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The Phantom Menace at 20: A Defense

C-3PO in the Droid Factory was funny in May of 2002. At no point since.

He was FUNNIER in the Geonosian Arena. That's as far as I'm willing to go. :p

I can't even agree to this. The lines 'oh this is such a drag' and 'I'm quite beside myself' are just... shit. :techman:
 
Republic credits? Republic credits are no good out here. Need something more real.
And don't try to use Federation credits either because there is no money there either, and they brag about it to everyone.
 
The visuals in this movie are astounding. Padme always in mourning. White and black and sunsets. The beginning of the universe has child-like elements in the sound mix. The CGI is to scope, unlike the rest of the prequels. There are no gratuitous shots of ships or unrealistic situations. The CGI and real elements more balanced than the other two films. The establishment shots feel necessary. There not much in the editing I felt was terrible.

Why this movie isn't beloved, I'll never understand.
 
The visuals in this movie are astounding. Padme always in mourning. White and black and sunsets. The beginning of the universe has child-like elements in the sound mix. The CGI is to scope, unlike the rest of the prequels. There are no gratuitous shots of ships or unrealistic situations. The CGI and real elements more balanced than the other two films. The establishment shots feel necessary. There not much in the editing I felt was terrible.

Why this movie isn't beloved, I'll never understand.
Because films are about characters, not just the visuals. The PT is absolutely gorgeous to look at. But, if I cannot engage with the characters then the film falls flat. Sadly, this is the case for me.
 
Because films are about characters, not just the visuals. The PT is absolutely gorgeous to look at. But, if I cannot engage with the characters then the film falls flat. Sadly, this is the case for me.

I'm sorry to hear that. Anakin's a dreamer; Skywalker. He wants to visit the stars, but is saddened when his home, his mother, is lost for that dream. The scene where he says goodbye to Shri is both referenced, in future movies, and done well as a scene onto itself. Anakin is torn. He is questioning where he should go. He feels physically cold by not being on the planet of desert, but emotionally abandoned, and the acting choices of a ten-year-olds, looking to Padme for help, stun me.

Anakin's journey is given a fear counterpart. When 3-PO stands, in his infancy, it is referenced to the machine legs Anakin receives in Sith:

"Fear is a path to the Dark Side. Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate...leads to suffering."

That is Anakin's journey. Fear of loss will lead to anger at loss which leads to hating the Sand People, the Rebellion, and the suffering of the Empire. But, before we get there, we see Anakin as a child; emotionally pure and earnest. He isn't hiding anything.

I connect with this little ten-year-old better than I do to Hayden Christensen. At least he isn't child-like at 18 or 25. I see someone I can relate to, in terms of motivations and emotions.

Amidala mourns for her people, while fighting for them. Her scenes as simply Padme humanize her, the relationship to Anakin, the boy she nurtures, like a stray animal. Qui-Gon is the quintessential Jedi, role model. Maul, with no backstory, is menacing. The Trade Federation, polite and fearful, propped by the Darth Lord.

The masses of the universe have to be stupid, and part of the power grab is the lack of transparency, over-reliance on technology, ignorance, in addition to corruption. All those elements work in this movie, deepened by what follows it.
 
I'm sorry to hear that. Anakin's a dreamer; Skywalker. He wants to visit the stars, but is saddened when his home, his mother, is lost for that dream. The scene where he says goodbye to Shri is both referenced, in future movies, and done well as a scene onto itself. Anakin is torn. He is questioning where he should go. He feels physically cold by not being on the planet of desert, but emotionally abandoned, and the acting choices of a ten-year-olds, looking to Padme for help, stun me.

Anakin's journey is given a fear counterpart. When 3-PO stands, in his infancy, it is referenced to the machine legs Anakin receives in Sith:

"Fear is a path to the Dark Side. Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate...leads to suffering."

That is Anakin's journey. Fear of loss will lead to anger at loss which leads to hating the Sand People, the Rebellion, and the suffering of the Empire. But, before we get there, we see Anakin as a child; emotionally pure and earnest. He isn't hiding anything.

I connect with this little ten-year-old better than I do to Hayden Christensen. At least he isn't child-like at 18 or 25. I see someone I can relate to, in terms of motivations and emotions.

Amidala mourns for her people, while fighting for them. Her scenes as simply Padme humanize her, the relationship to Anakin, the boy she nurtures, like a stray animal. Qui-Gon is the quintessential Jedi, role model. Maul, with no backstory, is menacing. The Trade Federation, polite and fearful, propped by the Darth Lord.

The masses of the universe have to be stupid, and part of the power grab is the lack of transparency, over-reliance on technology, ignorance, in addition to corruption. All those elements work in this movie, deepened by what follows it.
I love how you see it. I see this when I read the novels, play video games and explore the books.

But, when i watch the film, it is simply lost in the characters whom I want to engage with yet feel like I cannot.
 
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