend's stepfather, Neil, died of cancer. The very aggressive form of cancer was discovered shortly after Christmas and quickly created havoc on his body. His decline was made all the more tragic by the brain tumors which deprived him of much of his ability to control his body or understand the world around him. There was a poignant moment for me as I watched him struggle to remember, first, what a TV remote control did and, second, how to use it. He treated it as if it was an alien artifact that he had no prior knowledge of.

My girlfriend's family was hit hard by his death. Obviously, Kendra's mom, Barb, was hit the hardest. It was made worse by the fact that Neil had made no financial arrangements for after his death and died ostensibly with no savings. Consequently, his death threw into question Barb's ability to keep the house with just her teacher's salary to pay the mortgage. Ultimately, it appears that with a little financial rearrangement, she will be able to keep it, but it was seriously in doubt there for a couple of days and will certainly take a fair amount of financial discipline. I do not envy her in the years ahead while she struggles to get herself on more secure footing. If there is a silver lining, it is that she has a wonderful family to lean on if she should falter at any point.

The second sad news is that my Aunt Joanne, my mom's sister, died of complications associated with cancer yesterday. Basically, her body started to shutdown as the cancer attacked her vital organs. I am saddened by her death, and my heart goes out to Katie and Mike, my cousins, who must be greatly affected by this. I cannot wait to see and talk to Mike especially. He had been the "dutiful son", staying by his mom's bedside while her conditioned worsened, a role that I am familiar with. I want to reach out to him and let him know that I am there if he needs to talk. In retrospect, I perhaps should have reached out sooner, but I didn't know what to say. All the words that I spoke in my head sounded as if I was comparing his loss to the loss I suffered eight years ago. Not wanting to do this and not knowing what to say, I didn't say anything. I wonder if not reaching out before will make it harder to approach him after the fact. I guess we will see.

While Joanne's death was not very sudden, as she had been battling cancer for years, my sense is that one of the ways in which her death is difficult for the family to deal with is because it brings up issues related to my mom's death. For example, my mom and Joanne were not that old when they died (49 and 61 respectfully) and they both died of cancer. There is the sense that both were too soon. I especially feel bad for my Uncle Tom who was born between Joanne, who was older, and my mom, who was younger. I can only imagine how it must be affecting him. As for myself, I have not really put all of it into a fully formed felling or thought. I know that it is not as intense as when my mom died, but that's not a surprise. At the same time, I feel a small bit of closure and I am not sure why. I believe it is related to the fact that this might be an opportunity for me to reconnect with my family and perhaps heal old wounds.

In other news, work is going well. I have been placed on a big cost savings project, which is a good place to be. (The axe rarely falls on the axe man.) It is also additional responsibility and visibility for me. I will likely have interaction with the CEO, who is a Notre Dame undergrad and Northwestern MBA grad, btw. (So close!) I was also talking to one of our VPs who expressed a desire to help me advance in my career. This can only be good as he is a well-respected person within the organization. So, my star seems to be on the rise.

Lastly, as some of you know, I am now medicated. A few weeks ago I was diagnosed with ADD, and the doctor has put me on Concerta, which is a second-generation Ritalin drug. So far, so good. I can concentrate well, and I do not feel a loss of emotion. The only downside right now is that I am still a little keyed up at the end of the day to fall asleep. The doctor suggests that I take 50 mg of Benadryl to fall asleep. That seems to work.

Still more to say. But, I need to go. I am in Chicago at the moment, and I have been anti-social long enough while writing this post. I will be in town until Monday morning if anyone wants to get together for a drink or two. Give me a call on my cell.