TF.N's Episode I - The Phantom Menace Reviews

SCOTT'S REVIEW

OVERALL RATING: 4 out of 5 stars

THE GOOD: I'd put this movie at a tie with ANH as the second best Star Wars movie (behind ESB). I've already reviewed the movie once on the site, so I won't get too in depth here. But I will say that I loved it more each time I saw it. It seemed to take the first viewing to get my expectations in the right zone, and once that was done I enjoyed it more. (That's why I think it was a mistake for some reviewers to only watch it once before writing up their reviews, myself included.) I think the end of 17 years of anticipation coming out of the theater may have also hurt.

I of course loved the Pod Race. The Sand People were a great touch. I also thought the final lightsaber duel alone was worth the price of admission. I also thought Jar Jar was OK. I'll admit, I have a hard time seeing why people are getting so worked up about this character. I also thought Jake Lloyd was better each time I saw him, contrary to early rumors. I also loved the cameos by ET. (Yes, we did see it!)

THE BAD: The first thing that comes to mind are the fart and poop jokes. I'll admit, they did get laughs in every showing I went to, but I thought they could have been left out. Secondly, MORE MAUL! I think the Sith could have used more explanation and screen time (as they got in the novel). I had my non-die hard friends asking me who and what the Sith were, so I don't think it was clear to general audiences either. I didn't buy the midi-clorians. I've had a LONG time to ponder them, and though I accept it as Lucas' addition to the story, I think they were a mistake. The Force should never have been explained or confined by scientific definitions. It does take away from the mysticism. And did anyone else notice how closely the plot of Anakin destroying the ship and transmitter and saving the day was similar to Independence Day? I can only say, though, that I think Episode 2 will be much better. I REALLY hope Lucas gets some script and dialogue help for the next one, because for an effective romance (as he is calling it) I think he'll need it.

THE UGLY: Of course Darth Maul getting cut in half, but did you notice how many animals got their heads bit off? The Opee Sea Killer, the Colo Clawfish, Sebulba's frog, Jabba's frog. I guess since no hands were cut off, they just bit off heads. :)

FAVORITE SCENE:

DID SPOILERS RUIN IT FOR YOU?: In the end, they did not. I knew the whole movie going in, but nothing could take away from the visual experience of seeing it on the big screen. The effects were incredible and the sound really helped make it. I think the spoiler digging and such made for a whole different level of enjoyment for me. Honestly, the anticipation was a major part of the fun for me. Will I delve as deeply into Episode 2? Probably, depending on how much Lucasfilm has tightened up security. :) I really hope it is more difficult to get info this time because, like in collecting, the "thrill of the hunt" is what makes it interesting.

EPISODE 2 PREDICTIONS: First of all, I think we're going to discover that Senator Palpatine and Darth Sidious are two totally separate individuals. I think that Palpatine is either a clone of Darth Sidious, or vice versa. My theory is that as the Dark Side destroys bodies, Sidious jumps between them to newer bodies. What better body to jump into than his clone's, who he helped maneuver into the position of Supreme Chancellor? That would also explain why the Jedi don't sense danger or tremendous Dark Side powers around him. Lucas also said early on that we will think the bad guys are good and the good guys are bad. We already think Senator Palpatine is evil. What better way to throw a curve ball than to find out you've been hating the wrong guy?

I also think that Anakin might have been the result of a cloning experiment on Shmi. Possibly Sidious was trying to clone midi-clorians? That way he could crank out his own Force powerful Dark Side baddies, hence the Clone Wars. What better person to experiment on than a slave? Maybe Anakin and his mother were discarded? Speaking of his mother, I think Anakin will attempt to rescue his mother at the beginning of the next film, but in the process she's either killed or he finds out she's already dead. That would explain why Vader would never return to Tatooine. Too many bad memories. It would also explain why Ben would choose to hide Luke there.

I also think that Palpatine is going to try and make Anakin think Obi-Wan has eyes for Amidala. Jealousy on Anakin's part about the Queen could lead to the conflict between he and Obi-Wan. I don't necessarily think Obi-Wan will have romantic interest in the Queen, though I could be wrong.

BRIAN Z (ZORO)'S REVIEW

OVERALL RATING: 3 out of 5 stars

THE GOOD: The special effects were both visually and aurally impressive. They?re really what make the movie for me. And the bigger the screen and louder the sound system, the better. And I?ve found that Dolby Digital EX really makes a difference.?

Some people have said that they didn?t like the computer-generated characters. Being a computer geek, I thought Watto and Jar-Jar looked very impressive. The texturing was down to so minute of details, there definitely were times when you could think of them not as special effects but as real characters, especially Watto.

THE BAD: This movie really didn't flow as well as the other three. I put it behind ROTJ (my fav. list: ANH, ESB, ROTJ, then TPM). It was also quite obviously aimed at a much younger audience than the other three.? Instead of getting jokes about walking carpets or sneers about "your highness," we get Jar-Jar stepping in bantha droppings and little ramblings about "Whensa yousa thinkin? wesa in trouble?" that seem really out of place. Don?t getta me wrongo -- I don?t necessarily hate Jar-Jar. There were times when I actually laughed at his jokes -- like when he said "Steady, steady..." to the Gungan army.? But overall he was way over the top and much more kiddie humor than any previous Star Wars film. In the previous films, we certainly found that things can be funny and entertaining to all generations -- that wasn?t carried through in TPM.

And could somebody tell me what the red force fields were during the lightsaber duel at the end? Everything else in Star Wars seems to have an explanation or back-story, but I?ve looked and asked around and have yet to find an explanation for those force fields turning off and on and even why they?d be there in the first place. My only explanation so far? Plot device so Qui-Gonn could die.

THE UGLY: I really like Warwick Davis; I think he really was good in Willow and I can see how it's difficult to act in those little Ewok or Rodian suits... but... man, I just can't get past the fact that Wald looks like a little guy in a suit. He looks completely out of place; he just doesn't look like a child Rodian. And when he and Kitster are celebrating at the pod race and they almost high-five... <shudder>.

FAVORITE SCENE: I loved both the pod race and the lightsaber duel at the end, but my favorite of the two is the duel. I think when the movie comes out on video/DVD/whatever, I?ll take some time to splice together all the scenes of the duel so I can watch it without interruptions. I could have done without the flashing back to the space battle and the Gungan-droid battle and just had one huge lightsaber duel.? I wasn?t really impressed by "Duel of the Fates" the first time I heard it, but now everytime I hear it start on the screen, with Darth Maul at the door, I?m drawn to the scene and the music really, really works.

DID SPOILERS RUIN IT FOR YOU?: I?m one of the few TFN staffers that actually attempted to avoid spoilers. It certainly wasn?t easy and didn?t work 100% (I knew the major things, like Qui-Gonn and Darth Maul dying, etc.). But I really felt that I was ruined more by the two trailers than anything else. As I said before, the visuals and the sound are what really make the Star Wars movies stand out for me, and I got to see a whole ton of the scenes before I saw the movie. The thing that sticks out the most in my mind is when Obi-Wan is behind the red force field watching Maul and Qui-Gonn fight. I could see he was about to yell out the "NOOOOO!" line from trailer B and I thought "Well, Qui-Gonn must die pretty soon."

I?ve decided that since the plot and descriptions of what?s in a scene really don?t spoil me for a Star Wars movie, I?m going to go all out for Episode 2, immersing myself in spoilers for this next time around. Then I?ll see if spoilers really make a difference. :)

EPISODE 2 PREDICTIONS: Jar-Jar Binks returns. And if you think about it, Jar-Jar obviously has force potential. As Qui-Gonn said, nothing happens by accident. And Jar-Jar "accidentally" almost wiped out the entire battle droid army by himself. But there?s a problem -- remember at the pod race, Jar-Jar said "Ooh, meesa gettin? berry berry scared! Me no watchin?!" As Yoda himself said, fear leads to anger... anger leads to hatred... meaning Jar-Jar becomes the next Dark Lord of the Sith. :)

AMY'S EPISODE I REVIEW

4 outta 5 Stars.

I know I'm not a staff member any more, but the guys are letting me write my honorary review.

The Good: I really loved this movie, I have seen it 5 times already and I'll probably see it a few more times before the summer is out. It isn't perfect (hence the 4 stars) but I'll go into that in 'the bad'. Like Scott, I put this about equal to ANH but in terms of favourites for me, ANH and ROTJ are on about the same level, so TPM is happily sitting with them (ROTJ is actually my favourite Star Wars film so far, to go completely against the flow).

The pod race was amazing, and was easily my favourite part of the movie. I loved the 2 headed announcer, the pit droid getting sucked through the engine of Ody Mandrell's pod and, of course, I loved the bad boy, Sebulba. He looked like a decomposing camel, but he's the coolest decomposing camel I've ever seen!

Lucas pulled off the CG stuff amazingly, the facial expressions of the characters were incredible.. I especially loved Sebulba's expressions (And the whole character design, as said above) and Jar Jar. Jar jar's little grin in response to 'What's this?' 'A local' said more than any words would have in the same situation. I thought his whole accidental bumbling to be tolerable, and I actually liked it because I can be the world's biggest klutz sometimes, so I can feel for poor Jar Jar, especially in the tech shop!

I didn't find Anakin wooden at all, I thought Jake played a great kid and my favourite anakin moments are 'It's Working! It's working!' and 'Oops! Artoo, get us out of here!'. Sure, he seemed to do things by coincidence, but that is the way of the force.

The subtle little eeeevil plot points were cool, Palpatine is a deliciously sinister wolf in sheep's clothing. Even if he and Sidious turn out to be different people, I don't think Palpatine is a good guy, he's a sneeky little so and so with his own agenda. The Costumes.. amazing! Hats off to Trisha Biggar for this one. Another of my favourite aspects of the movie were the easter eggs and cameos. I had fun pointing these out to a friend of mine the second time we went to the movie together (my 5th time, his second time). Ric Olie is the man ;)

I'm sensing that I could go on and on forever about this, so I'll move on to...

The Bad. Some of the CG critters, especially on Tatooine, didn't really seem to be walking on the ground. I know this is a nitpicky thing, but they seemed to glide on and meld with the ground, rather than stepping onit. The Nemoidian's lip movements didn't quite match with what they were saying, unfortunately this actually distracted me as I have a strange tendency to do things like watch lip movements when I watch TV ormovies. The story seemed a little all over the place and confusing, especially the first time I saw it.. but the more I watch, the more I understand.The Ugly. I hate to be jumping on the band wagon.. but I really wasn't fond of Wald either. I think he looked like a little guy in a suit, and yes, I love Warwick's stuff too.. but Wald.. didn't do anything for me. Did anyone else notice Artoo's dome on crooked in parts of the podrace scene?

Favourite Scene: Oh.. this is a touch one for me. My very fave scene is the Pod race, shortly followed by the lightsabre battle (no explanation needed). I also loved the Gungan vs Droid battle 'Ouch Time!'

Did the spoilers ruin it for you? Like Zoro, I was trying to avoid the spoilers but some people didn't realise that some TFN people were trying to do so and sent us mail with stuff like 'Darth Maul DIES!!!' or 'Qui Gon's Funeral!?' in the subject line. I was a little bitter having known both of those things, as I was waiting for them both to happen.

I was also, now that I think of it, a little spoiled by the second ttrailer for the same reason. Next time, avoid putting the second half of the movie in the trailer. argh.

I enjoyed the movie nonetheless, so it wasn't ruined, but my first showing was a little tainted because of it all. :)

I won't be on TFN for episode 2, but knowing my luck I'll be doing some spoilericious illustrations which will require me knowing a little more about the movie than i'd like to.. not that I'm complaining, I love doing freelance work :) (I love you, Lucas and fan club people! Whee!)

Episode 2 Predictions: No Clue and I really don't know if I could speculate. Watto comes back as an evil Jedi? ;)

OVERALL RATING: 4 out of 5 stars

THE GOOD:The Lightsabre duel. Obviously, it's the best lightsabre duel in the entire trilogy.

The Gungan/Battledroid War was one of the most amazing CGI sequences ever. The detail was fantastic. The sequence where the battledroids were being deployed by the transport was a real CGI standout. And on the subject of CGI, I disagree with the criticism that the film is too digital. I think it's an unfair criticism. The technology was necessary to bring this fantasy to life, and everything was convincing because of it.

The Handmaidens :) I guess they're sort of like the secret service. They offered an air of mystery about the Naboo people's leadership and customs. Kiera Knightley did a great job as the decoy Queen. I also liked the fact that they got into the action and took out a bunch of battledroids (even if having the Queen in harms way is an absurd strategic move.)

As for the performances, Ewan McGregor's was fantastic. He was completely convincing as Obi-Wan. Jake Lloyd's performance was much better than I though it was going to be (of course, I didn't go in with high expectations). I thought his best scene was when he said goodbye to his Mom. I liked it because it was the first time he really questioned his ability, by telling his Mom, "I just can't do it, Mom. I just can't do it." Until that moment, I felt that Anakin was far too self-righteous. Excellent performances were also delivered by Liam Neeson, Pernilla August, and Natalie Portman. Although I did feel that some of Natalie Portman's lines weren't that great (when talking to Anakin), I think she did a fantastic job, especially as Amidala. Her speech to the senate was really heart-felt. You could see the desperation and sadness in her eyes.

I must emphasize that every one of Maul's scenes was absolutely riveting. The character had an incredible screen presence. Quite a few people have told me that they were upset about Maul's demise. I wasn't disappointed at all. He killed Qui-Gon. Sure Maul is a kick-ass character, and in that respect I'd like to still have him around, but the guy got what he had coming, and Obi-Wan delivered big time!

In the CGI character category, I thought Jar Jar was entertaining. I didn't like him at first. He took some getting used to, but he was funny ("My Give Up! My Give Up!"). The same goes for Boss Nass. Sebulba was certainly an amusing character, as was Watto. I think Watto provided one of the best laughs in the film.

From the script...

GUI-GON, using mind power, waves his hand again.

QUI-GON

Credits will do fine

WATTO

No they won'ta. What, you think you're some kinda Jedi, waving your hand around like that.

Compared to the other films, in my opinion TPM ranks third: (1) ANH, (2) ESB, (3) TPM, (4) ROTJ.

THE BAD: Comedic elements, other than Jar Jar, were lacking. Yoda could have at least shown some semblance of a sense of humor, or at least just had one funny line. But he didn't. Also, more comic interaction between R2 and Threepio would have been nice.

The scene with Anakin and Padme on the Queen's ship after leaving Tatooine was just plain DUMB. To me, by that moment in the film, the relationship between the characters hadn't developed enough for me to believe that they really cared for each other. The display of affection seemed forced.

Coruscant was awesome, but I think the initial approach and arrival with Anakin aboard the Queen's ship could have been handled differently. After living almost all of his life on Tatooine, he wasn't the least bit phased by Coruscant. You'd think he'd be like a kid in a candy store. If Anakin reacted a bit more to the impressive sights of Coruscant, I think it would have given the audience an opportunity to better appreciate the majesty of the city/planet through his eyes.

The midichlorians - I didn't like the explanation. It detracts from the mystery of the force. I prefer Obi-Wans original description. Also, the process of taking a blood sample and analyzing it... Leave that to Star Trek.

I definitely wasn't into Anakin flying the Naboo starfigher. Although it was much more bearable the second time around.

I must admit, I was a little disappointed in the music. I liked Duel of the Fates, Darth Maul's Theme (The Appearance of Darth Maul), and Augie's Great Municipal Band, but I think Anakin's theme isn't very fulfilling. It just sort of meanders, and doesn't seem to go anywhere. I think that can be said for almost half of the score.

FAVORITE SCENE: Without a doubt, the power generator hallway sequence: Maul getting caged in, Qui-Gon going into mediation and Obi-Wan getting blocked 5 doors down. And then of course, Obi-Wan goin' medieval on Maul after the sheild door opens.

THE UGLY: Referring to Anakin as "Annie". Ugh! That didn't sit well with me at all. We're talking about a future Dark Lord of the Sith here. (I could see him out on the sand dunes singing "The suns will come out tomorrow".)

DID SPOILERS RUIN IT FOR YOU?: Though it was tough, I tried to shield myself from certain plot points. I already knew a large portion of the film and I feared that I was going to regret it, but I can definitely say that it didn't detract from the entertainment. There were still many surprises to be had. The "experience" of the film, and seeing the interpretation of what I'd previosly known come to life on the big screen was completely entertaining.

EPISODE 2 PREDICTIONS: It's not really profound, but I think Anakin will go back to Tatooine to attempt to free the slaves (as was referenced), and Shmi will be killed in the process. As a result, Anakin will question his faith in the light side.

I think we've seen the last of Darth Maul. George will come up with another ill-tempered Lord of the Sith to fill his shoes.

RECENT EDITORIALS

04/08/03 - Christopher Knight - Oscars Give Short Shrift to Fantasy
03/17/03 - Joshua Griffin - Put the REAL Classics on DVD
01/29/03 - Joshua Griffin - Imagine a Star Wars HALO Videogame
01/14/03 - Michael Potts - Clone Wars: Expanded Universe Editorial

2002

09/03/02 - Joshua Griffin - Digital Pirates Sink Ships
05/17/02 - Chris Knight - Digital Projection: The Audience Is Watching... And Waiting
04/11/02 - TFN Staff - Thumbs Up, Tumbs Down for SW2 Marketing
03/08/02 - TFN Staff - Clone War Trailer Reaction
01/13/02 - TFN Staff - TFN Reaction to SNL N'Sync Skit
01/03/02 - TFN Staff - Boy Band Jedi Reactions

2001

12/12/01 - Chris Knight - Sic Transit Gloria Mundi
12/07/01 - Jeff Yankey - All I Want for Christmas
11/17/01 - Guest Editorial - Ritual and Romance of Episode II
10/04/01 - Guest Editorial - Why Episode I is Brilliant
10/02/01 - Guest Editorial - Episode I is Star Wars
09/30/01 - Guest Editorial - Why I Loved Episode I
09/25/01 - Joshua Griffin - Episode II: Make It or Break It Time
08/21/01 - Chris Knight - SW2: Attack On The Soul?
07/13/01 - Joshua Griffin - Special Time for SW Fans
05/14/01 - Joshua Griffin - AlphaCon is Finished
05/09/01 - Chris Knight - In The Beginning... Star Wars Comes To A Wired World
04/17/01 - Joshua Griffin - Global TFN - International Outlook on Star Wars
03/14/01 - Chris Knight - Palpatine vs. Hitler: Prequel Speculation Runs Amok!
02/13/01 - Chris Knight - "The Force" of Love: A Valentine's Day Editorial
01/17/01 - Chris Knight - Star Wars Could Continue... As Television Anthology
01/11/01 - Guest Editorial - A Review of A New Hope After the Prequels
01/07/01 - Guest Editorial - No - We Want the DVDs Now!
01/04/01 - Chris Knight - New Digital Disciple Says "Lets Wait On Star Wars DVDs"

2000

12/21/00 - Joshua Griffin - Is George Lucas Really a Genius?
11/18/00 - Joshua Griffin - To Spoil or Not to Spoil
11/06/00 - Joshua Griffin - The Power of the Election
11/01/00 - Chris Knight - Why Isn't There A Star Wars Postage Stamp?
08/17/00 - Jason McCabe Calacanis - The SW2 Fan Trailer (guest editorial)
07/14/00 - Joshua Griffin/Scott Chitwood - TFN's Spoiler Policy
06/20/00 - Chris Knight - Star Wars and the Saga of Life
05/13/00 - TFN Staff - TheForce.net Wish List
04/08/00 - Special Guest Editorial by Skybaugh - Worth the Wait
03/30/00 - Joshua Griffin - What Star Wars Has Won
03/19/00 - Joshua Griffin - The Next Denver Celebration
03/14/00 - Joshua Griffin - Fair Weather Fans
03/07/00 - Joshua Griffin - Predicting the Academy Award Winners
02/22/00 - Joshua Griffin - Who should profit from Star Wars?
02/16/00 - Joshua Griffin - Episode I and the Academy
01/27/00 - TFN Staff - Flaming TFN over DVD
01/25/00 - Chris Knight - Motivations of the Sith
01/20/00 - TFN Staff - Leonardo DiCaprio as Anakin?
01/10/00 - Joshua Griffin - World-Wide Star Wars
01/03/00 - Joshua Griffin - Mass Merchandising Menace

1999

12/13/99 - Joshua Griffin - Questioning Star Wars
11/22/99 - Joshua Griffin - Trusting Internet Rumors
11/11/99 - Paul Davidson - Rise of the Empire: China and TPM
10/28/99 - Scott Chitwood - Signs There Probably Won't Be a Sequel Trilogy
10/18/99 - Joshua Griffin - Why not Episode I DVD?
10/15/99 - Joshua Griffin - What Makes SW Fans Special
10/01/99 - Joshua Griffin - The PG Rating of TPM
09/07/99 - Scott Chitwood and Paul Ens - Comic and Book Wishlist
08/18/99 - TF.N Team - Thumbs Up / Thumbs Down on Episode I Everything
07/11/99 - Joshua Griffin - Parody Site isn't that funny
07/10/99 - Brian Linder - The Jar Jar Factor
06/08/99 - Joshua Griffin & Chris Knight - Why is Jar Jar in Episode I?
05/06/99 - Darin Smith - Return of the Child
03/09/99 - Scott Chitwood and Paul Ens - A Chat with LFL
02/07/99 - Amy Pronovost - Convention Romances, Can they Work?
01/23/99 - Scott Chitwood - What's up with Prowse?
01/01/99 - Scott Chitwood - Uncle George and Episode 1

1998

11/23/98 - Scott Chitwood - What Lucasfilm is doing right
11/05/98 - Scott Chitwood - Prequel Spoilers
09/28/98 - David Coates - First thoughts on the the Episode 1 Title
06/19/98 - Scott Chitwood - How Godzilla affected Episode I
04/09/98 - Scott Chitwood - The Art of the Space Battle
04/09/98 - Scott Chitwood - DIVX SUX
02/26/98 - Scott Chitwood - X-WING TV Series Should Fly
02/09/98 - Scott Chitwood - Xerox Sites
02/03/98 - Scott Chitwood - Canon Issue, Part 2
01/07/98 - Terrence Daniels - Canon = Personal Preference

1997

12/17/97 - Darin Smith - Everything I need to know...
11/15/97 - Chris Kivlehan - Six Episodes or Nine Episodes?
11/07/97 - Scott Chitwood - How do you solve a problem like Ewan?
11/03/97 - Scott Chitwood - How we get our Prequel 'Spy' info
10/22/97 - Paul Davidson - Trek vs. Wars