Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones

Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones is a 2002 space opera film directed by George Lucas and written by Lucas and Jonathan Hales. It is the fifth film to be released in the Star Wars saga and the second in terms of internal chronology.

Released on May 16, 2002, Attack of the Clones was the first motion picture to be shot completely on a high definition digital 24-frame system and the first Star Wars film to be internationally out-grossed in the year of its original release. Spider-Man, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets all had higher receipts.

Attack of the Clones' worldwide theatrical release took place on May 16, 2002 with an MPAA rating of PG for "sustained sequences of sci-fi action/violence". 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, an edited, 120-minute version of the film was presented.

The film is set ten years after the events in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, when the galaxy is on the brink of civil war. Under the leadership of a renegade Jedi named Count Dooku, thousands of solar systems threaten to secede from the Galactic Republic. When an assassination attempt is made on Senator Padme Amidala, the former Queen of Naboo, 19-year-old Jedi apprentice Anakin Skywalker is assigned to protect her, while his mentor Obi-Wan Kenobi is assigned to investigate the assassination attempt. Soon, Anakin, Padme, and Obi-Wan are drawn into the heart of the Separatist territories and the beginning of a new threat to the galaxy, the Clone Wars.

Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones was released on DVD and VHS on November 12, 2002. George Lucas edited or added in certain elements that make the DVD slightly different from its theatrical release. The DVD 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.

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 for laughs.

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