Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008)
½ — Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008)
Star Wars: The Clone Wars arrived in August 2008 as something of an oddity, a theatrical release that was never originally intended for cinemas at all. What George Lucas and Lucasfilm had planned as the opening arc of an animated television series was repackaged and pushed out to multiplexes as a feature film, with Warner Bros. handling distribution after their deal with Lucasfilm gave them theatrical rights. Dave Filoni, a television animation director whose credits included Avatar: The Last Airbender, was handed his feature debut under those circumstances. Made on a relatively modest $8.5 million budget, it was designed to launch the long-running Clone Wars animated series (which ran from 2008 to 2020, and introduced now-fan-favourite character Ahsoka Tano) rather than function as a standalone cinematic event.
How the hell the TV show got made after this is beyond me. A hot mess doesn’t even begin to describe The Clone Wars movie. It’s a disaster, a clumsy, soulless cash grab that somehow ends up beating the Rise of Skywalker to the handle of worst Star Wars film. This is the film that launched the animated series, but watching it is like watching a trainwreck unfold in slow motion, and you can’t look away. I'm utterly bewildered by how it exists in the first place. The plot is a tedious, pointless mess. Anakin Skywalker’s arc feels more like a side note than anything of significance, while Ahsoka Tano is introduced with all the grace of a brick through a window. Her forced, unearned ‘camaraderie’ with Anakin feels like the writers were desperately trying to give us a “dynamic” duo, but the chemistry is so off, it’s hard to tell whether the characters are supposed to be rivals or reluctant friends. Meanwhile, the rest of the film shoves us through a series of disjointed action scenes that are as incoherent as they are forgettable. The animation itself is stiff and lifeless, with characters that look like they’re made of plastic. The voices are just as flat as the animation. It’s as if George Lucas took a few too many liberties with what’s acceptable for a Star Wars movie, and the end result is a mess of clunky dialogue, unengaging characters, and action that lacks any real stakes. This film is a total misfire, both as a Star Wars movie and as an animated feature. It’s hard to believe that this wreck of a film is the thing that spun off into a beloved TV series. Watching it feels like a chore, not a joy. A true testament to how not to do a Star Wars movie.
Rating: ½ | Year: 2008 | Watched: 2008-12-04
Where to watch (UK)
Stream: Disney Plus
Physical: Amazon UK
Affiliate disclosure: Movies With Macca may earn a small commission on purchases or subscriptions started via these links. It costs you nothing extra.
Related on Movies With Macca
More from the 2000s: Kirikou and the Wild Beasts (2005) · Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004) · Daredevil (2003) · Apocalypto (2006)
More animation: Fantastic Planet (1973) · Alice in Wonderland (1951) · Mononoke the Movie: The Phantom in the Rain (2024) · Mononoke the Movie: Chapter II - The Ashes of Rage (2025)
More action: A Better Tomorrow (1986) · The General (1926) · Hand of Death (1976) · Daredevil (2003)
