A quarter of a century after the big screen premiere of ‘Star Wars. Episode I: The Phantom Menace’, which was followed by ‘Episode II: Attack of the Clones’ and ‘Episode III: Revenge of the Sith’, here we are, witnessing one of the most bizarre cases in the history of cinema . ‘The Phantom Menace’ was not just another movie. Its premiere in 1999 meant an extremely special moment for those parents who longed to be able to share with their children the experiences of a trilogy, the classic one, that marked their lives and, for many of us, felt like a generational change in which we collected that valuable witness that changed the way of film-making.
And with a certain responsibility, knowing that the prequels would serve to expand this vast universe and, in turn, to give a more solid foundation to the original trilogy, foundations that would allow us to connect the entire story, the one that we kept seeing over and over again. again on glorious VHS. However, the enjoyment of a child born in the 80s who attended a cinema for the first time in his life to be able to enjoy a ‘Star Wars’ movie on the big screen collided head-on with the fiercest critics, who did not hesitate to massacring the first installment of the new trilogy that, set thirty years before ‘A New Hope’, allowed us to meet the child behind the myth, that is, the childhood of Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader. In addition to witnessing the youth of Obi-Wan Kenobi and, as a backdrop, the resurgence of the Sith under a political halo because, as many of us intuited, the ‘Star Wars’ films talk about politics more than you imagine. .
The consequences of this visceral hatred were not long in coming and, the most serious case, was the confession of Ahmed Best, the actor who played Jar Jar Binks, that he thought about committing suicide due to the negative reviews and the fact that his character was became the most hated of ‘Star Wars’. By the way, you can’t miss, 25 years later, the Fotogramas interview with the Jar Jar Binks actor. Yoda himself, one of the best ‘Star Wars’ characters, already warned: “Fear is the path to the Dark Side. Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering.” Meta-reference of the film and of Lucas himself anticipating the hatred he was going to have to face? Statement of intent on how the fandom Does it really betray the pure essence of a Jedi?
We indicated at the beginning of this article that ‘Episode I’ and, by extension, its two continuations, represent an atypical case because, almost 20 years after the premiere of the last installment and being massacred by critics and fans, the latter seem to have ” Pardoned” the three George Lucas films. The main reason? A new trilogy by Disney and, therefore, a new opportunity to fill those hearts with hatred, which have made the prequels compared and looked at with new eyes under the “well, seeing what’s new, the prequels weren’t that bad either.”
In many ways, it seems that the most classic ‘Star Wars’ fan needs something to hate to set the networks on fire and rant against everything “new.” Except for some honorable exception capable of uniting critics and audiences, such as ‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story’ due to its respect for the essence of the original films, it is very difficult to satisfy a galactic fan. You already know, either because he accuses a new proposal of being a mere copy of something already seen (there we have the excessive comparison between ‘A New Hope’ and ‘The Force Awakens’) or because Rian Johnson arrives with the outstanding ‘The Last Jedi’, a film far removed from the previous installments, and is vilified under the opinion that “that is not ‘Star Wars’.”
Responding to the most offensive criticism that ‘Star Wars: The Phantom Menace’ received
We therefore assume this benevolent perspective from 2024 to try to turn around some of the most negative reviews that ‘Star Wars: The Phantom Menace’ received in 1999, the year of its release, from the Dark Side of the specialized press. Let’s read some, they are worth it.
Variety
“It lacks emotional impact and also lacks a sense of wonder.”
Comment 25 years later: We suppose they overlooked the death of Qui-Gon Jinn before Darth Maul or that painful separation between Shmi Skywalker and her son. By the way, isn’t the famous pod race in which ‘Star Wars’ emulated ‘Ben-Hur’ and which is in cinema history a marvel?
Boston Globe
“It has the hardware, but not the characters, the imagination, the resonance that we expected.”
Three Movie Buffs
“I still might have enjoyed it if there were actors or characters strong enough to stand out against this computer-enhanced backdrop.”
Comment 25 years later: May Sir Alec Guinness forgive us, but the legend of Obi-Wan begins here at the hands of a splendid Ewan McGregor. Ian McDiarmid is fantastic as Palpatine and we meet three of the best characters in the entire saga: Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson), Padmé Amidala (Natalie Portman) and Darth Maul (Ray Park).
The New Republic
“I can’t convey the essence of the plot because it wasn’t clear to me even while it was happening”
TV Guide Magazine
“It’s a children’s film repurposed for childish adults, of which there are enough to make it a success.”
Comment 25 years later: What are we left with, a confusing plot or a children’s movie? It is an adventure and science fiction film whose main claim is to know the genesis of the tragic figure of Vader. It stars a child, but this does not necessarily make it a children’s film.
Los Angeles Times
“From a dramatic point of view, it is heavy and exhausting.”
Comment 25 years later: As we stated in the review in favor of ‘The Phantom Menace’, the film is “nonsense, unpredictable and wrong in countless fields, yes, but magnificent.” Come on, anything but unbearable.
Film.com
“Story. Characters. They used to mean something to George Lucas.”
Comment 25 years later: Characters like Han Solo, Lando or Leia, of course. But let’s not forget the Ewoks, Lobot or the overrated Boba Fett.
Chicago Tribune
“After waiting 16 years for the opening of this epic saga, this is what we get? An ongoing trade war?”
Comment 25 years later: And what did you expect, a Death Star in beta version? Lucas’s effort to provide this prequel trilogy with some political background to detail a large-scale interplanetary trade conflict that would serve as an excuse for the Rise of the Empire is appreciated.
The Mercury News
“It’s not a movie that’s going to change history like the first Star Wars did 22 years ago.”
Comment 25 years later: Of course not, because ‘A New Hope’ is considered a milestone in film history mainly due to the use of innovative special effects at the time. More than 20 years passed and cinema evolved, let’s get over it.
Salon.com
“Who would have thought that ‘The Phantom Menace’ would be so incoherent, so lacking in the excitement of a great adventure?”
Comment 25 years later: If for lack of excitement we ignore the pod race, the opportunity to meet for the first time the child who will become the iconic Vader, that first contact between the young Skywalker and Palpatine or the exquisite score by John Williams with his remembered ‘Duel of the Fates’ at full blast during the confrontation between Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi against Darth Maul in the best lightsaber duel in all of ‘Star Wars’, well yes, it is a delivery lacking emotion.
Boston Herald
“It’s slow. Its characters are anorexic. The dialogue is mostly forgettable. Jake Lloyd gives an unexciting performance.”
Comment 25 years later: To Yoda’s now iconic phrase about fear mentioned at the beginning of this article, is joined by a kind of counter-reply from Darth Maul: “Fear, fear attracts the fearful, the strong, the weak, the innocent, the corrupt. The fear, fear is my ally”. Also, as a gift, the remembered “Feel, don’t think, use your instinct” that Qui-Gon Jinn transmits to Anakin Skywalker before the race on Boonta Eve.
New York Post
“What’s missing from George Lucas’ announced return to the screen is… sex.”
Comment 25 years later: This is what happens when you get the wrong movie theater and are hugely disappointed because you expected to be able to see ‘Slut of the Galaxies’.
Jorge is an expert in movies, series and comics. His favorite genres are horror and science fiction, the perfect balance between the thunderous scream of the slasher and the disturbing silence of space and, although he flirts with auteur cinema in search of that hidden gem far from the mainstream, he does not hide, His thing is commercial cinema from Marvel, Star Wars, DC and Pixar.
This restless journalist discovered the mysticism of ‘Twin Peaks’ a few years ago and, since then, it has been just another concept trapped inside David Lynch’s head. When he manages to escape from the Black Lodge, he revisits the filmography of the master Carpenter, loses himself again between the pages of Moore and Gibbons’ ‘Watchmen’ or sets out in search of new emotions in miniseries format.
After his brief stint in media such as TVE, RNE and the TV and communication section of La Razón, Jorge has spent more than a decade in the delirious world of advertising agencies, where he has had the opportunity to be part of various communication teams. which have allowed him to participate in soirees, events, junkets and various efforts with performers of the stature of Antonio de la Torre, Jared Harris, Kim Dickens, Colman Domingo and Christina Hendricks. He arrived at FOTOGRAMAS in 2022, where he managed to carve out a niche as an editor to write about the most popular series, the best Alfred Hitchcock films or everything related to franchises, reboots, prequels, sequels, sequels and various nonsense of the moment, returning from This forms his passion for journalism and cinema.
Jorge has a degree in journalism from the Complutense University of Madrid, in addition to being a director from the RTVE Institute, where he acquired notions of pre-production, production and post-production of audiovisuals.
