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Rating:  -
The Star Wars DVD was what I ordered and expected. It even came a day earlier than I had anticipated.
Rating:  -
By now, everybody will have long made up their mind on whether or not "The Phantom Menace" sucked; while the film continues to boast a number of fans, there's little debate regarding the notion that George Lucas spectacularly under-delivered what could have been one of the biggest films in history. True, it made a mountain of money, but in no way other than a mirrored leap in technology does "Episode I" come close to touching the original "Star Wars" trilogy for being a movie to base an entire generation on.
Two Jedi knights - Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson, "Schindler's List") and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor, "Moulin Rouge!") - are sent to confront the leaders of the evil Trade Federation about their blockade and upcoming invasion of the peaceful planet of Naboo. Before being ambushed and fleeing to Naboo, the Jedi find out that the life of the planet's leader, Queen Amidala (Natalie Portman, "V For Vendetta"), is in jeopardy; they manage to rescue the queen, but following a daring escape, they are forced to land on the desert planet Tatooine. Here, the Jedi encounter a gifted young slave boy named Anakin Skywalker (Jake Lloyd), whom Qui-Gon is sure is the answer to an ancient prophecy foretelling of the one who would bring balance to the Force and destroy the deadly Sith - an agent of which (Ray Park, "X-Men") is hot on their heels...
Rest assured, this is not a bad movie, but in trying to live up to the film-defining legacy of its three "sequels", "Menace" fails miserably.
Maybe it's the fault of the actors: Liam Neeson is really the only character who feels like he would fit into the Star Wars universe, while McGregor, Portman, Lloyd, and even Samuel Jackson ("Pulp Fiction") as Mace Windu are remarkably bad in their performances; the phrase "trying to act" is accurate, here.
Or maybe it's the new world that Lucas created: vistas like Naboo, Coruscant, and Mos Espa - though visually beautiful - rely so much on CGI that they lack the subtle depth that Mos Eisley, Hoth, or Endor had. And like the performers, none of them feel at all familiar or particularly in-tune with the Star Wars landscape we used to know.
Or maybe it's the un-climatic introduction to the romance that would turn out Luke and Leia Skywalker, and bring about the creation of Darth Vader - I mean, a 9-year-old (Anakin) getting the hots for a 14-year-old (Amidala)? Ugh.
Or maybe it was just Jar-Jar Binks (Ahmed Best), who I loved, but everybody else on earth hated with a passion.
Yes, we'll just say it was him.
What the film does hold in its favour, however, are graphics that were mind-blowing then and still amazing now: the Gungan city, the sea monster scene, the pod racing, and the ground/space battle for Naboo are visually delightful, and continued Lucas' trademark of raising the bar when it came to utilizing technology to its fullest extent. Eyeballs, prepare to be amazed.
The action scenes are also a lifesaver: after the fairly limited duels of the previous trilogy, watching the fast-paced, acrobatic encounters between Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, and Darth Maul are a breath of fresh air for the series, and definitely don't hurt expectations. In addition, the pod race is just about the most exciting scene in the movie - blending incredible visuals, impressive soundwork, and a healthy amount of exhilaration for an attention-grabber that even the nay-sayers can't admit they saw coming.
To quote Roald Dahl, the film "has the same glacial beauty as an iceberg, but unlike the iceberg [it] has absolutely nothing below the surface": for all of its pretty things to look at, "The Phantom Menace" lacks the classic storytelling and archetypical characters that made its predecessors so successful with audiences. Even worse, the film lacks a feeling of kinship with the original trilogy: aside from a few names and characters, it feels too much like its own adventure, and hardly seems like the beginning of anything as grand as what the first three films were.
Rest assured, Star Wars fans should be quick to pick this one up, and even non-fans will be able to have a fun time with it...but seeing as my disappointment is still intact, even nine years after the film's release, it's impossible to call it great.
Rating:  -
I, like all of you were SO psyched for this to come out.
Most of you seem disappointed.
I wasn't.
Why?
Darth Maul.
The single greatest super villain since Vader. Period!
The face, the horns, the double bladed saber.
The guy meant business.
I didn't mind Jar Jar either, he was funny and cute. I disagree with people when they say he was annoying.
Would he have annoyed you when you were a kid? Doubt it.
Everything about this movie is good, except Jake is a little grating. And the whole pod race scene could have been cut.
What's bad?
Lucas, I will forever condemn you for knocking off Darth Maul.
He's the main reason the book sold as well as it did.
Everyone went to see him.
I was so looking forward to seeing him in all three and he bumps him off?????
I almost got up and left the theater after that scene.
What a waste and what a travesty!!!
Lucas made the same mistake with Maul as he did with Vader in A New Hope.
Not enough screen time, and not enough lines.
Just my opinion, it should have come down to a fight between Vader and Maul as to who would serve the Emperor.
Christopher Lee is amazing but his character just wasn't necessary.
Otherwise, a great movie and a great start to the new trilogy.
A must see?
Yes, just to see Maul in action.
R.I.P.
Rating: -
Upon its release in 1999, "Star Wars: Episode 1- The Phantom Menace" was the first new addition to George Lucas'legendary cinematic franchise in sixteen years.The first in what was to become a series of three prequels relating the backstory to the original Star Wars trilogy, 'Phantom Menace' has as interesting and unique a history in the annals of film criticism as its creator, George Lucas, has had in that successful filmmaking. Nine years on, the Amazon reviews will happily attest to the fact that the film is still being attacked right and left by bitter fans whose "expectations" were bigger than their faculties for common sense, and who apparently have nothing better to do than flog a dead horse with a bent whip.
The basic storyline of the Phantom Menace revolves around a blockade and boycott of the Planet Naboo by the Trade Federation. When Naboo is invaded, two Jedi, Qui-Gon Jinn and apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi, rescue the elected ruler of the planet, Queen Amidala, and take her to the capital planet of Courescant to seek legeslative intervention from the the senate of the then-thriving Galactic Republic. Along the way they come across a young boy called Anakin Skywalker, who Qui-Gon insists on taking back with him to be tested for Jedi training. In the distant background is a subplot involving characters Darth Sideous and Darth Maul, which reveals that it was in fact they--"Sith Lords" who want revenge on the Jedi for the near-extinction of their kind--who orchestrated the invasion of Naboo for their own nefarious ends.
The only upshot of all this that viewer directly witnesses is that Anakin enters training as a Jedi under Obi-Wan Kenobi following Qui-Gon's death, Darth Maul is killed in the succssful battle for Naboo's freedom and, perhaps most interestingly, Naboo's senator, Palpatine, becomes the new supreme chanellor over the Galactic Republic.
It is hard to know where to start in critiquing this film, especially so many years after the fact of its release. A starting point is to firmly establish that Episode 1 is an introductory segment in the Star Wars series; it is necessarily designed to introduce characters and set the balls rolling for the REAL story to commence in the following chapters. It is therefore unfair and an improper perspective to judge it purely as a stand-alone film. However, as George Lucas himself notes in the audio commentary featured on the DVD edition of the film, it does have to be a quality piece on its own merits as well. Whether it is or is not is obviously the subject of the heated debating that can be found on these pages. I can only add my voice to the choir; there are so many choristers that it will inevitably harmonize beautifully with some, while it will clash so horribly with others as to make bystanders reach for the nearest pair of earplugs.
To begin with, the blockade of Naboo by the Trade Federation is a solid plot device on which to build the rest of the film--it leads to some genuinely entertaining circumstances and manages to generate quite a bit of excitment on its own. Equally fascinating, intricate, and well-executed is the background story of the Sith Lords' ulterior motivation. To break this down a bit for those who lack the mental power to fathom it for themselves: at the beginning of the film, when the TF head honchos first realize that the "ambassadors" are Jedi Knights, the decide to "contact Lord Sideous". Shortly thereafter, "Lord Sideous" appears projected as a holograph and it is revealed even as the story continues that it was Sideous' "scheme" to blockade Naboo--but the viewer is not told why HE would want to do this. Later on Darth Maul is sent out after the escaped Jedi and queen; for the first time in the Star Wars saga the word "Sith" is used: this is an order of some variety Sideous and Maul apparently belong to. To quote Nute Gunray "Now there are two of them!" In a subsequent brief scene, it is reveiled that Sideous and Maul are really out for revenge against the Jedi. Scenes with the Jedi Coucil would reveal that the Sith are agents of the Dark Side of the Force and are believed to have been extinct for a thousand years; to wit, "I do not believe the sith could have [returned without our knowledge]". The obvious inference here is that the Jedi are in some way responible for the extinction of the sith.
As entertaining and well-executed as the actions sequences are (and they are excellent, particularly the lightsaber duels, the opening fight with the battle droids, and the ground battle with the Gungans), the bits and pieces revealed of the Sith agenda are that fascinating and intriguing to watch unfold. So where does all this leave the film? With excellent action and adventure elements (further propelled by the obviously brilliant special effects) and a solid story, enhanced for its part by suspensful and subtly enticing revelations as to the real agenda of the Sith.
The acting ranges from competent to outstanding and the characters are varient and often interesting. Obi-Wan is well-played by talented Ewan McGregor, whose performances only get better in the subsequent chapters, and his is cleary a "cool", chipper and cheaky character at this time in his life. He is also a master swordsman. Wise, fatherly and fascinating , Qui-Gon is evidently a more serious and restrained counterpart to Obi-Wan's youthful energy. Liam Neeson plays his character well and with a mystical slant, as well as delivering his lines with great flow and believability. Natalie Portman's Queen Amidala is a strong and beautiful character, with exquiste wardrobe and an often-compelling performance from Portman as the character becomes outspoken and outright aggressive in the defense of her planet. One of the great moments in the film is her delivery of the admittedly wordy line "I will not condone a course of action that will lead us to war"--then and there you really get a strong feeling for her character. Next to Qui-Gon and Amidala, the most interesting "new" character is the brooding, nearly silent Darth Maul. The supurb athlete Ray Park portrays the character for most of his scenes, while Peter Serafinowics provides the character's chilling and highly memorable voice. In addition, Silas Carson and James E. Taylor are suitably slimy and suarve in their roles as the Trade Federation leaders, and Ian McDiarmid is excellent as ever in his role ("Revenge of the Sith" being the predominantly stage-oriented actor's cinematic masterwork).
The strongest components of the supporting cast are Anthony Daniels in small role as C-3PO, and Brian Blessed, who puts in a grin-becoming performance as Boss Nass, the larger-than-life Gungan leader. The rest play their roles up to and sometimes beyond the call of duty--even if Ralph Brown looks nearly clueless as the queen's pilot looks nearly clueless while reading the consels that report the deactivation of the shield generator!
Rather obviously, this leaves with Jake Lloyd as Anakin and Ahmed Best as Jar Jar Binks. Lloyd, while no Olivier--or Ian McDiarmid for that matter--and VERY unpolished was certainly sincere in his efforts to "get it right", and really did perform very well in such a major role for someone his age. (For doubters-- watch the feauturette "3,000 Anakins" on disc 2 of the DVD under "Web Documentaries"; clearly Lloyd was a good choice as compared to the utter and total zombies that could have been. He was very natural in the audition shown on the DVD and very natural in the film.)
Ahmed Best performs very well in the guise of his character--people just hate the character so much that they can't see how convincing his performance is. In fact, that he IS so convincing is the primary reason people dislike the character! Personally, I have to confess that I first saw 'Phantom Menace' when I was 6 in '99 and I thought Jar Jar was HILARIOUS; time has really done surprisingly little to sway that opinion. I don't particularly like the flatulence jokes anymore--but his physical clumsines and in particular his antics during the final ground battle are pretty funny if, like me, you are into physical humor ala Rowan Atkinson's "Mr. Bean" character (and yes, I fully expect ridicule and ostracism for this statment but I'll stand by my opinions to the last.) At worst, even though the pitch of his voice can be irritating, Jar Jar shouldn't be THAT difficult to handle for most mentally stable and relatively unbiased viewers. At best you will be genuinely entertained by his misadventures, even if you are scared to admit it! It all depends on your taste in humor, really.
In the final tally, yes 'Phantom Menace' has its flaws (and really-- name a single movie that doesn't!)and yes, it is ultimately an entertaining, enjoyable film. The writing and direction are at least competent (and Lucas boasts some outstanding atmosphere and editing choices at times), while the acting is generally on the good side. The action, adventure, story-telling, characters--all are excellent and 100% in the grand Star Wars tradition of having fun while telling a great story.
"Star Wars: Episode 1- The Phantom Menace" is a highly recommended film if you like action/adventure movies and have not already seen (though I have to wonder if that's possible...), and if you have, well, you know how you feel! Personally, I think it's terrifically entertaining and solid evidence that George Lucas can still do what he did in '77--even if the storyline, tone, and characters necessarily different.
Rating: -
It took a bit longer to get it than I expected, but it's a great movie.
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starring: Pernilla August, Kenny Baker, Brian Blessed, Anthony Daniels, Oliver Ford Davies
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Binding: DVD
Brand: NEESON,LIAM
EAN: 0024543023937
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, Widescreen, NTSC
Label: 20th Century Fox
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
Number Of Discs: 2
Number Of Items: 2
Publisher: 20th Century Fox
Region Code: 1
Release Date: March 22, 2005
Running Time: 133 minutes
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Theatrical Release Date: 1999
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