I've revisited The Phantom Menace and survived

[aTOMiC2]

Okay. I've never been a big fan of Episode I. Sure I went back to the theatre a couple of times when it premiered but only because Star Wars was back and I was thrilled with that. The film itself was uninspiring at best and it has always bothered me. I recently had another go and came to a few conclusions. First of all Jake Lloyd is terrible as Anakin. He delivers his lines like he's being threatened with pain of death if he doesn't stand there and spew the ungainly dialogue given to him. Casting just about anyone else would have been a huge improvement (plus he looks like he’s about 6 when I assume he’s supposed to be 10 or 11 years old.). Second Natalie Portman actually does a pretty good job in comparison to her performances in the second and third instalments. I agree that GL had everything to do with her wooden portrayal of Amadalia later in the story but she seems eager and animated in the first film. Third there is no change in my opinion of Jar Jar Binks. Remove him completely from the movie and it will not harm it in any way. If GL wants to revisit/improve his earlier efforts I wish he would do something about JJB first and foremost. Fourth I think everyone would agree that Darth Maul needed more screen time. Nuff said.
If I could re edit Episode I, I would eliminate JJB, spend as little time with the Gungans as possible, re cut the voice acting of the members of the Trade Federation so that they didn’t sound like embarrassing stereotypical imitations of Charlie Chan, cut most of the setup before the Pod Race and if re placing Jake Lloyd isn’t possible, try to trim down his part to the bare necessities. Otherwise I enjoy a lot of the film. The Jedi are pretty cool and it’s neat to watch them perform more amazing feats than we’d ever seen on screen before. The Gungan / Droid army battle is kinda cool. The assault on the control ship should have been spectacular but seems a little bland. The centerpiece of the film has always been the three way fight between Maul, Qui Gon and Obi Wan. Episode I suffers from so many issues that it’s pretty hard for me to watch in its entirety. I love Star Wars but I’m not in love with its first chapter.

[Cail]

I can't watch it again. Saw it in the theater with my daughter, and bought it on DVD for her.

My biggest problem (other than the wooden script and acting) was the 20 minute pod race. Utter waste of time. Oh, and the Force is a virus you can test for? Please.

There is only one film called Star Wars, it came out in 1977. I will never call it "Episode IV" or "A New Hope". IMO, all three prequels blow, and I doubt I'll watch any of them again.

[A Gunslinger]

Here Here. The last one (Episode III?) wasn't as sinuses-shatteringly terrible as the first, two, but that is no glowing endorsement. Tripe.

[dlbpharmd]

TPM definitely has its issues, and I hate JJB but overall, I like it. Poor Jake Lloyd wasn't the best, but I blame that more on GL and the script than the actor himself (has he worked any since then?) I absolutely agree that we should have seen more of Darth Maul and Darth Sidious. The lightsaber duel at the end is fantastic and remains my all-time favorite duel. Cail's right about the whole midi-chlorians crap (you could have heard a collective WTF? from the audience the first time we heard that.)

[dANdeLION]

I don't know about that lightsaber duel....it was fine, except when they cut Maul's saber in half, it kept working. I keep thinking about that; I mean, if you cut a toaster in half, would each single-slotted part continue to function separately? I seriously doubt it.

As for Jake Lloyd, all I can say is at least his relationship with Natalie Portman's Padmae seemed to flow naturally.

[aTOMiC2]

I don't know about that lightsaber duel....it was fine, except when they cut Maul's saber in half, it kept working. I keep thinking about that; I mean, if you cut a toaster in half, would each single-slotted part continue to function separately? I seriously doubt it.

As for Jake Lloyd, all I can say is at least his relationship with Natalie Portman's Padmae seemed to flow naturally.

dANdeLION, As often as double light sabres were probably sliced in half (which is probably pretty much inevitable) I'm guessing the Jedi had long since incorporated independent blade generators for each end of the handle. I'm guessing of course.

[dANdeLION]

In that case, as often as toasters get cut in half, I think they ought to incorporate independent power cords for each slot of the thing.

[aTOMiC2]

In that case, as often as toasters get cut in half, I think they ought to incorporate independent power cords for each slot of the thing.

Oh yeah. I agree with that. Certainly.

[dANdeLION]

(as I said in the other Phantom Menace thread) I thought it was a very good movie but it failed at being a good Star Wars movie. Too introspective and melancholy; not enough fun; not enough smash. In many ways it would have been a great third of a three part movie.

I really liked Ian McDiarmid's character in this movie; not as Senator Palpatine, but as the maniacal controlling Darth Sidious.

I also particulary enjoyed the way that the Padme got out of her predicament at the end. I really love it when something totally unexpected happens in a movie, when it is plausible and the clues were laid out nicely.

I loved the scene with Jar-Jar hiding behind Qui-gon. That's cinematography!

[dlbpharmd]

I don't know about that lightsaber duel....it was fine, except when they cut Maul's saber in half, it kept working. I keep thinking about that; I mean, if you cut a toaster in half, would each single-slotted part continue to function separately? I seriously doubt it.

As for Jake Lloyd, all I can say is at least his relationship with Natalie Portman's Padmae seemed to flow naturally.

dANdeLION, As often as double light sabres were probably sliced in half (which is probably pretty much inevitable) I'm guessing the Jedi had long since incorporated independent blade generators for each end of the handle. I'm guessing of course.

Actually this is right on target. Remember in Qui-Gon's initial confrontation, Maul only used 1 blade.

[wayfriend]

Oh, I have plenty of thoughts....first off, Qui-Gon found Anakin Skywalker on Alderan, not Tatooine.

Second, the movie tried to be too many things; an extention of the 70's movies, and an extension of the Kevin J. Anderson, Randy Stradley AND Jan Strnad written comic (Jan expanded on some Anderson themes, while Randy went in a completely different direction), which had little to do with the movies. I think a telling microcosm of the Movie's attempt to be all things is Anakin's mother, who is at least 3 different comic charecters in the movie; his abusive mother, Darth Carlax (A.K.A. the Finisher), and another Jedi enemy, Boba Fett.

Third, Princess Amidala was completely miscast, and the movie character had almost nothing to do with the comic character, who was a mischievous meddler, and Obi-Wan's other love interest (and 1st wife) in the comic. In the movie, she played a role so far removed from the Princess Amidala I grew up with that I'm not sure who she was supposed to be.

Fourth, having a Star Wars movie without Lando Calrissian is like having a Superman movie without Richard Prior. or Spiderman without Jennifer Love Hewitt.

Finally, where's Anakin's Father? The President of the Senate? These are the Jedi's major nemeses; how can you have a movie without them? You can't in my opinion.

On the other hand, I think Ewan McGregor did a good job being Obi-Wan Kenobi, Pernilla August did a great job being Shmi, and whoever played Governer Bibble was also great. Liam Neeson was okay, but I don't think he was given much to work with. Or maybe too much.

It wasn't what comic book fans wanted. In some ways, they want to stay dumbed down.

No, we didn't want it 'dumbed down'. We wanted consistancy, and we didn't get it. We wanted to see the characters we grew up with on the big screen, and we only partially got that. Kevin Anderson's run on Darth Vader is about 100 times as intelligent as George Lucas's movie; I think most Star Wars fans would have absolutely loved a movie based on that run, and fans of the 70's movies would have marvelled at the corporate greed behind Marvel's Rise of the Empire.

[dlbpharmd]

edit

[CovenantJr]

I have to give you credit for the effort you put into that, Wayfriend, and the moment I recognised it (around line 4) deserves a

[I'm Murrin]

I have to give you credit for the effort you put into that, Wayfriend, and the moment I recognised it (around line 4) deserves a

Eh?

[Fist and Faith]

Darth Maul is the coolest thing that ever happened to SW. As always, even better in the book than the movie, but damned cool in the movie too!! So Ep I is worthwhile for him alone. How cool is his first duel with Qui-gon, when Qui jumped up to the ship and just collapsed from the exhaustion! And, as dlb said, the final battle was amazing! Especially when it was just Maul and Kenobi. (And, again, better in the book. In fact, that battle in the book is extraordinary.)

[Avatar]

*shrug* I enjoyed it on the whole. As always, for me it's about that universe coming to life again more than anything else. The Jedi at the height of their power. Wow.

Could'a erased Jar-Jar without any problems though.

--A

[matrixman]

I have to give you credit for the effort you put into that, Wayfriend, and the moment I recognised it (around line 4) deserves a

Eh?

Wayfriend's post is a "reworked" copy of a post by dAN in The Hulk movie thread.

I'm glad to hear you survived The Phantom Menace (again), LFB. I agree with pretty much everything you said, except that I actually liked Jake Lloyd as young Anakin. But who knows, I might change my mind after a re-viewing.

I still haven't bought Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones after all this time. That tells you something.

However, I do love Revenge of the Sith (as I'm sure you all know). It almost makes up for the silliness in Episodes I and II.

[Avatar]

I actually liked Jake Lloyd as young Anakin. But who knows, I might change my mind after a re-viewing.

I must say that I didn't really.

--A

[CovenantJr]

The thing about the prequels is: I think they would have made one good film. Each of them contained good bits, but these were bogged down in inferior parts. If the good bits from the three were combined, they would form one film worthy of the franchise.

Though TPM is probably the least good of the prequels IMO, it doesn't bother me as much as ROTS, because I expected so much more from ROTS. The disappointment was greater.

[Cail]

I think that's a valid point. The rise of Vader could have easily been a single film.