On the cusp of the unprecedented hype surrounding Star Wars (Episode VII) The Force Awakens,
it was necessary to go back and watch all of them. For the nth time. Some argue that they should be watched in
sequence of how they were released (IV-VI, I-III). I argue that if you watch them like that, you
end on a flatter note than if you just get the prequels out of the way
first. Though, as you’ll see in later my
rankings are somewhat unorthodox. So, as
a format of sorts, I’m going to break down what I like/love about each film,
sandwich in some outstanding questions, and end with what I loathe. Then I’ll reveal where that film ranks.
Unlike many Star Wars
purists, I actually don’t have an immediate gag reflex when confronted by the
idea of Episode I: The Phantom Menace.
What I liked/loved:
The Acting
Say what you will about the rest of the prequel trilogy,
Lucas and his casting director, Robin Gurland, nailed the cast of this
film. The standout, obviously, is Liam
Neeson’s Qui-Gon Jinn. Having Samuel L.
Jackson alongside didn’t hurt. Getting
Ian McDiarmid back as Palpatine was a treat – especially how subtle he plays
both sides. Pernilla August is a
highlight of the film as well, as Anakin’s mother, Shmi. And say what you will about Jake Lloyd and
Natalie Portman, but they did the best they could with the material they were
given to work with – and they were so young.
No one expected a Sean Penn or Meryl Streep at that age. Also, Ray Park as Darth Maul was a bull’s-eye. The real winner here, however, was landing
Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan Kenobi. His
range isn’t as obvious here, but had Gurland and Lucas misfired here, it would
have completely tanked the rest of the prequel trilogy.
The Music
John Williams is a boss.
That is all.
The Art Direction and Digital Effects
Obviously Lucas decided to go big or go home. From Queen Amidala’s ridiculous outfits to
the Senate chamber, this flick goes for broke.
No one could have ever thought to see a chrome-plated spaceship, a
waterfall-fronted palace, or an underwater city that wasn’t something out of a
Bond flick. This film set the bar for
digital effects. Whether it was the
podrace sequence, the space battle in the final act, or the level of detail
paid to Jar Jar Binks; this film re-defined visual effects in ways that were
only hinted at in the Special Edition. Also,
Sebulba, a younger Jabba the Hutt, and the “bigger fish” were noteworthy. And to a 14-year-old boy, Coruscant…wow.
The NostalgiaThat opening crawl. Holy cannoli. Who cares what it said? After the 20th Century Fox fanfare and the Lucasfilm logo, it was on. Opening with essentially the same ship as A New Hope, brings tingly feelings back to those of us who loved the original trilogy. And the little things here and there, like mentioning Bail Antilles of Alderan or Jabba the Hutt, made nerds geek out.
“Questions That Need Answering”
Why does the Trade Federation have a droid army in the first
place? At least, why so massive?
What trade dispute?
Why land your army in the forest, when you could just land
it on the plains in front of Theed?
Why is Queen Amidala elected? And why would the Naboo elect
someone so young?
Why fly directly at the blockade?
Why is there a senator from the Trade Federation?
What I loathed:
The Story
Most of the reason I didn’t like the story is because of the
questions above. But there were other
things. Mostly it has to do with Anakin’s
origin. Sure they had to work in the awkward
save Naboo defeat the Trade Federation story as a means to an end, but the
primary focus here was on Anakin – the man who would become Darth Vader. I’m not going to compare the movie to others
and say, it should have been done this way.
But bogging down the origin of cinema’s greatest villain of all time
with pseudo spiritual prophecy and politics didn’t do the film any favors. But probably the biggest fail was the lazy
reveal that Anakin didn’t have a father, and was a “virgance in the force.” To
essentially say that Anakin is Force Jesus was just poor writing. It took the idea of midiclorians and made it eye-roll inducing.
The Dialogue
Going back to this film sixteen years after its release, it
makes me appreciate Obi-Wan’s two lines the most, when referring to Jar Jar: “What’s
this?” and “another pathetic life form.”
Makes them classic now. However,
for every line that’s somewhat noteworthy, there are three “Yippie!”s or “It’s
working!”s. And there’s so much dialogue
that’s thrown together to sound important, but in the grand scheme of things,
could have been left out. And on top of
the sometimes painful dialogue, the Neimoidian’s animatronic delivery of English
words looks like an old dubbed-over kung-fu film with bad lip reading.
Rapid-Fire Miscellaneous Items
·
The pacifist Naboo.
·
Watto flying. The physics don’t make sense.
·
Making Anakin a mechanic.
·
The dice roll.
·
The Gungan army’s orbs. Seriously?
·
Killing Darth Maul. So much potential, wasted.
Jar Jar Binks
Look, you knew this was coming. However, I’m not going to pile on. There are countless memes and websites
dedicated to trashing Jar Jar Binks.
Yes, he is a horrible character.
But I see what George Lucas was trying to accomplish with him. He wanted a comic relief character that was kid-friendly. But he oversimplified it, and made him very
annoying. So, that’s where I stop
beating a dead horse. Now, here’s where I
veer into uncharted territory. If you
browse the corners of the interwebs, you’ll find many theories that depict Jar
Jar as the master Sith lord. If you
watch Episode I with that perspective, the viewing experience much more
enjoyable.
So there it is. The
first of six. I don’t hate Episode
I. But I don’t love it.
Here’s where it falls in my rankings (best to worst):
- -
- -
- -
- Episode I: The Phantom Menace
- -
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