Do you like Star Wars? Did you get your tickets to Episode I yet? Well go get them. Now. I don't care how long you have to wait in line. If you are a Star Wars fan, you absolutely must see this movie. In fact, stop reading this article and go see the movie. Then you can come back and finish this review. Don't let me keep you another second. For those readers who have been buried underground without communication with the outside world for the last ten years, "Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace" is the highly-anticipated prequel to Star Wars. Episode I takes viewers back to a galaxy far, far away, thirty-two years before the Battle of Yavin in "Episode IV: A New Hope." The prequel trilogy documents the end of a long period of peace, as the peaceful Old Republic begins to dissolve and the dark Emperor Palpatine and his evil Galactic Empire begin their tremendous rise to power. Episode I begins with two Jedi Knights, Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson) and the young Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor), sent to the planet Naboo to negotiate a treaty with the Trade Federation, who have blockaded the weak planet. These two characters are soon engulfed in an all-out invasion of the planet. During the chaos, Qui-Gon finds himself literally face-to-face with Jar Jar Binks, a slapstick Gungan who always gets himself into trouble. Under the command of the mysterious Dark Lord Darth Sidious the Trade Commission viceroy captures the ornately-dressed Queen Amidala (Natalie Portman) of the Naboo, as the Federation attepts to force her to sign a treaty with them. The film is not without flaws and disappointments, however. Darth Maul only gets 8 minutes or so of screen time throughout the entire film. And every time Jar Jar opened his mouth, I wanted to slit my wrists... Episode I keeps the traditions of the previous movies. John Williams creates a refreshingly new musical score for the movie, but retains the opening and closing titles. Following along the lines "Return of the Jedi," the closing action sequence features not three, but four simultaneous battles: A ground attack, a small covert strikeforce attack, a spaceship battle, and a lightsaber duel. The computer-generated aliens in "The Phantom Menace" are more realistic, however they are still silly-looking and poorly designed, imitating another feature of the old trilogy. Darth Sidious and Darth Maul also continue the tradition of the two dark lords in control and the film also features cameos by Jabba the Hutt, C-3PO, and R2-D2. And of course, what Star Wars movie would be complete without the upward-scrolling text to set the tone at the beginning of the film? "The Phantom Menace" features astounding computer-generated visual effects, including a short underwater sequence where the Jedi are attacked by an assortment of sea creatures of varying shapes and sizes. Battle tanks and little flying droids are abundant, not to mention all three exciting laps of podracing on Tatooine. With all this, one may go so far as to call it all "overblown." This could all very well be true, but the plot is right on the money, delivering everything Star Wars fans wanted to see in the first episode: Politics, war, and a growing relationship between Anakin and Queen Amidala, Luke and Leia's prospective parents. The movie's strong cast of Oscar nominees Liam Neeson and Samuel L. Jackson, as well as Natalie Portman of "The Professional," Ewan McGregor of "Trainspotting," and newcomer Jake Lloyd as Anakin Skywalker deliver fantastic portrayals of their charcters. So having read all this, if you still haven't taken my initial advice, shut down your computer and go to the movie theatre.
Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, Jar Jar, and Queen Amidala manage to escape the planet as the Naboo people are imprisoned by the Federation. Pursued by Darth Sidious' apprentice, Darth Maul, they reach the remote planet of Tatooine, where they meet an young slave boy, Anaking Skywalker (Jake Lloyd), a podracer who is exceptionally strong with the force. In order to gain needed parts for his damaged ship, Qui-Gon enters Anakin in a podrace and makes a series of bets with a gambling, Italian-accented alien named Watto in order win his parts, as well as Anakin's freedom.
After leaving Tatooine, the heroes head to Coruscant, the capital of the Republic so that the Queen can personally plead her case to the Senate. This is where Senator Palpatine (played by Ian McDiarmid, remarkably the only actor to play the same character in both trilogies) begins his rise to power, manipulating the Queen and gaining chancellorhood of the Senate. While the Queen makes her speech in the Senate, Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan bring Anakin before the Jedi Counsel, consisting of 12 Jedi, including a younger-looking Yoda, and headed by the wise Mace Windu (Samuel L. Jackson). The heroes then return to Naboo to rally support of the other alien races on the planet and begin an all-out battle with the Federation on Naboo.
By far, the most intriguing new character in "The Phantom Menace" is the Sith apprentice, Darth Maul. Played by martial arts expert Ray Park, Darth Maul wields a double-bladed lightsaber which he uses to battle two Jedi at once and he uses a series of complex physical talents during his scenes, including hand-to-hand combat and amazing acrobatics. The lightsaber duels in Episode I are by far the most exciting, stimulating scenes in the movie, as they far surpass any other lightsaber duel from the previous three films. Park is also a surprisingly strong actor. His facial expressions show perfectly the evil and hate that engulf his character.
-Ethan Kaplan
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5/19/99
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