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Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
Reviewed by: The Dweeb |
| Video: Widescreen 2.35:1 | Audio: Dolby Digital EX 5.1 , Dolby Digital 2.0, Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0, THX Mastered |
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DVD Features
Disc One
Theatrical release: 5/19/1999
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Plot synopsis from IMDB.Com:
When the evil Trade Federation plots to take over the peaceful planet of Naboo, Jedi warrior Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi embark on an amazing adventure to save the planet. With them on their journey is the young queen Amidala, Gungan outcast JarJar Binks, and the powerful Captain Panaka, who will all travel to the faraway planets of Tatooine and Coruscant in a futile attempt to save their world from Darth Sidious, leader of the Trade Federation, and Darth Maul, the strongest Dark Lord of the Sith to ever wield a lightsaber.Star Wars The Phantom Menace, one of the most overly hyped movies of all time came to the screen in 1999, and then fell flat on its face, in my opinion. Uncle George trys to live up to his past successes, but either he's too far up in his ILM tower to see it, or he hopes that special effects can cover up a mediocre movie.
Fast forward to October 2001, finally he gets on the DVD bandwagon and releases this puppy. My first reaction to this two disc set was picking up my jaw off the floor. Lucas had reawakened the fanboy within me. What George has done to movie making he has done to DVD, pushing the envelope with this medium few can match.
Let me tell you my two cents worth about the actual film. We have been told this is only the first part of a trilogy. When they are all released, you will see how good it is as a whole. Poppy Cock! Shouldn't each movie be able to stand on its own? The original movies could, why can't this? I think Lucas forgot that the storyline is what makes a movie. He fell into the all too common mistake of many movie makers by focusing on the special effects to carry the movie. There is a point when there is just too much, and it turns out cartoonish. Audiences are smart these days, they can tell what is real or not. Good special effects are the ones you had no idea were computerized.
The acting in this film comes across very wooden, they talk like they are in the pages of a comic book. Jake LLoyd as Anakin is most annoying, with the worst pronuciating skills in the galaxy. "Coruskant", he just can't say it right, its even in the documentary. They should have used that other kid from the screen test, I thought he was much better.
Don't get me started about Jar Jar Binks (Ahmed Best), the worst offender of the bunch. Now I know this is supposed to be geared towards children, but he should have played smaller role in the background. He is just an ILM showpiece showing what is capable with computers these days. He has no other purpose, except to act stupid. Good concept, but bad execution.
The rest of the cast seems to just go through the motions. We're all just happy to be in a Star Wars movie! Gui Gon (Liam Neeson) and Obi Wan (Ewan McGregor) are the only decent actors here. I would have to blame the director on this one. He said it himself on an A&E biography that directing actors is a necessary evil and he hates it. He should have gotten someone else to do it, but he has to maintain his tight grip on all aspects of this film and his enterprise.
As I said earlier, the special effects are this movies bread and butter. Some of them are eye poppingly cool, and the sound is fantastic. Two of my favorite scenes are the chariot race, oops I mean Pod race and the climactic lightsabre duel at the end. They kick ass, and on the DVD they really kick ass! I always use these two scenes when demoing my home theatre. These parts of the film give my system a good workout.
This disc has the best sound and picture quality to date, it will probably only be eclipsed by its next installments. The completely digital transfer is flawless. Everything is so clear, and the soundtrack shakes the walls when its in full swing. The colors are bright and I see no pixelization anywhere. Phantom has set the standard for picture and sound quality.
The overall packaging of this movie is also great. The menus are creative, and the cool part is they change everytime you put the disc in. There are three different layouts to the main menu that you can get. The options are very easy to navigate.
The rest of the discs are packed to the gills with extras. I really like the documentary. It plays without any narration and you see what George Lucas and company went through to make this movie. Its kind of raw and unpolished. Does George ever wear anything that isn't plaid?
Some other great highlights are the deleted scenes, the Duel of the Fates music video and the multi angle story board feature. Also, if you ever get bored with all this stuff, you can hunt for the many easter eggs embedded on the discs. The best one is the outtakes reel, I can't remember how to get to it. Go find out for yourself on the web.
So, overall the movie is adequate and can be a bit hard to watch at times, but the features and quality more than make up for its fallacies. I have one question to ask George, When the hell is the original series coming out??????
Reviewer's Opinion: BUY IT!!
