Star Wars: The Phantom Menace Review - Jar Jar Isn't the Problem

Back in July of 1999, fans of Star Wars were feeling much the same way as the are now. There was a new Star Wars film after so many years, the excitement was impossible to contain. Unfortunately, not many of them left the cinema feeling particularly satisfied. The reaction was overwhelmingly negative, but is it really that bad? Let us look back at what is widely considered as the greatest disappointment in cinematic history; Star Wars: Episode 1 - The Phantom Menace.

All Aboard the Hype Train!

A huge factor in The Phantom Menace's underwhelming reception was the ridiculous amount of hype it was succumbed to before its release. It was, after all, the first Star Wars film in 16 years. Audiences were expecting a masterpiece and were, therefore, extremely disappointed when they didn't get one.

The thing is though, I was never a part of this. Being born in 2001 I grew up with both the prequels and the originals. I didn't have any childhoods ruined because the prequels are a part of my childhood. For years I didn't even know the prequels were so poorly received, or that they were even made after the originals. I like to think this means I have a far less clouded view of these films. I'm not blinded with nostalgia for the originals, I have nostalgia for both.

This means I don't care about things like medichlorians or C-3PO being created by Anakin, because these have always just been things I accepted as part of the Star Wars universe. I don't care if Lucas destroyed this character or ruined this concept, to me that's how they've always been.

So instead I can focus on the shoddy film making.

More Machine Now Than Movie

That script. That acting. That directing. This a common problem that's apparent across the entire prequel trilogy and whilst The Phantom Menace isn't the worst offender in this regard (that's coming) it's still pretty bad.

The script is flooded with statements. No emotion, no character, just statements. Characters say things, but they don't feel those things, they don't believe in those things and as a result of this, neither does the audience. The dialogue is made up of almost entirely exposition, meaning every conversation is dull and tedious and none of the characters ever feel unique. They just feel like lifeless puppets that are there to play out the action and not leave any lasting affect of their own on the audience.

Which takes us to the acting. Again, Phantom Menace isn't exactly the worst (we'll get to that), but it certainly isn't great. There's nothing absolutely dire about the acting, nothing that makes you cringe (once more, you can look forward to that soon), but it's all extremely mechanical. It's a shame, because almost all of the actors involved are fantastic and they probably give the best performances they can under the circumstances.

Those circumstances being the directing. Whether or not George Lucas is a good director isn't something I'm going to comment on. I can say that he is certainly not a good director in this particular case. As I said, this is mostly a fine cast and the majority of these actors are capable of giving a good performance, as long as they have someone who can direct them well. Unfortunately, George Lucas wasn't that someone and instead, the mechanical dialogue is spoken with mechanical acting, due to the mechanical directing, resulting in a film that feels, at least in terms of characters, pretty lifeless.

As I've said before, it still isn't the worst offender in these regards. The script, acting and directing are best described as functional. They move on the plot in a way that does nothing interesting, but at the same time nothing truly horrific either.

The Light Side

Outside of the writing, acting and directing, The Phantom Menace isn't that bad of a film. Admittedly, the writing, acting and directing are the majority of the film, but The Phantom Menace still isn't entirely without its merits.

For one, the action is exciting. Whilst I have previously talked about my issues with action in films (and all of those are certainly present in this film) there's no way you can't enjoy a lightsabre fight. Whilst a lot of the tension felt in the lightsabre fights in the originals are gone, the level of spectacle is far superior to that of the originals. Sometimes the duels can seem a little crowded with all the flipping and spinning going on, but it's also more fast paced and fluid than the originals. The scene when Anakin destroys the Trade Federation outpost is admittedly forced and blatantly trying to recreate the feel of the X-Wing scenes in the originals, but that isn't exactly a bad thing. Whilst the cheers from Anakin are extremely irritating, everything else about the scene is almost as good as the previously mentioned scenes in the originals. The podracing sequence is quite good too and in general, The Phantom Menace delivers in the spectacle department.

There's another thing that I feel not enough people give The Phantom Menace credit for, and that's its creativity. The design of the planets and the spaceships and the aliens and practically everything else is bursting with the same inventiveness that the originals had. It's all undermined quite a bit by how dated the CGI looks now, but the designs themselves are on the same level as the originals. The senate is one of my favourite designs. The way that each representative is on their own floaty podium thing that flies forward when they want to speak looks pretty cool and adds a dynamic element to the otherwise extremely dull scenes within the senate.

All of these new planets, aliens, buildings and vehicles excellently extend the already excellent Star Wars universe, even if they don't look quite as impressive as they did back in 1999.

On Jar Jar

Before we can talk about Jar Jar, we need to talk about Yoda. Often in mythological storytelling, there's a character that at first appears like a fool, but eventually reveals themselves to be incredibly important, like they're the grand wizard master or something of similar effect. In the Star Wars universe, Yoda is that character. In Empire Strikes Back, when we first meet him, he's a strange, annoying, silly little creature that seems to add nothing to anything, but later reveals himself to be the most powerful living Jedi in the galaxy. He also goes on to be vital in the development of Luke's character.

Jar Jar is like Yoda without the second bit. He doesn't reveal himself to be anything more than an irritating and unnecessary distraction. There's no depth or greater importance to his character, that's why those fan theories about him being Sith Lord exist, to desperately fill in his complete lack of purpose. It also doesn't help that he isn't funny.

The thing is though, I don't care. There are so many other, far larger issues with The Phantom Menace (see 'More Machine Now Than Movie') that Jar Jar is just a minor bruise on a much more mangled leg.

The Verdict

The Phantom Menace is not the worst thing on earth. It isn't even the worst Star Wars thing on earth. It is very flawed in many departments, but the action and the inventiveness keep it from being a complete disaster. It's still a fantastically creative film, on the same level as the originals, it just doesn't have the script, the acting, or the directing that those films also had, resulting in a film that doesn't deserve its awful reputation, but doesn't deserve too much praise either.

4.9/10