Star Wars movie ranking after The Last Jedi
By Mike McNulty
Credit: Lucasfilm; poster for Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999)
8. Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace (1999)
Praised on its release, time has not proven kind to this first of the Star Wars prequels. Its reputation as one of the worst films in the saga has only intensified, thanks to a lengthy, comical, but brilliant and, at times, educational film analysis by Red Letter Media. But is The Phantom Menace really as bad as Star Wars fans make it out to be? Well…kind of.
The intergalactic politics between the Republic and the Trade Federation—the main conflict of the Prequel trilogy—is tedious as it is vague. The explanation that “midichlorians” determine one’s strength in the usage of The Force is ridiculous, even by sci-fi fantasy standards, and almost undermines Star Wars’ sense of wonder itself. Jake Lloyd as the young Anakin Skywalker does his best but still grates on the nerves. Oh, and let’s not forget about the worst character in the history of Star Wars, the persistently annoying Jar Jar Binks…if we only could!
Nevertheless, there’s enough in The Phantom Menace which makes it somewhat commendable. Liam Neeson as Qui-Gon Jinn, Natalie Portman as Padme, and Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan each give decent performances. The pod racing sequence is riveting, edge-on-your-seat fun. This is also the movie which introduced fans to Darth Maul (Ray Park), the most popular villain of the saga since Darth Vader. The lightsaber duel between him, Qui-Gon, and Obi-Wan, accompanied by John Williams’ excellent “Duel of the Fates,” remains one of the best choreographed fight scenes in the films to date.
No, The Phantom Menace isn’t completely terrible, but it definitely doesn’t live up to the Trilogy which inspired it. And if this is what Lucas had planned for Episode I all along (though it’s doubtful he did), then this needed a definite rewrite…and less Jar Jar.