Jump to content

Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones

This is a good article. Click here for more information.
Listen to this article
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Attack of the clones)
This article is about the film. For other uses, see Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (disambiguation).
"Star Wars II" redirects here. For the second film released, see The Empire Strikes Back.

Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones
Film poster. A young man is seen embracing a young woman. A man holds a lightsaber. A battle scene is in the middle, and in the lower foreground, there is a man wearing a suit of armor.
Theatrical release poster by Drew Struzan
Directed byGeorge Lucas
Screenplay by
Story byGeorge Lucas
Produced byRick McCallum
Starring
CinematographyDavid Tattersall
Edited byBen Burtt
Music byJohn Williams
Production
company
Distributed by20th Century Fox
Release dates
  • May 12, 2002 (2002-05-12) (Tribeca)
  • May 16, 2002 (2002-05-16) (United States)
Running time
142 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$115 million[2]
Box office$653.8 million[2]

Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones is a 2002 American epic space opera film directed by George Lucas and written by Lucas and Jonathan Hales. The sequel to The Phantom Menace (1999), it is the fifth film in the Star Wars film series and second chronological chapter of the "Skywalker Saga". The film stars Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Hayden Christensen, Ian McDiarmid, Samuel L. Jackson, Christopher Lee, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, and Frank Oz.

The story is set ten years after The Phantom Menace, as thousands of planetary systems slowly secede from the Galactic Republic and join the newly formed Confederacy of Independent Systems, led by former Jedi Master Count Dooku. With the galaxy on the brink of civil war, Obi-Wan Kenobi investigates a mysterious assassination attempt on Senator Padmé Amidala, which leads him to uncover a clone army in service of the Republic and the truth behind the Separatist movement. Meanwhile, his apprentice Anakin Skywalker is assigned to protect Amidala and develops a secret romance with her. Soon, the trio witness the onset of a new threat to the galaxy: the Clone Wars.

Development of Attack of the Clones began in March 2000, some months after the release of The Phantom Menace. By June 2000, Lucas and Hales completed a draft of the script, and principal photography took place from June to September 2000. The film crew primarily shot at Fox Studios Australia in Sydney, Australia, with additional footage filmed in Tunisia, Italy and Spain. It was one of the first motion pictures shot completely on a high-definition digital 24-frame system.

The film was released in the United States on May 16, 2002. It received mixed reviews from critics; the film's increased focus on action was praised, while the characters and dialogue were regarded more critically. It performed well at the box office, making $653.8 million worldwide. Yet, it became the first Star Wars film to get outgrossed in its year of release, placing third domestically after Spider-Man and The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and fourth-highest-grossing worldwide after the former two films and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.[3] Revenge of the Sith (2005) followed Attack of the Clones, concluding the Star Wars prequel trilogy.

Plot

[edit]

Ten years after the battle at Naboo,[a] the Galactic Republic is threatened by a Separatist movement organized by former Jedi Master Count Dooku. Former Queen turned Senator Padmé Amidala travels to Coruscant to vote against a motion to create an army to assist the Jedi against the growing threat. Narrowly avoiding an assassination attempt upon arrival, she is placed under the protection of Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi and his Padawan apprentice Anakin Skywalker. The pair thwart a second assassination attempt on Padmé and subdue the assassin, Zam Wesell, whose employer, a bounty hunter, kills her before she reveals his identity. The Jedi Council instructs Obi-Wan to find the bounty hunter, while Anakin is tasked to protect Padmé and escort her to Naboo. Despite the Jedi Code that forbids attachments, the two start to fall in love.

Obi-Wan's search leads to Kamino, an ocean planet. There he discovers a clone army is being produced for the Republic under the name of Sifo-Dyas, a deceased Jedi Master. The bounty hunter Jango Fett serves as their genetic template. Obi-Wan deduces Jango is the bounty hunter he is seeking and places a homing beacon on Jango's ship, Slave I. He then follows Jango and his clone son Boba to the planet Geonosis. Meanwhile, Anakin is troubled by visions of his mother Shmi in pain, and returns to his homeworld of Tatooine with Padmé to save her. His former owner Watto reveals that he sold Shmi to a moisture farmer named Cliegg Lars, who then freed and married her. Cliegg says Tusken Raiders abducted Shmi one month earlier and she is likely dead. Anakin finds her at the Tusken campsite, barely alive. After she dies in his arms, an enraged Anakin massacres the entire tribe. He later confesses his actions to Padmé and vows to prevent the deaths of those he loves.

On Geonosis, Obi-Wan discovers a Separatist gathering led by Count Dooku, who is developing a droid army with Trade Federation Viceroy Nute Gunray, who ordered the assassination attempts on Padmé. Obi-Wan transmits his findings to the Jedi Council but is captured by Separatist droids. Dooku meets Obi-Wan in his cell and explains that the Republic is under the control of the Sith Lord Darth Sidious. He invites Obi-Wan to help him stop Sidious, but Obi-Wan refuses. Senate Representative Jar Jar Binks proposes a successful vote to grant emergency powers to Chancellor Palpatine, allowing the clone army to be officially brought into action as the defense force of the Republic.

Anakin and Padmé head to Geonosis to rescue Obi-Wan. While in the Geonosian droid factory, Anakin loses his lightsaber before Jango captures them. Dooku sentences the trio to be killed by alien beasts in the arena. A battalion of clone troopers led by Yoda, Mace Windu, and other Jedi suddenly arrive; Windu beheads Jango during the ensuing battle. Obi-Wan and Anakin intercept Dooku and engage in a lightsaber duel. Dooku injures Obi-Wan and severs Anakin's right arm; Yoda intervenes and defends them. To distract Yoda, Dooku uses the Force in an attempt to kill Anakin and Obi-Wan. Dooku escapes via his Solar Sailer to Coruscant and delivers the schematics for a superweapon to Sidious. As the Jedi acknowledge the beginning of the Clone Wars,[b] Anakin is fitted with a cybernetic arm and secretly marries Padmé on Naboo with R2D2 and C-3PO as their only witnesses.

Cast

[edit]
See also: List of Star Wars characters and List of Star Wars cast members
A photograph of Ewan McGregor
Natalie_Portman_Thor_2_cropped.png
A photograph of Hayden Christensen
Left to right: Ewan McGregor (pictured in 2012), Natalie Portman (2015), and Hayden Christensen (2010)

Pernilla August, Ahmed Best, Oliver Ford Davies, and Andy Secombe reprise their roles from The Phantom Menace as Shmi Skywalker, Jar Jar Binks, Sio Bibble, and Watto, respectively. Silas Carson also reprises his role from that film as both Nute Gunray, the Viceroy of the Trade Federation; and Ki-Adi-Mundi, a Cerean Jedi Master sitting on the Jedi Council. Jimmy Smits portrays Bail Organa, a senator from Alderaan. Daniel Logan portrays a young Boba Fett, Jango Fett's clone and adopted son.

Jack Thompson, Joel Edgerton and Bonnie Piesse appear as members of the Lars family and homestead; respectively as Cliegg Lars, Shmi's husband, Owen's father and Anakin's stepfather; Owen Lars, Cliegg's son, Shmi's stepson, and Anakin's stepbrother; and Beru Whitesun, Owen's girlfriend. Leeanna Walsman appears as Zam Wesell, a shapeshifting Clawdite bounty hunter and partner of Jango Fett, who was given the task of assassinating Padmé. Jay Laga'aia appears as Gregar Typho, Padmé's newly appointed captain of security. Rose Byrne and Alethea McGrath briefly appear as Dormé, Padmé's handmaiden and as Jocasta Nu, the librarian at the Jedi Temple, respectively. Ronald Falk provides the voice of Dexter Jettster, Obi-Wan's Besalisk friend who runs a diner on Coruscant and informs him about Kamino.

Daniels and Best also make cameo appearances as Dannl Faytonni and Achk Med-Beq, respectively, attendees of the Coruscant Outlander Club who witness Anakin and Obi-Wan capturing Zam Wesell.[15][16] E! reported that Lucas had asked NSYNC to film a small background cameo appearance, in order to satisfy his daughters. They were subsequently cut out of the film in post-production, although briefly visible during a crowd shot from above.[17][18] David Duchovny turned down an undisclosed role in Attack of the Clones so that he could star in Evolution (2001).[19] The end credits erroneously list Alan Ruscoe as playing Neimoidian senator Lott Dod. The character was actually another Neimoidian, played by an uncredited David Healy and voiced by Christopher Truswell. Archival recordings of Liam Neeson as Qui-Gon Jinn from The Phantom Menace, appear as a disembodied ghostly voice heard by Anakin through the Force as he was slaughtering the Tusken Raiders; Qui-Gon also appears earlier in the film in the form of a statue in his likeness during a background scene when Obi-Wan visits the Jedi Archives. Fiona Johnson reprised her The Matrix (1999) role as the Woman in the Red Dress in an Easter egg cameo appearance, with her character named "Hayde Gofai" in later Star Wars media, briefly offering a seductive look to Anakin Skywalker at the Outlander Club.[20]

Production

[edit]

Writing

[edit]

After the mixed critical response to The Phantom Menace, George Lucas was hesitant to return to the writing desk. In March 2000, just three months before the start of principal photography, Lucas finally completed his rough draft for Episode II. Lucas continued to iterate on his rough draft, producing a proper first and second draft. For help with the third draft, which would later become the shooting script, Lucas brought on Jonathan Hales, who had written several episodes of The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles for him, but had limited experience writing theatrical films. The final script was completed just three days before the start of principal photography.[21]

As an in-joke, the film's working title was Jar Jar's Great Adventure, a sarcastic reference to the negative fan response to the Episode I character.[22]

In writing The Empire Strikes Back, Lucas initially decided that Lando Calrissian was a clone and came from a planet of clones which caused the "Clone Wars" mentioned by Obi-Wan Kenobi in A New Hope;[23][24] he later came up with an alternate concept of an army of clone shocktroopers from a remote planet which were used by the Republic as an army in the war that followed.[25]

Filming

[edit]
See also: List of Star Wars filming locations
Plaza de España was the filming location for the exterior of Naboo palace.

Principal photography occurred between June 26, 2000, and September 20, 2000, at Fox Studios Australia in Sydney. Location shooting took place in the Tunisian desert, at the Plaza de España in Seville, London, China, Vancouver, San Diego, and Italy (Villa del Balbianello on Lake Como, and in the former royal Palace of Caserta).[citation needed] Reshoots were performed in March 2001. During this time, a new action sequence was developed featuring the droid factory after Lucas had decided that the film lacked a quick enough pace in the corresponding time-frame. The sequence's previsualization was rushed, and the live-action footage was shot within four and a half hours.[26]

Because of Lucas' method of creating shots through various departments and sources that are sometimes miles and years apart from each other, Attack of the Clones became the first film ever to be produced through what Rick McCallum called "virtual filmmaking".[26] Back at Fox Studios, the stages from McGregor's other film Moulin Rouge! were reused during filming.[27] While filming his scenes, Christensen would sometimes make lightsaber noises from his mouth, which caused Lucas to stop filming and tell Christensen "Hayden, that looks really great, but I can see your mouth moving. You don't have to do that, we add the sound effects in afterward."[28] At his own personal request, Samuel L. Jackson's character Mace Windu received a lightsaber that emits a purple glow, as opposed to traditional blue or green for "good guys" and red for "bad guys".[29]

Like The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones furthered technological development, effectively moving Hollywood into the "digital age" with the use of the HDW-F900, developed by Sony and Panavision, a digital camera using an HD digital 24-frame system. This spawned controversy over the benefits and disadvantages of digital cinematography that continues as more filmmakers "convert" to digital filmmaking while many filmmakers oppose it. In contrast to previous installments, for which scenes were shot in the Tunisian desert in temperatures up to 125 °F (51 °C), the camera would still run without complications. Lucas had stated that he wished to film The Phantom Menace on this format but Sony was unable to build the cameras quickly enough.[30][31] Sony's cameras arrived one week before principal photography on Attack of the Clones was about to start.[32] In 2002, Attack of the Clones became the third film to be released that was shot entirely on a 24p digital camera (preceded by 2001's Jackpot and Vidocq).[33] The cameras record in the 16:9 HDCAM format (1080p), although the image was cropped to a 2.40:1 widescreen ratio. The area above and below the 2.40 extraction area was available for Lucas to reframe the picture as necessary in post-production. Despite Lucas' efforts to persuade movie theaters to switch to digital projectors for viewing of Episode II, few theaters did.[34]

Visual effects

[edit]

There were over 2,000 visual effects shots in the film.[35] The film relied almost solely on digital animatics as opposed to storyboards in order to previsualize sequences for editing early on in the film's production. While Lucas had used other ways of producing motion-based storyboards in the past, after The Phantom Menace the decision was made to take advantage of the growing digital technology.[26] The process began with Ben Burtt's creation of what the department dubbed as "videomatics", so called because they were shot on a household videocamera. In these videomatics, production assistants and relatives of the department workers acted out scenes in front of greenscreen. Using computer-generated imagery (CGI), the previsualization department later filled in the green screen with rough background footage. Burtt then cut together this footage and sent it off to Lucas for changes and approval. The result was a rough example of what the final product was intended to be. The previsualization department then created a finer version of the videomatic by creating an animatic, in which the videomatic actors, props, and sets were replaced by digital counterparts to give a more precise, but still rough, look at what would eventually be seen. The animatic was later brought on set and shown to the actors so that they could understand the concept of the scene they were filming in the midst of the large amount of bluescreen used. Unlike most of the action sequences, the Battle of Geonosis was not story-boarded or created through videomatics but was sent straight to animatics after the department received a small vague page on the sequence. The intent was to create a number of small events that would be edited together for pacing inside the finished film. The animatics department was given a free hand regarding events to be created within the animatic; Lucas only asked for good action shots that he could choose from and approve later.[26] Jackson would fight invisible creatures while filming his scenes.[36]

In addition to introducing the digital camera, Attack of the Clones emphasized "digital doubles" as computer-generated models that doubled for actors, in the same way that traditional stunt doubles did. It also furthered the authenticity of computer-generated characters by introducing a new, completely CGI-created version of the character Yoda. Rob Coleman and John Knoll prepared two tests featuring a CGI-animated Yoda using audio from The Empire Strikes Back. Yoda's appearance in Episode V also served as the reference point for the creation of the CGI Yoda; Lucas repeatedly stated to the animation department that "the trick" to the animation of the CGI Yoda was to make him like the puppet from which he was based, in order to maintain a flow of continuity. Frank Oz (voice and puppeteer for Yoda in the original trilogy and The Phantom Menace) was consulted; his main piece of advice was that Yoda should look extremely old, sore, and frigid.[37] Although, Lucas admitted that he was "scared to death" about how they would pull off the scene.[38] Coleman later explained the process of making the digital Yoda like the puppet version, by saying "When Frank [Oz] would move the head, the ears would jiggle. If we hadn't put that in, it wouldn't look like Yoda."[39] Because of the acrobatics of the lightsaber fight between Count Dooku and Yoda, the then 78-year-old Christopher Lee relied on a stunt double to perform the most demanding scenes instead. Lee's face was superimposed onto the double's body in all shots other than close-ups, which he performed himself. Lucas often called the duel crucial to the animation department, as it had the potential to be humorous rather than dramatic.[37]

Lucas did not use VistaVision for the miniature effects as he wanted the film to be "consistently digital".[31] Carl Miller shot test footage of models using digital cameras, but the models did not look realistic enough. More detailed models had to be made as the digital cameras lacked the film grain that would have added detail and realism.[40] The amphitheater on Geonosis was initially a miniature made out of foam blocks, but the cameras were able to show flaws in it.[35]

Music

[edit]
Main article: Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (soundtrack)

The soundtrack to the film was released on April 23, 2002, by Sony Classical Records.[41] The music was composed and conducted by John Williams, and performed by the London Voices and London Symphony Orchestra.[42] The soundtrack recreates "The Imperial March" from the film The Empire Strikes Back for its first chronological appearance in Attack of the Clones, even though a hint of it appeared in the previous movie in one of the final scenes. A music video for the main theme "Across the Stars" was produced specifically for the DVD.[43]

On March 15, 2016, a limited edition vinyl version of the soundtrack was released. Only 1,000 copies were pressed initially.[44]

Themes

[edit]
See also: Star Wars sources and analogues
Numerous rows of soldiers walking out of a large spaceship
Clone troopers march onto their starships.

Lucas has noted that Palpatine's rise to power is very similar to that of Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany; as Chancellor of Germany, the latter was granted emergency powers, as is Palpatine.[45] Comparisons have been made to Octavian—who became Augustus, the first emperor of Rome—and to Napoleon Bonaparte, who rose to power in France from 1796 to 1799. Octavian was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of political opponents well before he was granted tribunician powers; Bonaparte was appointed First Consul for life (and later Emperor) by the French Consulate after a failed attempt on his life and the subsequent coup of 18 Brumaire in 1799.[46] References to the American Civil War can also be discerned.[46] War journalism, combat films, and footage of World War II combat influenced the documentary-style camera work of the Battle of Geonosis, even to the point that hand-held shakes were digitally added to computer-generated sequences.[46]

English scholar Anne Lancashire describes Attack of the Clones as "thoroughly political in its narrative", to the point that interpersonal relations are made subordinate to the political drama that unfolds, and "a critique of the increasing role played by economic and political appetite in contemporary First World international politics in general". In this political drama, the Trade Federation, the former idealist Dooku, and Palpatine "[represent] the economic and political greed and ambition ... of the political and business classes", while the intuition of the Jedi has been clouded by the dark side of the Force. The cityscape of Coruscant, the location of the Jedi Temple, is a dystopian environment that refers to 1982's Blade Runner.[46] Nevertheless, the Jedi endure as the heroes; Obi-Wan's role has been noted as similar to that of James Bond,[47] and Zam Wesell's attempt on Padmé's life is similar to a scene in the first 007 film, Dr. No.[48] Furthermore, the Geonosis arena fight scene is a reference to the 2000 Ridley Scott film, Gladiator.[49]

The prequel trilogy films often refer to the original trilogy in order to help connect the films together. Lucas has often referred to the films as a long poem that rhymes.[50] Such examples include the line "I have a bad feeling about this", a phrase used in each film, and lightsaber duels which almost always occur over a pit. As with Attack of the Clones, The Empire Strikes Back was the middle film in a trilogy, and of the original trilogy films, The Empire Strikes Back is the object of the most references in Attack of the Clones. In both films, an asteroid field is the backdrop of a major star battle in the middle of the film. Obi-Wan escapes Jango Fett by attaching his spacecraft to an asteroid in order to disappear from the enemy sensors; Han Solo uses a similar tactic by attaching the Millennium Falcon to a Star Destroyer in The Empire Strikes Back. As a retcon, John Knoll confirms on the film's DVD commentary that Boba Fett, who would later catch Solo in the act in The Empire Strikes Back, "learned his lesson" from the events of Attack of the Clones.[45] The Galactic Republic's clone troopers also establish the origin of the stormtroopers that play an important role in the original trilogy.[citation needed] The titles of both films refer to the response of the primary galactic government to a threat of rebellion.[citation needed]

Release

[edit]

Marketing

[edit]

In November 2001, three teaser trailers for Attack of the Clones were released, which were shown on the Internet, as well as the DVD-ROM selection of The Phantom Menace DVD release. The first one was released on November 2 with the Disney Pixar film Monsters, Inc. in theaters.[51] A second teaser debuted online three days later on November 5. This was followed by a third teaser trailer, which was released on November 16 with the global release of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in the United States. Just like its predecessor, fans paid full admission at theaters to see the trailers.[52] The next trailer premiered on Fox Network on March 10, 2002, between Malcolm in the Middle and The X-Files.[53] It made its theatrical debut five days later on March 15 with the opening of Ice Age.[54] The trailer was made available on the official Star Wars website the same day.[55] The outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas from Chicago predicted before the film's release that U.S. companies could lose more than $319 million in productivity due to employees calling in sick and then heading to theaters to see the film.[56]

Attack of the Clones had fewer promotional partners compared to its predecessor, which included General Mills and Frito-Lay.[57]

Theatrical

[edit]

The film premiered as part of the inaugural Tribeca Film Festival at the BMCC Performing Arts Center, 199 Chambers St. in New York City[58] at a Sunday, May 12 set of screenings benefitting the Children's Aid Society, a charity supported by George Lucas.[59] This charity would go on to help raise money for kids of the victims of the September 11 attacks.[60] Attack of the Clones was then screened out of competition at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival,[61] before getting a worldwide theatrical release on May 16, 2002. The film was also later released in IMAX theaters; the film had not been filmed for IMAX but was "up converted" with the digital remastering process. Because of the technical limitations of the IMAX projector at the time, an edited, 120-minute version of the film was presented.[62]

Before the film's release, there was a string of controversies regarding copyright infringement. In 2000, an underground organization calling itself the Atlas Group, based in Perth, Western Australia offered a copy of the screenplay, with an asking price of US$100,000, to various fan sites and media organizations, including TheForce.Net. The scheme was subsequently reported to Lucasfilm Ltd. by the fan site.[citation needed]

An unauthorized copy was allegedly made at a private showing, using a digital recorder that was pointed at the screen. This copy spread over the internet, and analysts predicted up to a million fans would have seen the film before the day of its release.[63] In addition, authorities seized thousands of bootlegs throughout Kuala Lumpur before the film opened.[64]

Home media

[edit]

Attack of the Clones was released on DVD and VHS on November 12, 2002 by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment.[65] On the first day of release, over 4 million DVD copies were sold, becoming the third-highest single-day DVD sales of any film, behind Monsters, Inc. and Spider-Man.[66] This THX certified two-disc DVD release consists of widescreen and pan and scan fullscreen versions.[65] The set contains one disc with the film and the other one with bonus features. The first disc features three randomized selected menus, which are Coruscant, Kamino and Geonosis. There is an Easter egg located in the options menu. When the THX Optimizer is highlighted, the viewer can press 1-1-3-8. By doing this, some bloopers and DVD credits will be shown.[67] The DVD also features an audio commentary from director George Lucas, producer Rick McCallum, editor and sound designer Ben Burtt, ILM animation director Rob Coleman, and ILM visual effects supervisors Pablo Helman, John Knoll, and Ben Snow. Eight deleted scenes are included along with multiple documentaries, which include a full-length documentary about the creation of digital characters and two others that focus on sound design and the animatics team. Three featurettes examine the storyline, action scenes, and love story, and a set of 12 short web documentaries cover the overall production of the film.[68]

The Attack of the Clones DVD also features a trailer for a mockumentary-style short film known as R2-D2: Beneath the Dome. Some stores offered the full mockumentary as an exclusive bonus disc for a small extra charge. The film gives an alternate look at the "life" of the droid R2-D2. The story, which Lucas approved, was meant to be humorous.[69]

The film was re-released in a prequel trilogy DVD box set on November 4, 2008.[70]

The six-film Star Wars saga was released on Blu-ray Disc on September 16, 2011, in three different editions.[71]

On April 7, 2015, Walt Disney Studios, 20th Century Fox, and Lucasfilm jointly announced the digital releases of the six released Star Wars films. Attack of the Clones was released through the iTunes Store, Amazon Video, Vudu, Google Play, and Disney Movies Anywhere on April 10, 2015.[72]

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment reissued Attack of the Clones on Blu-ray, DVD, and digital download on September 22, 2019.[73] Additionally, all six films were available for 4K HDR and Dolby Atmos streaming on Disney+ upon the service's launch on November 12, 2019.[74] This version of the film was released by Disney on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray on March 31, 2020, whilst being re-released on Blu-ray and DVD.[75]

3D re-release

[edit]

On September 28, 2010 (2010-09-28), it was announced that all six films in the series were to be stereo-converted to 3D, and re-released in chronological order beginning at The Phantom Menace which was released on February 10, 2012 (2012-02-10). Attack of the Clones was originally scheduled to be re-released in 3D on September 20, 2013 (2013-09-20),[76] but was postponed due to Lucasfilm's desire to focus on Star Wars: The Force Awakens.[77][78][79] However, the 3D presentation of the film was first shown at Celebration Europe II from July 26 to 28, 2013.[80][81][82]

Reception

[edit]

Critical response

[edit]

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 65% based on 257 reviews, with an average rating of 6.6/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones benefits from an increased emphasis on thrilling action, although they're once again undercut by ponderous plot points and underdeveloped characters."[83] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 54 out of 100, based on 39 critics, which indicates "mixed or average reviews".[84] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale, the same score as the previous film.[85]

Numerous critics characterized the dialogue as "stiff" and "flat".[86] The acting was also disparaged by some critics.[87] Conversely, other critics felt fans would be pleased to see that Jar Jar Binks has only a minor role.[88] Additionally, Jar Jar's attempts at comic relief seen in The Phantom Menace were toned down; instead, C-3PO reprised some of his bumbling traditions in that role. McGregor referred to the swordplay in the film as "unsatisfactory" when comparing it to the climactic duel in Revenge of the Sith as it neared release.[89] ReelViews.net's James Berardinelli gave a positive review, saying "in a time when, more often than not, sequels disappoint, it's refreshing to uncover something this high-profile that fulfills the promise of its name and adds another title to a storied legacy."[90] Jeffrey Westhoff of Northwest Herald gave the film a two out of four scoring, explaining that "the battling Yoda looks ludicrous, like Kermit the Frog in a Matrix fight scene."[91] Steven Rea of The Philadelphia Inquirer gave it a two-and-a-half out of four rating, stating that "this thing will have your mind glazed over faster than a glob of dough in a Krispy Kreme plant."[92]

Roger Ebert, who had praised the previous Star Wars films, gave Episode II only two out of four stars, noting "[As] someone who admired the freshness and energy of the earlier films, I was amazed, at the end of Episode II, to realize that I had not heard one line of quotable, memorable dialogue." About Anakin and Padmé's relationship, Ebert stated, "There is not a romantic word they exchange that has not long since been reduced to cliché."[87] Leonard Maltin, who also liked all of the previous installments, awarded two stars out of four to this endeavor as well, as seen in his Movie and Video Guide from the 2002 edition onward. Maltin cited an "overlong story" as reason for his dissatisfaction and added "Wooden characterizations and dialogue don't help."[93]

Box office

[edit]

During its opening day, Attack of the Clones made $30.1 million, combined with $6 million from midnight screenings.[94][95] At that point, it had the highest Thursday gross of any film, taking the former record held by Independence Day.[96] It would go on to make $116.3 million within its first four days of release, making it the second-fastest film to approach the $100 million mark, behind Spider-Man.[97] Plus, it had already grossed $80 million over the weekend,[98] becoming the third-highest three-day opening weekend of all time, after Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and Spider-Man.[99] Attack of the Clones had the highest opening weekend for a 20th Century Fox film until 2003 when it was taken by X2.[100] That year, The Matrix Reloaded beat Attack of the Clones for having the biggest Thursday opening of any film.[101] The film would stay at the top of the box office for two weeks until it was dethroned by The Sum of All Fears.[102]

Attack of the Clones grossed $310,676,740 in North America and $338,721,588 overseas for a worldwide total of $649,398,328. Though a box office success, it was nevertheless overshadowed by the even greater box office success of The Phantom Menace three years earlier.[2] It was not the top-grossing film of the year, either in North America (where it finished in third place) or worldwide (where it was fourth), the first time that a Star Wars film did not have this distinction. In North America, it was outgrossed by Spider-Man and The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, both of which were more favorably received by critics. Worldwide, it was also outgrossed by Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Adjusted for inflation, Attack of the Clones is the lowest-performing live-action Star Wars film at the North American box office, though is still among the 100 highest-grossing films of all time when adjusted for inflation. The film sold an estimated 52,012,300 tickets in the US in its initial theatrical run.[103]

Internationally, Attack of the Clones made $69.1 million during its opening weekend from 71 countries, breaking Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone's record for having the largest international opening weekend.[104] The combined total gross increased to $173.9 million, making it the highest worldwide opening weekend at that time.[104] It made a total opening weekend gross of $54 million in Europe, with $17 million from the UK, $11 million from Germany, $7.6 million from France and $4.5 million from Spain.[105] The film also recorded the highest opening weekend in Hungary, surpassing The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.[106] In the UK, the film beat out About a Boy to reach the number one spot, ranking behind Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone as the country's second-highest opening weekend.[107] Until the release of Finding Nemo in 2003, it was one of the highest-grossing digital films at the Manchester UCI Cinemas.[108] With a total gross of $954,000, Attack of the Clones had the second-highest opening of any film in Singapore, behind The Lost World: Jurassic Park.[109] Meanwhile, in Japan, it earned a total of $13.8 million in its first two days of release, joining The Phantom Menace, Mission: Impossible 2 and A.I. Artificial Intelligence to rank themselves in the list of the country's top five highest opening weekends of all time.[110] Outside the United States and Canada, the film grossed over $10 million in Australia ($18.9 million), France and Algeria ($30.6 million), Germany ($35 million), Italy ($12.9 million), Japan ($78.1 million), Spain ($16.1 million), and the United Kingdom and Ireland ($58.7 million).[2]

Accolades

[edit]

Following suit with the series' previous installments, the Academy Awards nominated Attack of the Clones' Rob Coleman, Pablo Helman, John Knoll, and Ben Snow for Best Visual Effects at the 2003 Academy Awards.[111][112] Natalie Portman was also honored at the Teen Choice Awards,[citation needed] and the film received an award for Best Fight at the MTV Movie Awards.[113] In contrast, the film also received seven nominations from the Golden Raspberry Awards for Worst Picture, Worst Director (George Lucas), Worst Screenplay (George Lucas), Worst Supporting Actor (Hayden Christensen), Worst Supporting Actress (Natalie Portman), Worst Screen Couple (Hayden Christensen and Natalie Portman) and Worst Remake or Sequel.[114] It took home two awards for Worst Screenplay (George Lucas) and Worst Supporting Actor (Hayden Christensen).[115]

Award Date of ceremony Category Recipients Result
Academy Awards March 23, 2003 Best Visual Effects Rob Coleman, Pablo Helman, John Knoll, and Ben Snow Nominated
Visual Effects Society[116] February 19, 2003 Best Visual Effects in an Effects Driven Motion Picture John Knoll, Ben Snow, Pablo Helman, Rob Coleman Nominated
Best Character Animation in a Live Action Motion Picture Rob Coleman, Hal Hickel, Chris Armstrong, James Tooley Nominated
Best Matte Painting in a Motion Picture Paul Huston, Yusei Uesugi, Jonathan Harb Won
Best Models and Miniatures in a Motion Picture Brian Gernand, Russell Paul, Geoff Campbell, Jean Bolte Nominated
Best Visual Effects Photography in a Motion Picture Patrick Sweeney, Marty Rosenberg, Carl Miller, Fred Meyers Nominated
Best Effects Art Direction in a Motion Picture Alex Jaeger, Doug Chiang, Erik Tiemens, Ryan Church Nominated
Saturn Awards May 18, 2003 Best Science Fiction Film Richard McCallum Nominated
Best Director George Lucas Nominated
Best Actress Natalie Portman Nominated
Best Performance by a Younger Actor Hayden Christensen Nominated
Best Costume Trisha Biggar Won
Best Special Effects Rob Coleman, Pablo Helman, John Knoll, and Ben Snow Won

Legacy and influence

[edit]

In a 2023 interview, cartoonist and animation producer ND Stevenson said that he was compelled by the shapeshifting character, Zam Wesell, causing him to think more about shapeshifting, and said the film was where his "love of shapeshifters specifically started.[117] In other interviews, Stevenson expressed his affinity for Wesell,[118][119] even stating that Double Trouble in She-Ra and the Princesses of Power is meant as an homage to Wesell.[120] Stevenson also said that at an early age, Wesell created a huge impression on him, noting he latched onto Zam because she was a shapeshifter, causing him to come up with a version of the story when Zam lived, "became the main character" in a "whole parallel world" that Stevenson constructed.[121]

In the archivist field, the film has been critically approached for its depiction of a librarian stereotype in the character Jocasta Nu, the Jedi archivist/librarian of the Jedi Temple library. Some have noted that the archives depicted in the film resembles a library, while Nu wears clothing which represents her "devotion to knowledge and learning" and provides reference assistance to Obi-Wan Kenobi.[122][123] For instance, scholar Eric Ketelaar argued that Nu is an example of an archivist that "mediates, shares, or obstructs" power of the archives, as dictated by the film's plot.[124][125] In contrast, former Society of American Archivists president Randall C. Jimerson stated that the film provides a "more confident view of archives" than other media, showing the powerful and confident role of an archivist despite "archival sabotage".[126] Otherwise, Richard Pearce-Moses, stated the Nu's notion, that information not within the archives doesn't exist, is a "naïve" and is believed by some in regard to information not on the internet.[127]

Other scholars have critically approached the film with different perspectives. Anna Lancashire stated that the film has the impact of turning the other films into an "epic commentary on American and international politics and economics", and on political empires based on aggressiveness, "human greed...hatred, and fear".[128] Timothy P. Chartier argued how the film can be used in classrooms for topics such as linear algebra, calculus, and numerical analysis.[129] Scholar Bradley Schauer said that the film is a unified, classical text, and argued that it has different meanings for "both general and specialized audiences".[130]

Novelizations

[edit]
Main article: Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (novel)

Two novels based on the film were published, a tie-in junior novel by Scholastic,[131] and a novelization written by R. A. Salvatore, which includes some unique scenes.[132] A four-issue comic book adaptation was written by Henry Gilroy and published by Dark Horse Comics.[133]

Sequel

[edit]
Main article: Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith

A sequel titled Revenge of the Sith was released May 19, 2005 and was written and directed by George Lucas. It concludes the Prequel Trilogy with the story of Anakin's transformation into Darth Vader as well as the death of Padmé Amidala and the destruction of all of the Jedi except for Obi-Wan and Yoda.

References

[edit]

Footnotes

  1. ^ As depicted in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace.
  2. ^ As depicted in the 2008 television series Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

Citations

  1. ^ "Star Wars – Episode II – Attack of the Clones". British Board of Film Classification. Archived from the original on January 2, 2016. Retrieved December 27, 2015.
  2. ^ a b c d "Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Archived from the original on April 2, 2021. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  3. ^ Scott Mendelson (May 16, 2022). "20 Years Ago, 'Attack Of The Clones' Put 'Star Wars' On The Defensive". Forbes. Archived from the original on January 11, 2023. Retrieved May 29, 2022.
  4. ^ "Devon Sawa on Teen Fame, Career Reinvention and Role That Got Away". Archived from the original on August 12, 2021. Retrieved August 12, 2021.
  5. ^ Pierre, Mekishana (December 16, 2023). "Charlie Hunnam Reveals He Was Almost Anakin Skywalker in 'Star Wars'". Entertainment Tonight. Retrieved June 21, 2024.
  6. ^ Joe Utichi (June 4, 2021). "Topher Grace Home Economics Interview On My Screen – Deadline". Deadline.com. Archived from the original on January 7, 2022. Retrieved February 11, 2022.
  7. ^ "CNN.com – Entertainment – 'Dawson's Creek' actor goes from troubled teen to leading man – March 29, 2000". CNN. Archived from the original on August 28, 2021. Retrieved June 15, 2021.
  8. ^ "Ryan Phillippe Recalls Missing Out On Anakin Role In 'Star Wars' Prequels". MTV. March 27, 2008. Archived from the original on May 9, 2008. Retrieved July 1, 2008.
  9. ^ Hiscock, John (January 26, 2008). "Colin Hanks rises in 'Untraceable'". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on June 3, 2008. Retrieved July 1, 2008.
  10. ^ "Looking for Anakin". BBC. May 7, 2002. Archived from the original on September 29, 2008. Retrieved July 1, 2008.
  11. ^ "All about the Anakin Skywalker casting call". Entertainment Weekly.
  12. ^ Ryan, Joal (April 4, 2000). "ROLE CALL: Leo out of Anakin Sweepstakes". Hollywood.com. Archived from the original on August 4, 2011. Retrieved June 24, 2006.
  13. ^ "Why DiCaprio turned down the chance to play Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars prequels". December 31, 2015.
  14. ^ Cagle, Jess (April 29, 2002). "Meet Mr. and Mrs. Vader". Time, Canadian Edition: 53. Archived from the original on June 17, 2008. Retrieved July 2, 2008.
  15. ^ "Star Wars Episode 2: Attack of the Clones Easter Egg – Out of Costume?". Eeggs. May 17, 2002. Archived from the original on July 13, 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
  16. ^ Newbold, Mark (February 26, 2018). "Anthony Daniels is signing for Official Pix". Fantha Tracks. Archived from the original on January 31, 2021. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
  17. ^ Armstrong, Mark (January 10, 2002). "'N Sync Cut from "Clones"?". E! Online. Archived from the original on January 20, 2008. Retrieved June 9, 2006.
  18. ^ "*NSYNC Appears to Have Secretly Ended up in A 'Star Wars' Movie". May 8, 2015.
  19. ^ Passa, Alex (January 9, 2023). "David Duchovny Showed No Remorse After Turning Down Star Wars Episode II Attack Of The Clones". The Things.com.
  20. ^ Hooton, Christopher (November 16, 2015). "Star Wars: Attack Of The Clones hid an incredibly subtle The Matrix Easter egg". The Independent. Archived from the original on November 17, 2015. Retrieved November 16, 2015.
  21. ^ "The Force Is Strong with… Star Wars: Episode II's Digital Effects". VODzilla.co.
  22. ^ Kaminski 2008, p. 531.
  23. ^ Bouzereau 1997, p. 196.
  24. ^ Kaminski 2007, p. 158.
  25. ^ Kaminski 2007, p. 162.
  26. ^ a b c d State of the Art: The Previsualization of Episode II DVD Special Feature, [2002]
  27. ^ "Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen Reflect on Building Their 'Star Wars' Relationship From 'Attack of the Clones' to 'Obi-Wan Kenobi'". Metacritic. May 27, 2022. Archived from the original on July 5, 2022. Retrieved July 5, 2022.
  28. ^ Hegarty, Tasha (April 15, 2017). "Hayden Christensen reveals funny Star Wars faux pas". Digital Spy. Retrieved November 30, 2023.
  29. ^ "Samuel L. Jackson". Inside the Actors Studio. Season 8. Episode 15. June 2, 2002. Bravo.
  30. ^ Here We Go Again: The Digital Cinema Revolution Begins DVD Special Feature, [2002]
  31. ^ a b Magid, Ron (September 2002). "George Lucas discusses his ongoing effort to shape the future of digital cinema". American Cinematographer. Archived from the original on July 6, 2024.
  32. ^ "Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones : Production Notes". www.cinema.com.
  33. ^ "Disney To Roll Out Pearl Harbor Again This Week". Internet Movie Database. August 28, 2001. Archived from the original on April 10, 2016. Retrieved July 1, 2018.
  34. ^ Carus, Felicity (March 20, 2003). "Reel change". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on January 31, 2021. Retrieved June 15, 2006.
  35. ^ a b Huffstutter, P. (March 15, 2002). "ILM Feeling the Effects of Digital Filmmaking". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on July 6, 2024.
  36. ^ "Interview: Lucas Spins Latest Star Wars Yarn". ABC News. Retrieved February 26, 2024.
  37. ^ a b From Puppets to Pixels: Digital Characters in Episode II DVD Special Feature, [2002]
  38. ^ "George Lucas was scared to death to shoot this epic scene in 'Attack of the Clones'". Business Insider.
  39. ^ Cagle, Jess (April 29, 2002). "Yoda Goes Digital-and Conquers Too", Time Canadian Edition, page 48.
  40. ^ Magid, Ron (September 2002). "A group of cinematographers assess the digital methods they adopted to render the fantastic scenes and settings in Star Wars: Episode II". American Cinematographer. Archived from the original on July 6, 2024.
  41. ^ "Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones". The Official Star Wars Music Website. Archived from the original on February 14, 2008. Retrieved July 1, 2008.
  42. ^ "Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack". Sony Music Classical. Archived from the original on December 2, 2007. Retrieved July 1, 2008.
  43. ^ "Across The Stars music video". Starwars.com. Archived from the original on February 13, 2008. Retrieved July 1, 2008.
  44. ^ "Star Wars: Attack of the Clones is Being Released on Limited Edition Vinyl". Classicalite. February 29, 2016. Archived from the original on March 2, 2016. Retrieved March 1, 2016.
  45. ^ a b Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones DVD commentary featuring George Lucas, Rick McCallum, Rob Coleman, Ben Burtt, Pablo Helman, John Knoll and Ben Snow, [2002]
  46. ^ a b c d Lancashire, Anne (2002). "Attack of the Clones and the Politics of Star Wars". The Dalhousie Review. Archived from the original on February 6, 2012. Retrieved June 20, 2006.
  47. ^ Young, Bryan (August 21, 2018). "The Curious Connections Between 'Star Wars' and the James Bond Series". /Film. Archived from the original on May 12, 2019. Retrieved September 17, 2019.
  48. ^ French, Philip (May 12, 2002). "Film of the week: them clones, them clones..." The Guardian. Archived from the original on October 25, 2015. Retrieved September 17, 2019.
  49. ^ "Star Wars Episode II – Attack of the Clones as a tribute to the films of Ridley Scott". March 9, 2012.
  50. ^ "The Beginning" Making Episode I Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace DVD documentary, [2001]
  51. ^ Allen, Jamie (November 5, 2001). "First 'Star Wars: Episode II' trailer released". CNN. Archived from the original on August 13, 2004. Retrieved July 19, 2018.
  52. ^ Davidson, Paul (October 19, 2001). "Three Star Wars Trailers on the Way?". IGN. Archived from the original on January 11, 2023. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  53. ^ "'Star Wars' trailer will show Sunday on Fox". Statesman Journal. March 7, 2002. p. 42. Archived from the original on October 8, 2024. Retrieved October 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  54. ^ "World premiere of new "Star Wars: Episode II" trailer on March 10". Hollywood.com. March 1, 2002. Archived from the original on November 25, 2006. Retrieved June 21, 2006.
  55. ^ Brown, Scott (March 4, 2002). "A sneak peek at the next Episode II trailer". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on July 3, 2022. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  56. ^ "Will 'Star Wars' clobber business?". CNN. May 15, 2002. Archived from the original on March 14, 2006. Retrieved July 1, 2008.
  57. ^ "'Star Wars' - Attack of the Toys". CBS News. April 24, 2002.
  58. ^ "My Tribeca film festival: Robert de Niro & Jane Rosenthal". New York Post. April 15, 2012. Archived from the original on January 31, 2021. Retrieved November 5, 2012.
  59. ^ "The Children's Aid Society and The Tribeca Film Festival to Co-Host The... – re> NEW YORK, April 10 /PRNewswire/". PR Newswire. Archived from the original on May 13, 2014. Retrieved June 29, 2013.
  60. ^ "'Star Wars' premiere to raise money for kids of 9/11 victims". Stevens Point Journal. April 14, 2002. p. 26. Archived from the original on May 11, 2024. Retrieved May 11, 2024 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  61. ^ "Festival de Cannes: Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones". festival-cannes.com. Archived from the original on August 7, 2012. Retrieved November 4, 2009.
  62. ^ "Star Wars: Episode II | Making it BIG: Episode II — The IMAX Experience". Archived from the original on October 23, 2004. Retrieved June 29, 2013.
  63. ^ Singer, Michael (March 10, 2002). "Star Wars 'Clones' Showing Up On Web". InterNetNews. Archived from the original on May 23, 2011. Retrieved June 21, 2006.
  64. ^ "Malaysian Clones Attack Star Wars". The Financial Express. May 15, 2002. Archived from the original on January 31, 2021. Retrieved June 21, 2006.
  65. ^ a b Hettrick, Scott (August 1, 2002). "'Clones' set for DVD". Variety. Retrieved May 13, 2023.
  66. ^ Hettrick, Scott (November 13, 2002). "'Clones' DVD a hot seller". Variety. Archived from the original on January 23, 2022. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
  67. ^ "DVD Review – Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones". Archived from the original on March 8, 2021. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  68. ^ "Episode II: Unlocking the DVD". Starwars.com. October 8, 2002. Archived from the original on January 5, 2008. Retrieved July 1, 2008.
  69. ^ "R2-D2: Beneath the Dome DVD". Starwars.com. December 23, 2002. Archived from the original on January 8, 2008. Retrieved July 1, 2008.
  70. ^ "Star Wars Saga Repacked in Trilogy Sets on DVD". Lucasfilm. StarWars.com. August 28, 2008. Archived from the original on October 26, 2008. Retrieved November 8, 2008.
  71. ^ "Pre-order Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray Now!". StarWars.com. January 6, 2011. Archived from the original on January 11, 2012. Retrieved January 7, 2011.
  72. ^ Vlessing, Etan (April 6, 2015). "'Star Wars' Movie Franchise Headed to Digital HD". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on April 10, 2015. Retrieved April 7, 2015.
  73. ^ Bonomolo, Cameron (August 8, 2019). "Newest Star Wars Saga Blu-rays Get Matching Artwork". Comicbook.com. Archived from the original on September 26, 2019. Retrieved September 26, 2019.
  74. ^ Hayes, Dade (April 11, 2019). "Entire 'Star Wars' Franchise Will Be On Disney+ Within Its First Year". Deadline. Archived from the original on April 14, 2019. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
  75. ^ Lussier, Germain (March 27, 2020). "Let's Dive Into Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga's 27-Disc Box Set". io9. Archived from the original on March 13, 2021. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
  76. ^ Dietsch, T.J. (August 28, 2012). "Star Wars 3D Continues Next Fall With Release of Episodes II and III". Spinoff Online. Archived from the original on August 31, 2012. Retrieved September 8, 2012.
  77. ^ Eisenberg, Eric (January 28, 2013). "Star Wars Attack Of The Clones And Revenge Of The Sith Won't Be Getting 3D Re-Releases". Cinema Blend. Archived from the original on January 30, 2013. Retrieved January 28, 2013.
  78. ^ Finke, Nikki (January 28, 2013). "EXCLUSIVE: No More 'Star Wars' 3D Prequel Releases; Lucasfilm Passes To Focus On New Trilogy". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on January 30, 2013. Retrieved January 28, 2013.
  79. ^ "Focusing on Episode VII, Lucasfilm Postpones Episodes II and III 3D". StarWars.com. January 28, 2013. Archived from the original on January 31, 2013. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
  80. ^ "Exclusive Attack Of The Clones 3D Screenings At Celebration Europe". StarWars.com. Archived from the original on June 7, 2013. Retrieved May 29, 2013.
  81. ^ "World-Exclusive Screening of Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones in 3D at Star Wars Celebration Europe". StarWarsCelebration.eu. Archived from the original on August 8, 2013. Retrieved August 3, 2013.
  82. ^ "SWCE 2013: Opening Day Highlights". StarWars.com. July 27, 2013. Archived from the original on July 19, 2019. Retrieved October 30, 2018.
  83. ^ "Star Wars: Episode II -- Attack of the Clones (2002)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Archived from the original on January 25, 2017. Retrieved January 20, 2024. Edit this at Wikidata
  84. ^ "Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on March 27, 2012. Retrieved April 4, 2011.
  85. ^ Gina Carbone (December 21, 2019). "Yep, Rise Of Skywalker's CinemaScore Matches My Theater's Reaction To Star Wars Movie". CinemaBlend. Archived from the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  86. ^ Turan, Kenneth (May 13, 2002). "Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on March 21, 2008. Retrieved June 15, 2006.
  87. ^ a b Ebert, Roger (May 10, 2002). "Star Wars Episode II: Attack Of The Clones". rogerebert.com. Archived from the original on May 4, 2012. Retrieved June 15, 2006.
  88. ^ Corliss, Richard and Jess Cagle, (April 29, 2002). "Dark Victory", Time Canadian Edition, p. 49.
  89. ^ Pierce, Nev (April 1, 2005). "The Total Film Interview – Ewan McGregor". Total Film. Archived from the original on October 16, 2015. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  90. ^ Berardinelli, James. "Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (United States, 2002)". Reelviews. Archived from the original on January 31, 2021. Retrieved September 5, 2015.
  91. ^ Westhoff, Jeffrey (May 12, 2002). "Sadly, 'Clones' repeats flaws of its predecessor". Northwest Herald. p. 12. Archived from the original on October 9, 2024. Retrieved October 9, 2024. Open access icon
  92. ^ Rea, Steven (May 15, 2002). "'Episode II' not for novice 'Star Wars' fans". Knight Ridder Newspapers. Centre Daily Times. p. 26. Archived from the original on October 9, 2024. Retrieved October 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  93. ^ Leonard Maltin (Author) (August 5, 2003). p. 1322 of 2004 edition. Amazon.com. ISBN 978-0-451-20940-5. Archived from the original on November 7, 2015. Retrieved June 29, 2013. {{cite book}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  94. ^ Kyman, Rick (May 20, 2002). "Not Bad, Clones, But Watch Spidey's Legs". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 13, 2022. Retrieved May 13, 2022.
  95. ^ "A Midweek Record for 'Clones': $30.1 Million". Los Angeles Times. May 18, 2002. Archived from the original on February 3, 2022. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  96. ^ Paul (May 17, 2002). "Attack of the Clones Posts Best-Ever Thursday". IGN. Archived from the original on May 8, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  97. ^ "New 'Star Wars' Performs Well, But Is Blunted by 'Spider-Man'". Wall Street Journal. May 20, 2002. Archived from the original on February 3, 2022. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  98. ^ "It's an all-over show of Force". Los Angeles Times. May 23, 2005. Archived from the original on February 3, 2022. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  99. ^ "Not So Fast, 'Attack of the Clones'". Los Angeles Times. May 21, 2002. Archived from the original on November 7, 2022. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  100. ^ Groves, Don (May 5, 2003). "Marvel-ous 'X2' opening". Variety. Archived from the original on February 3, 2022. Retrieved March 1, 2022.
  101. ^ Gray, Brandon. "'Matrix' Loads Massive Opening Day". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on April 6, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  102. ^ "The Sum Of All Fears takes US box office by storm". Archived from the original on June 25, 2022. Retrieved June 25, 2022.
  103. ^ "Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002)". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on December 20, 2016. Retrieved May 30, 2016.
  104. ^ a b Gray, Brandon. "'Attack of the Clones' Conquers the World with $179 Million Opening". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on May 16, 2022. Retrieved May 16, 2022.
  105. ^ "Attack Of The Clones opens new episode in international box office records". Archived from the original on March 19, 2022. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  106. ^ "Mixed reception for Star Wars: Episode II in Eastern Europe". Archived from the original on May 16, 2022. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  107. ^ "Send in the Clones: UK box office under attack".
  108. ^ Mitchell, Robert (October 6, 2003). "UK proves perfect platform for Finding Nemo". Screen International. Archived from the original on March 22, 2022. Retrieved March 22, 2022.
  109. ^ Groves, Don (May 20, 2002). "O'seas B.O. phenom". Variety. Archived from the original on June 28, 2022. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
  110. ^ "Episode II sets new all-time opening record in Japan". Archived from the original on March 25, 2022. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  111. ^ "Winners: Big upsets". Detroit Free Press. March 24, 2003. p. 21. Archived from the original on October 3, 2022. Retrieved October 3, 2022 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  112. ^ "The 75th Academy Awards". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. March 23, 2003. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved August 7, 2018.
  113. ^ "2003 MTV Movie Awards". MTV. Archived from the original on April 21, 2008. Retrieved July 1, 2008.
  114. ^ "The 23rd Annual RAZZIE Nominations/Press Release". Golden Raspberry Award Foundation. February 10, 2003. Archived from the original on July 29, 2013. Retrieved July 1, 2008.
  115. ^ "The 23rd Annual RAZZIE "Winners"". Golden Raspberry Award Foundation. March 22, 2003. Archived from the original on April 15, 2014. Retrieved July 1, 2008.
  116. ^ "1st Annual VES Awards". visual effects society. Archived from the original on July 22, 2015. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
  117. ^ Stevenson, ND (June 26, 2023). "Nimona creator ND Stevenson on how Star Wars and Dungeons & Dragons inspired his work". Entertainment Weekly (Interview). Interviewed by Nick Romano. Archived from the original on June 23, 2023. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  118. ^ Romano, Nick (June 14, 2023). "The story of Nimona, the groundbreaking animated film that refused to die". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on June 14, 2023. Retrieved June 16, 2023. ND Stevenson has long been fascinated by shapeshifters. He had a particular affinity for Zam Wesell
  119. ^ Lachenal, Jessica (January 7, 2016). "Noelle Stevenson's Boba Fett Headcanon Combines Jango Fett, Zam Wesell, and Our Dreams". The Mary Sue. Archived from the original on June 3, 2023. Retrieved June 17, 2023. According to Stevenson...Zam Wesell...faked her death during the events of Attack of the Clones.
  120. ^ Brown, Tracy (November 5, 2019). "In Netflix's 'She-Ra,' even villains respect nonbinary pronouns". LA Times. Archived from the original on February 14, 2020. Retrieved June 17, 2023. Double Trouble is just another homage to Zam Wessell, my No. 1 favorite character in the world
  121. ^ Stevenson, ND; Bruno, Nick; Quane, Troy (June 15, 2023). "'Nimona' Team Talk Quest To Complete Film Against The Odds & Surprise 'Star Wars' Villain Who Sparked The Original Character – Annecy". Deadline Hollywood (Interview). Interviewed by Melanie Goodfellow. Archived from the original on June 17, 2023. Retrieved June 17, 2023.
  122. ^ Aldred, Tania; Burr, Gordon; Park, Eun (2008). "Crossing a Librarian with a Historian: The Image of Reel Archivists". Archivaria. 66 (1). Association of Canadian Archivists: 80. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  123. ^ Schwartz, Joan M. (2006). ""Having New Eyes": Spaces of Archives, Landscapes of Power". Archivaria. 61 (1). Association of Canadian Archivists: 20. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  124. ^ Ketelaar, Eric (2002). "Archival Temples, Archival Prisons: Modes of Power and Protection". Archival Science. 2 (3–4). Association of Canadian Archivists: 222–223. doi:10.1007/BF02435623. S2CID 145308168. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  125. ^ Buckley, Karen (2008). ""The Truth is in the Red Files": An Overview of Archives in Popular Culture". Archivaria. 61 (1). Association of Canadian Archivists: 101. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  126. ^ Jimerson, Randall (2006). "Embracing the Power of Archives". The American Archivist. 69 (1). Society of American Archivists: 20–21. doi:10.17723/aarc.69.1.r0p75n2084055418. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  127. ^ Pearce-Moses, Richard (2007). "Janus in Cyberspace: Archives on the Threshold of the Digital Era". The American Archivist. 70 (1). Society of American Archivists: 15. doi:10.17723/aarc.70.1.n7121165223j6t83. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  128. ^ Lancashire, Anna (2002). "Attack of the Clones and the Politics of Star Wars" (PDF). The Dalhousie Review. 82 (2): 235–236. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  129. ^ Chartier, Timothy P. (2007). "Using the Force: Star Wars in the Classroom". Primus. 17 (1): 8–23. doi:10.1080/10511970601126860. S2CID 122028595. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  130. ^ Schauer, Bradley (2007). "Critics, Clones and Narrative in the Franchise Blockbuster". New Review of Film and Television Studies. 5 (2): 191–210. doi:10.1080/17400300701432894. S2CID 194038029. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  131. ^ Patricia C. Wrede (April 23, 2002). Star Wars, Episode II – Attack of the Clones (Junior Novelization). Scholastic Paperbacks. ISBN 0-439-13928-7. OCLC 49622734.
  132. ^ "Episode II Novel Paperback Edition". Starwars.com. December 5, 2002. Archived from the original on November 16, 2007.
  133. ^ "Episode II Adaptation & Free Comic". Starwars.com. March 5, 2002. Archived from the original on April 2, 2005.

Sources

[edit]
[edit]
Wikiquote has quotations related to Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones.
Listen to this article (30 minutes)
Spoken Wikipedia icon
This audio file was created from a revision of this article dated 16 March 2007 (2007-03-16), and does not reflect subsequent edits.
(Audio help · More spoken articles)
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Star_Wars:_Episode_II_–_Attack_of_the_Clones&oldid=1254208187"