Star Wars - Episode I, The Phantom Menace (Full Screen Edition)

Rating:
Summary: Plain old bad.
Review: It's just a load of rubbish, isn't it really? A real shame that a producer who has a carte-blanche to make any film he desires spends his time making dull, sub-video game rehashes of his greatest hits.

Rating:
Summary: The beginning of something bigger...
Review: Ok, it's not perfect, but neither was the first one. Episode one is just more of what we already expect from Star Wars. It has a story that can only happen in the Star Wars universe. It has a strong female role and a lot of fast moving vehicles. What it is missing is the in depth story that was already established with the first Star Wars movie in 1977. In that movie, there had already been a war (the clone wars), Luke's parents were dead, his mother a mystery, his father a hero (at least at first), the Senate was disbanded and this seemingly all powerful empire controlled everything. We were thrown into the middle of it all. Now where do start all this? George has done a good job but it's obvious he had a better idea of Vader's prime and his demise then he did of his beginnings. With 'Attack of the Clones' (oohh, that title) being released next summer I believe he will get into the thick of it now that we have an origin established. Episode One is a beginning, the beginning of a much larger story. In a nutshell, a corrupt trade federation is blockading an innocent planet in order for the council to debate the status. Queen Amadala is the newly elected leader of her planet. Young and beautiful, and slightly naïve, she is being manipulated by Senator Palpatine in a ploy to get himself elected to a higher position by forcing her hand. This is where Episode 1 is most intriguing. The underlying deceit of this Senator, who we all know the fate of already, is nothing less than evil. We see what he is doing, and we hate him for it. It is actually a very complicated political scheme; Senator Palpatine blockades her planet secretly because he needs her vote to eject the current counselor so he can move in on his position. We see the workings of a brilliant manipulator starting and unfortunately we know how it ends up. Thankfully, Lucas doesn't try to hide it from us as if we are new comers. It's subtle enough to not grab our attention, but clear enough to make sure those of us who know the truth are not having to search for it. The entrance of the Jedi Knights (McGregor and Neeson) is a monkey wrench in the works of this deceit and suggests someone in the council is at least partially aware of the plans of the Senator. Moving on from the political aspect, there are plenty of marketable creatures to make action figures from and despite Jar Jar's annoying personality, the rest of the movie is still very well done. The affects are awesome, nothing less can be expected from the creator of ILM, and the action scenes are spectacular. The lightsaber dual at the end is hands down the most awesome melee ever put on film. One gripe is the fact that Anakins actions at the end of the movie saved everyone, and he did it by accident...maybe George believes we will chalk it up to subconscious use of the force. The actors are all good. The boy is a bit of an amateur but he holds his own. You couldn't have found a better likeness for Obi Wan then Ewan McGregor. Liam Neeson is so charismatic and powerful that you have no choice but to believe in him. Natalie Portman is a heartbreaker and she plays her role of Royalty with every bit of forcefulness as Carrie Fisher did for Leia. You can really believe that this girl is her mother. The pod sequence is another foray in Lucas' obsession with speed and it will most likely be outdone in the next movie. Overall, you have to cut Lucas some slack, he hadn't directed since the first Star Wars movie. The story line is thin but it is the beginning of a much larger story. When all is done, it will be considered a part of whole and then I think it will be seen in a better light.

Rating:
Summary: 10 minutes are worth watching, the rest is wasted film
Review: This movie is a stink-bomb. The plot is lame. The acting is bad. The dialogue is flat.

I didn't care about anybody in this movie. At the portion where they reveal that the queen is the servant and the servant is the queen, , the camera pans to show the shocked and surprised reaction of everyone in the room. I also was shocked and surprised, that anything so bad could make it to the big screen. That pregnant pause and pan to shocked expressions was so bad it was laughable. I was left totally dry by this huge revelation, and if a dramatic high point of the movie left me dry, imagine how I felt about the rest of it.

This movie tries to mix live action with animation. That is difficult and has seldom given good results. Maybe "the mummy returns" was successful, but this was not.

The Computer graphic (CG) world left me emotionless. The battle scenes looked like a video game, how can I get excited about that? Plus, by now I have seen enough CG epic battle scenes to last me a lifetime, The Mummy, Star Wars I, Final Fantasy, Mummy II, all featured epic battle scenes with a cast of one (computer programmer, that is). It just doesn't cut it.

The journey thru the fish world was stupid. By contrast the similar journey in "Atlantis" had me squirming out of my seat with excitment.

The pod race is great, it's worth watching and has sparks of inspiration. The double headed announcer that does his own color was funny and creative, the sand people taking pot shots at the racers, the Ben Hur inspired race, Anakin rewiring his pod in the middle of the race - all great stuff.

We all agree that Jar Jar Binks was a mistake. What makes it unforgiveable is that they made exactly the same mistake 20 years ago in "The Empire Strikes Back" where C-3PO was annoyingly obnoxious. When C-3PO was switched off, everyone sighed with relief, both on screen and in the audience. That means the movie is better without him than it is with him, so leave him out! I don't pay $7.50 to be annoyed. Loveable, funny, cute is what we need, not annoying.

My friend tells me that the final fight was excellent choreography. I can believe that but the scene was ruined for me by the lack of story content. During the lapses when the force fields kept the fighters apart, there was a silent minute or two. I can imagine the screenwriters leaving that portion blank and promising to drop in some super secret, earth shattering dialog later. When the dialog came thru and was found to be lame, I can hear the suits saying: "Just have the characters glare at each other meaningfully. This is for kids anyway....just cut it and print it. Let's get this thing out the door." I'm sorry, that just doesn't cut it!

Don't talk to me about expectations. On an absolute scale this movie stinks. Anyway, how can I not be disappointed by a techno movie made in 2000 that doesn't live up to a movie made in 1977?

What it proves is that art is about the same things it has always been about, drama, excellent writing, characters, motivations, etc etc. You can't ignore all that, spend $??? Million on computers and expect to have something worthwhile.

Rating:
Summary: It's About Time!
Review: It's about time that star wars has begun it's ever soooo sloooow move to DVD. I thought this was a great movie so i am thrilled to see its release, however if this will go like the vhs version im sure that the public is in for a lot of money milking with tons of special releases of special sets of this series... Ahhhh yes the cash cow flood gates have openith.....

Rating:
Summary: Does the DVD edition allow me to edit out Jar Jar?
Review: If one of the special extra on this DVD is the ability to edit out Jar-Jar, I will definitely buy it. Of course, it would be nice if I could also edit out Liam Neeson, and get my $ back that I wasted seeing it in the theatre.

Rating:
Summary: Why so much?
Review: Some parts of the movie was a joy to watch, for instance two jedi's duking it out and the visual graphics. However, why must fans pay so much just to enjoy digital movies? I guess it's another case of the movie producers wanting to wrench every penny possible. That is why I gave it this rating...

Rating:
Summary: good intoduction to a great story.
Review: i think it is a shame that so many people have panned this movie. i'm not sure what they were expecting it to be - it is only the first movie of a six-part series. they worry about a lack of plot and character development, but both of those would have been completely out of place here. in "the phantom menace," the characters are introduced and the plot of the entire series is set up. that is all this movie set out to do, and it was accomplished. i hope that after they see episodes two and three, they'll be able to come back to this movie and more fully understand how it fits in. i'm looking forward to this first star wars dvd.

Rating:
Summary: A Review That Fanboys will hate!
Review: Yes there is a plot, a story, and acting in The Phantom Menace; more ever, there was more to it than just F/X in this film! It would seem that the Fanboys have invaded this place to express their limited opinion about this film. I find it my job to add my rebuddal to their case, and defend a movie saga that I love.

I cannot see how a film that can be so bad, that it end up making over 430 million dollars at the U.S. box office? One would have to conclude that there are far less nay sayers, and that they are very vocal about their hatred for a good film. I am sure these are the people that would say: "The Matrix was a better movie." If that were true, would it have made more money than The Phantom Menace? Thus showing that the Fanboys are out numbered, in their idea that The Phantom Menace was a bad movie!

Fanboys say: "So, why was Jar Jar put into the movie?" Well if you watched it, you will understand that they needed Jar Jar to bring the Gungans, and the people of Theed together. So, they can fight the Trade Federation in the end. Also, unless you don't have kids of your own (and most fanboys don't); it would be hard to understand the enjoyment they have watching Jar Jar. So please put your own selfishness aside, and let kids enjoy a character that does have a purpose in the Star Wars Universe. Keep watching the new Star Wars sagas, and find out!

Now Fanboys what do you really want from a 9 year old? Is life so bad for you, that your going to base a whole movie on a kid that has to act like a 9 year old? LOL.. How pathetic can you get? Is it so hard to see, or even look at the idea of loss of innocents? Can you not see a boy that is full of hope, and dreams of doing good for everybody one day; just to see all that strip away in the end. Can you not see the power, or even the sadness behind that? For a young actor, Jake Lloyd did do a good job acting out his part as Anakin Skywalker.

FanBoys say: "What is with that stoooooooooopid pod race?" Well--if you were not watching the movie, may be they need a way off the planet, with out having the Trade Federation after them there! Hummmm?!?!

Fanboys say: "I don't get it, I thought Yoda trained Obi-Wan?" If you were paying attention, and I know some of you need to be spoon feed anymore. What were one of the first lines that Obi-Wan say to Qui-Gon?: "But master Yoda told me to be mind full of the future." Boom, there you have it off the bat, so please pay attention in what you are watching!

Until a fanboy do make a movie better than The Phantom Menace, as they claim they can do, I'll be waiting to see your work, and effort to see for myself that you can do a better job. Other than that keep complaining, because that is all you will ever do.

I did find The Phantom Menace on par with the rest of the Star Wars saga, and that it gets better ever time I see it. I found it refreshing that it did not copy everything that the first three movies did! This is a new Trilogy, with a new direction that will connect with the original trilogy in the end. So, please don't let people try to talk you not getting or buying this movie! Find our for yourself, please:) Than make your opinion known, I am sure you will enjoy this movie.

The Phantom Menace is a great movie, like the rest of the Star Wars Saga. It is different from the rest, and I am happy about that; because it is NEW story, that needs to be different from the first Trilogy! Would you like watching the same story again? I know I would not:)

I am happy to see that we are going to get this on DVD now. I have been waiting forever to get a Star Wars Movie on DVD. It would seem we are going to have to wait for another 4 to 6 years to get the whole saga on DVD, and I'll be there to buy them when they do.

p.s. so if the fanboys best complaint are about The Phantom Menace are two characters, and the titles of the Star Wars movie. I say we are in pretty good shape! Let them complain, while we enjoy a great movie over and over again.

p.s.s. Bring on Episode II: Attack of the Clones! It is going to be great, because it is a Star Wars Film! I can hear the FanBoys already crying about that title. LOL!! Silly Fanboys, take a breath, and enjoy The Phantom Menace for what it is...

ENTERTANMENT:-)

Rating:
Summary: The Force is Surely There
Review: Is it Obi-One-Kanobi's stylish accent? The cute defiance and ultra-intelligent character of the Darth-Vader-to-be? The antics of Jar-Jar Binks? Yup. It's all of it. This movie's got action. Style. Great costumes. And there is something touching about the story line that makes the Stars Wars trilogy even more romantic. Can you guessed that I loved it? Saw the movie 10 times while it was out a few summers ago. Now this DVD is as good. Very happy here.

Rating:
Summary: Splendid
Review: When watching this movie, it was obvious that George Lucas was a man after my own heart. The podracing scene revealed the obvious truth that Lucas has seen "Ben Hur" ten times as a lad! This movie harkens back to ancient Rome in many ways and the demise of its Republic. However, I do believe that, in the main, Lucas is warning us about the peril of our own Republic. Which Senator is Darth Sidious? Is it Palpatine or "Puff" Daschle? Hehe. I eagerly await the release of Episode II. I wanted to see it immediately after Episode I!