For fifteen years, I defended Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace as a cinematic masterpiece. Then, a little over a year ago, my friend Joshua Thomas and I decided to debate the film on camera so that everyone could see it. It was then that I realized what a piece of cinematic dogshit this movie is.
Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace is the story of two Jedi Knights who encounter a young Anakin Skywalker while the supposedly extinct Sith look to reclaim their glory. Before I get started, I would like to make a case against Star Wars being deemed a "kids movie." I would like to emphasize that this film is called Star WARS, which implies that there will be much violence throughout. Also, if you care to look at the rating for these films, you will see that they are all rated either PG or PG-13 so it is probably a safe bet that no one under this particular age should be watching these films without parental supervision. So here we go: I am going to start with the good things about this film. I personally think the action sequences are top-notch. They are exciting to watch and, along with the lightsaber battles, they actually make the movie somewhat enjoyable. Many people feel that the lightsaber duels feel too choreographed, but in my opinion they have passion behind them and feel energetic. I also love the visual effects in the film, particularly in the podrace scene. The computer generated characters look incredibly realistic, and all the set pieces and different planets are designed in exquisite detail. I have heard many fans complain about the lack of the "used future" concept that was introduced in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. My argument against that is that this film takes place 30 years prior and the Empire has not taken control over the galaxy, and therefore everything is more glossy and pristine. Also, there were several things that were introduced in the original trilogy that raised certain questions: 1)Why does Darth Vader refer to the Emperor as Master? 2) How did the Emperor rise to power? 3) Who was on the Jedi Council, and what was its purpose? All of these questions are answered in this film: 1) We are introduced to the Sith and The Rule of Two. 2) Senator Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid), who is really Darth Sidious and deceiving both sides, begins to manipulate his way to being elected Supreme Chancellor. I also enjoy the political aspect of this film because Queen Amidala (Natalie Portman) has to deal with the Supreme Chancellor and the Senate making a decision on what to about the Naboo Crisis, and there is much conflict going on with this situation. 3) We see what the Jedi Council looks like, the characters within it, and what kind of missions they go on. I also absolutely love the sound design, and John Williams' musical score. Every individual ship and mechanical device has its own unique sound, and every bit of music in the film tells its own unique story. There has also been talk among fans about how the battle droids pose no legitimate threat. However, I like to believe that Darth Sidious is using the Trade Federation for their machinery while he concocts a brilliant scheme towards the creation of a clone trooper army. After all, Sidious is a puppet master who pulls all the strings. Therefore, he sees the battle droids as expendable. As far as the good things about this movie go, that is about it. Now on to the bad things:
In the opening crawl, it says that two Jedi Knights are dispatched to resolve the situation, but then we learn that Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) is not a Jedi Knight yet. Was George Lucas getting ahead of himself on this? Also, why do the Jedi Knights drink tea that was given to them by the people that are trying to kill them? In what twisted universe does that make any sense at all? Then we see Qui-Gon (Liam Neeson) cut through a blast door with his lightsaber, but yet he did not do that when they had to escape from the previous room that was filling with toxic gas?!?! Also, why does the queen take so much time to commend R2D2 for getting them through the blockade?? George Lucas should have skipped this part, and moved on to what the Jedi Knights have to say. Furthermore, R2D2 and Jar Jar Binks (Ahmed Best) serve no purpose going with Qui-Gon Jinn and the others to Mos Espa. Jar Jar even says, "This sun doing murder to mesa skin." They do absolutely nothing!!! Speaking of Tatooine, a good forty minutes of the film is spent on that blasted planet. You would think that because of how urgent of a matter it is for them to get to Coruscant they would find a faster way to leave Tatooine. On a related note, after Anakin (Jake Lloyd) saves Jar Jar from Sebulba, Qui-Gon thanks him and walks away while Anakin aimlessly follows him. There is nothing to indicate why Anakin would follow them, and yet he does so anyway. Later in the film, we see Governor Sio Bibble (Oliver Ford Davies) say things like, "The death toll is catastrophic" and "A communications disruption can mean only one thing: invasion." Should he not say, "The death toll is non-existent" because not one of the Naboo prisoners gets killed?!?! In fact, they are not even prisoners because nobody gets locked up!!! They just get escorted around the city of Theed by battle droids while the Neimoidians attempt to force Queen Amidala to sign the treaty. Also, is he absolutely sure that a communications disruption means only one thing?? Is he some kind of communications expert? Moving on to the treaty that the Queen has to sign, should the Neimoidians just forge the Queens' signature so they can proceed with making their invasion legal??? The only problem is, if the invasion is legal then there is no conflict in the story at all!!! Speaking of the conflict, why does the droid army land on the opposite side of the planet where the Queens' palace is located?!?! Why not just land near, or in, the city?!?! Later, when the characters leave Naboo and escape the blockade, R2D2 magically repairs the shield generator. My question is: is the shield generator not protected by the shields???? Why do the droid control ships immediately stop firing at them after R2D2 repairs the shields??? None of this makes sense at all!!!! Also, was it not the Supreme Chancellor who dispatched the Jedi Knights to Naboo in the first place? Yet, when they get to Coruscant, they do not even inform him of what happened. They just shrug him off, and go speak to the Jedi Council. Also, why exactly are the Jedi Knights incapable of warning the Naboo people about the droid army invasion BEFORE it actually starts?! There is a sequence later in the film where Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan and everyone else return to Naboo, and the entire Trade Federation blockade is gone. Where did they all go?!?!?! The climactic battle on Naboo at the climax is where things really begin to go wonky. Qui-Gon tells Anakin to find cover. Anakin obeys by CLIMBING INTO A SHIP?!?! Why???? He has more chance of being killed that way!!! This moment launches a series of events that I refer to as "accidental heroics". Anakin Skywalker is supposed to be incredibly strong with the Force, and yet everything he does while in the Naboo Starfighter is a result of sheer dumb luck. His piloting skills are purely accidental. Also, if Darth Sidious ordrered the Neimoidians to wipe out the Gungans, why do the battle droids take prisoners????
All of this negativity adds up to one of the biggest disappointments in cinematic history. Did George Lucas have an ego problem, and let his success go to his head? What happened to the genius that created the original trilogy? The world may never know. Anyway, moving on:
Liam Neeson plays Qui-Gon Jinn. Qui-Gon is a rebellious Jedi who does not follow the Jedi Code, and does not even bow when in the presence of the Jedi Council. Some would see this as disrespectful, but Neeson plays the character in such a way that makes Qui-Gon confident, and a tad arrogant, about why he is a Jedi Master. While Qui-Gon takes risks, he never does anything rash enough to get himself expelled from the Jedi Order. At the same time, he is calm and collected about every situation. This is a minimalist performance at its finest by Neeson.
Ewan McGregor, in the role that made him a star, plays Obi-Wan Kenobi. This younger version of Kenobi is headstrong, makes bad jokes, and even gets a little irritated at times. However, what McGregor does brilliantly is give subtle hints that he will eventually become the Alec Guinness version of the character. McGregor is fantastic in the role not just because of the fight sequences he is in, but also because he adds more dimensions to the character, as he does in Qui-Gons' death scene. This scene is emotional because of how well McGregor and Neeson delivered their dialogue. McGregors' performance as Obi-Wan Kenobi deserves all the praise it has ever received.
Ahmed Best plays Jar Jar Binks. I know that I am going to get so much hate for saying this, but I actually like this character for a couple of reasons: 1) Much like C-3PO and R2D2 in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, Jar Jar Binks is a funny character right down to his physical movements, and he is also extremely crucial to the story because 2) Without Jar Jar Binks, STAR WARS DOES NOT HAPPEN!!!! Without Jar Jar, Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan would have never made it to Theed to rescue Queen Amidala so that she could plead her case to the Senate and meet her future husband along the way!!! Never before has such a hated character been so important to the story. Congratulations, George Lucas!!! You have done it!!!!
Ray Park plays Darth Maul. What is ironic about Darth Maul is that he is probably the coolest character in all of Star Wars, and yet he dies ( not really, watch The Clone Wars) at the end of the movie. Park took a character that says 31 words in the entire film, and turned him into a menacing Sith apprentice. The fact that Park is a martial artist himself adds so much credibility to his physical performance as Darth Maul. If Darth Maul ends up being the role that Ray Park is best known for, that will not be so bad.
Jake Lloyd plays Anakin Skywalker. I personally love Lloyds' performance because it feels genuine, and not rehearsed in any way. His scenes with Natalie Portman and Liam Neeson are quite good, and his character he even displays bits of anger and impatience which we all know will come into play later in his life. This is a heartfelt performance by Lloyd.
George Lucas is the director of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace. Firstly, I have to say that the last forty minutes of the film is edited perfectly. All the characters get an equal amount of screen time that finally culminates in its epic finale. Also, Lucas a filmmaker always get at least serviceable performances out of his actors, and this film is no different. The problems are with the script, and story points. Could Lucas have used less bluescreen and filmed more footage on actual locations and sets? Probably. Is Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace a poorly directed film? I can only answer that by saying that I have seen worse. Is this film as good as Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope? Absolutely not.
Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace has many good elements, but because of the plot holes and illogical narrative the film falls short of being great . If this was the first Star Wars movie you ever saw, you might enjoy watching it for the nostalgia factor, but that is about it. If you are a Star Wars fan you will HATE this movie, so do not waste your time.
No comments:
Post a Comment