The Phantom Menace Review

DADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADA-DADADADUMDUMDUMDUMDUMDUMDUM! Okay, yeah. I’m shutting up now. You know, The Phantom Menace is actually a decent movie. Definitely not a masterpiece, but it’s pretty decent. Words are not enough to explain how disappointed people were when they walked out of the theaters after watching The Phantom Menace. Fans all over the world had waited 16 years for the next installment of this incredible series. Only, it wasn’t incredible now! Okay, so. Why do I think The Phantom Menace isn’t an atrocious piece of garbage? Because it’s not. It’s kind of bad, but it’s not terrible. Okay, moving on to the review.

The Phantom Menace’s greatest problem is its story, and the fact that there’s nothing here to make us believe that this is Star Wars. Literally like 30 minutes of the movie are taken up by political discussions. Its other problem is that much of the movie just fails to be interesting. It’s a pretty solid movie until the Jedi travel to Tatooine. Then things go downhill. We basically get a bunch of dramatic scenes until the pod race, which is pretty much the highlight of the movie. Then we get more talking, and even more talking, and even more talking. Then we have one final battle, and the movie’s over. That’s pretty much it.

This movie has so much wasted potential. The plot in and of itself is excellent, but it’s dragged down by mediocre performances, pointless dialogue, and endless political debate. When I say the dialogue is pointless, I mean it. In some places it’s just painful. But oh, it gets so much worse in Attack of the Clones. SO. MUCH. WORSE. So, just enjoy it being bad rather than atrocious. Some of the performances are just bad in places. I don’t want to single out Jake Lloyd as he was just a kid after all, but yeah… His performance is pretty darn bad. Even Ewan McGregor’s acting is horrendous in places. However, Liam Neeson is excellent as always, and Natalie Portman is decent, if a bit over the top. John Williams’ score is excellent. And the final duel in the movie is possibly the best of the series. But in all honesty, when compared to the original trilogy, this movie is vastly inferior. Still though, if it’s a rainy Saturday afternoon and you have nothing to do, watching The Phantom Menace isn’t the worst idea you could have. You’ll probably have a fun time. 3.5/5 stars.

Comments

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Review

Ah, Peter Jackson. You sly son of a gun. Let’s hear it for him, people. He split one short book into three. Actual. Movies. And they were like three hours long each. Dang, that takes talent. If only it had worked. Yeah, that’s right. We all knew (except for me, as I was a wee lad at the mere age of thirteen or something) that there was absolutely no way this movie could live up to the hype. Congratulations, we were all right. Except for me, of course. I was wrong. That’s not to say that this movie is an atrocious wasteland of absolute filth like Batman & Robin. Compared to that movie, An Unexpected Journey is basically Return of the King or The Dark Knight. But heck, even a terrible movie like Star Trek: Nemesis could claim that honor. So, on to the review. An Unexpected Journey opens in dazzling fashion, with the infamous Smaug (does anyone know how you actually pronounce his name?) destroying Erebor. Soon enough, the dwarves arrive and the quest has begun. What is it I d...

Star Wars Rebels - Season One

When The Clone Wars was cancelled a few years back after Disney bought the rights to Star Wars, people all over the world freaked the heck out, myself included. And then, to make things worse, they announced the creation of Star Wars Rebels, a show that looked mediocre at best. As I often am about these types of things, I was quite wrong. Star Wars Rebels does in fact open with a few mediocre episodes, but the spirit of the original trilogy is apparent right from the start. This includes excellent characterization, an area in which the prequels failed miserably. While several of these episodes are rather lackluster, they’re always entertaining. Contrary to what you may have heard from those who hate this show for no apparent reason, it is not strictly for children. In fact, as the season progresses, it becomes more and more mature. The show abandons its formulaic stories for a far more involving story arc. The inspiration from the original trilogy becomes far more apparent ...

Avengers: Infinity War

Avengers: Infinity War is the cinematic event of a generation, an unparalleled and previously un-attempted 10-year gamble that paid off. The film is the first part of the culmination of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, masterfully and efficiently tying every previously established story thread into one movie. I’m sure you’re already familiar with the story, but I’ll hit some of the story’s high points just in case you’ve been living under a cultural rock for the last decade. Thanos, one of the universe’s most powerful beings, sets out to attain ultimate power by collecting all six Infinity Stones, each of which grants him a specific type of power. All that stands in his way are the Avengers. Infinity War was always destined to feel more like an event than a film, and those are expectations it easily lives up (or down) to. However, perhaps that’s more of a testament to the MCU’s excellent storytelling than to Infinity War’s preoccupation wi...

SkyWorld

Search This Blog