Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002)
- To accurately portray their role in Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones, Hayden Christensen spent weeks conducting hands-on research and rehearsing directly with director George Lucas.
- Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones utilized mostly practical sets and locations to ground the story, a specific choice insisted upon by George Lucas.
Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones is a 2002 American epic space opera film written and directed by George Lucas, the second installment of the Star Wars prequel trilogy. Set ten years after The Phantom Menace, the film follows an older Anakin Skywalker, now played by Hayden Christensen, as his secret romance with Senator Padmé Amidala, played by Natalie Portman, blossoms against the backdrop of a growing Separatist movement threatening to split the Galactic Republic. Meanwhile, Obi-Wan Kenobi investigates an assassination attempt on Padmé that leads him to discover a secret clone army being created on the remote ocean planet of Kamino.
Attack of the Clones was the first major motion picture shot entirely on high-definition digital video rather than film, a technical decision by George Lucas that was considered revolutionary and controversial in equal measure. The climactic Battle of Geonosis, featuring the first large-scale deployment of clone troopers and a massive arena battle involving dozens of Jedi wielding lightsabers simultaneously, delivered fan-service spectacle on an unprecedented scale. Christopher Lee's dignified performance as Count Dooku brought much-needed gravitas to the villains.
The film's romantic subplot between Anakin and Padmé was its most criticized element, with many viewers finding the dialogue stilted and the chemistry between Christensen and Portman unconvincing. Attack of the Clones earned $653 million worldwide. Yoda's lightsaber duel with Count Dooku, revealing the diminutive Jedi Master as a whirling acrobatic combatant, produced one of the loudest audience reactions in Star Wars history.
