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Revisiting Star Wars: "The Phantom Menace"
This week, in preparation for the premiere of The Rise of Skywalker, I'm rewatching all of the live-action Star Wars films. Some for the first time in years. As I go along I'm collecting some of my thoughts on how each film has changed in my own estimation, and how well I think they hold up overall in the story as it stands.
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace is, until now, the only Star Wars film I'd only watched once. This was mostly because it felt like it was the most disconnected from the story as a whole, and I'd completely zoned out during the large mid-act pod-racing sequence during my first watch. However, upon rewatching this film, I've realized that I... actually really like it?
For all the jokes about the wooden acting in this movie, Jake Lloyd is actually really good as young Anakin in this. He manages to make a lot of George Lucas's infamously stilted dialog sound natural and smooth - a feat that some of the more experienced actors in this film often fail at. His arc in this movie, especially in hindsight, works very well in establishing the character as someone seen as both a prodigy (by Qui-Gon) and as a figure to be pitied and underestimated (virtually every other character in this film, from the more archetypal "villain" characters like Watto to the "heroic" characters like Yoda and the rest of the Jedi council). Hell, the fact that Obi-Wan expresses both of those viewpoints at different parts of this movie helps establish the kind of relationship these two characters have over the course of the saga.
As an aside, Anakin's scenes with his mother were some of the best done scenes in this movie, and I lot of that actually is a credit to Jake Lloyd as well, since Shmi (intentionally I think) comes across as somewhat detached in all of her scenes that aren't the one-on-one exchanges with Qui-Gon.
I have to say, with the exception of some very poorly aging CGI - primarily in some of the battle scenes and with Jar Jar's character model - this movie actually looks really good? Like, I was blown away by all the scenes that took place on Naboo - on land and underwater. Aside from Tatooine, none of the settings look remotely like anything seen in the original trilogy, but feels like part of the universe and something completely new all the same. This is honestly where I think George's best instincts lie, since he's willing to take swings like that rather than play it safe and give fans more familiar beats and settings. It also honestly makes me wish this was an area of the Star Wars lore than spinoff material was willing to poke around in.
The costumes and general aesthetic of the movie was also incredibly on point, and feels somewhat more lived in. That might also be a product of this being the only film (except arguably for Solo) where a large-scale war isn't taking place. The stakes are much lower, which is an appropriate narrative choice for the opening prequel film telling the very beginning of the story, and it allows the characters more freedom to hang around and interact in ways that wouldn't be able to otherwise.
That's not to say I'm without my criticisms. Yoda looks distractingly awful in every scene he's in. Jar Jar didn't bother me nearly as much as he did the first viewing, but some of his hijinks definitely should've been cut or toned down. Specific non-essential CGI shots probably should've been cut. The decision to begin the Saga with a very haughty political trade dispute is an odd and stilted one even though it does work. The trade federation aliens probably could've used another pass in terms of design. But honestly, most of these feel much less significant now. And if I can enjoy what many consider to be the weakest film in the franchise, I'm even more optimistic for everything that comes after.
I also watched the movie's deleted scenes for the first time, courtesy of Disney+. The scene where Anakin flies back into the hanger after inadvertently helping destroy the Trade Federation's ship probably should've been left in, but the rest of the cuts were probably wise (especially in light of Bail's recasting). The extended intro sequence for the pod race probably would've helped make it easier to follow, but honestly that sequence was so long as it is I can't fault the decision to cut it down. The waterfall sequence was also pretty neat and I do kinf of wish it'd been kept even if it had created a pacing issue.
Also here's the obligatory "Ewan McGregor is sexy even with that awful Jedi Padawan rat-tail. Goddamn."
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace is, until now, the only Star Wars film I'd only watched once. This was mostly because it felt like it was the most disconnected from the story as a whole, and I'd completely zoned out during the large mid-act pod-racing sequence during my first watch. However, upon rewatching this film, I've realized that I... actually really like it?
For all the jokes about the wooden acting in this movie, Jake Lloyd is actually really good as young Anakin in this. He manages to make a lot of George Lucas's infamously stilted dialog sound natural and smooth - a feat that some of the more experienced actors in this film often fail at. His arc in this movie, especially in hindsight, works very well in establishing the character as someone seen as both a prodigy (by Qui-Gon) and as a figure to be pitied and underestimated (virtually every other character in this film, from the more archetypal "villain" characters like Watto to the "heroic" characters like Yoda and the rest of the Jedi council). Hell, the fact that Obi-Wan expresses both of those viewpoints at different parts of this movie helps establish the kind of relationship these two characters have over the course of the saga.
As an aside, Anakin's scenes with his mother were some of the best done scenes in this movie, and I lot of that actually is a credit to Jake Lloyd as well, since Shmi (intentionally I think) comes across as somewhat detached in all of her scenes that aren't the one-on-one exchanges with Qui-Gon.
I have to say, with the exception of some very poorly aging CGI - primarily in some of the battle scenes and with Jar Jar's character model - this movie actually looks really good? Like, I was blown away by all the scenes that took place on Naboo - on land and underwater. Aside from Tatooine, none of the settings look remotely like anything seen in the original trilogy, but feels like part of the universe and something completely new all the same. This is honestly where I think George's best instincts lie, since he's willing to take swings like that rather than play it safe and give fans more familiar beats and settings. It also honestly makes me wish this was an area of the Star Wars lore than spinoff material was willing to poke around in.
The costumes and general aesthetic of the movie was also incredibly on point, and feels somewhat more lived in. That might also be a product of this being the only film (except arguably for Solo) where a large-scale war isn't taking place. The stakes are much lower, which is an appropriate narrative choice for the opening prequel film telling the very beginning of the story, and it allows the characters more freedom to hang around and interact in ways that wouldn't be able to otherwise.
That's not to say I'm without my criticisms. Yoda looks distractingly awful in every scene he's in. Jar Jar didn't bother me nearly as much as he did the first viewing, but some of his hijinks definitely should've been cut or toned down. Specific non-essential CGI shots probably should've been cut. The decision to begin the Saga with a very haughty political trade dispute is an odd and stilted one even though it does work. The trade federation aliens probably could've used another pass in terms of design. But honestly, most of these feel much less significant now. And if I can enjoy what many consider to be the weakest film in the franchise, I'm even more optimistic for everything that comes after.
I also watched the movie's deleted scenes for the first time, courtesy of Disney+. The scene where Anakin flies back into the hanger after inadvertently helping destroy the Trade Federation's ship probably should've been left in, but the rest of the cuts were probably wise (especially in light of Bail's recasting). The extended intro sequence for the pod race probably would've helped make it easier to follow, but honestly that sequence was so long as it is I can't fault the decision to cut it down. The waterfall sequence was also pretty neat and I do kinf of wish it'd been kept even if it had created a pacing issue.
Also here's the obligatory "Ewan McGregor is sexy even with that awful Jedi Padawan rat-tail. Goddamn."