The Phantom Menace = The Hobbit

[RoJoHen]

"The Phantom Menace" is on Spike right now, and despite my best intentions, I find myself watching it (and wincing every couple of minutes when something retarded happens).

The more I think about it, the more I wish this had been formatted more like "The Hobbit," as a prequel to the prequel trilogy. The whole story is so detached from the other two prequels that it doesn't feel like it's even a part of the trilogy. Anakin is a child. There are Gungans all over the place. Darth Maul is the main villain. And half the movie is about Pod Racing. The problem with all of these things is that none of them carry over into the other movies.

The Hobbit was always more of a children's story, and I feel like "The Phantom Menace" would have worked better if it had tried to be one as well.

 

[6079SmithW]

I like the idea of it being a prequel to the prequels. I always thought that the Prequels could have benefitted if they were comprised of four movies instead of three. Everything seemed so rushed in ROTS and many of its events I had wished to see already occur by the end of AOTC. Four movies would allow more backstory like birth of the rebellion and maybe some look into the early lives of Luke and Leia.

I totally see where you're going with The Hobbit comparison. The Hobbit was a children's movie and TPM would be so much better if they had gone full children's story instead of half-serious, half-kid stuff.

 

[Owain Taggart]

Yeah, I kind of agree with you. My biggest pet peeve about the movie is how young Anakin is compared to Padme, and then through the next two movies he's grown up while she looks the same age. That's quite an oversight or just a bad casting or makeup decision, but unless Naboobians age slower, I find it hard to buy. They should of aged her a bit with makeup. So, to me, it's not simply that Anakin is young in it, but the odd pairing.

 

[6079SmithW]

If TPM were not a kid's movie then they should have made Anakin and Padme more equal in age, probably both in their mid to late teens. Then in the later films they could show how their teenage crush develops into a mature romance. Throughout the prequels their so-called romance never seemed more then a crush. That's one of the main critiques of the prequels (I think), that the romance between the two was never really believable.

 

[KB24]

I agree the presentation of The Phantom Menace was way off compared to the rest of the series. Anything important from TPM could have filled and hour and been tacked on to AOTC, with all the bad taken out of that, then let ROTS be two films. When you look at it now, there really is no point in TPM that warrants a whole movie. It's almost like the ewok movies! Canon, but most of it is of very little importantance and juvenille.

 

[JediKnightButler]

I agree with most everybody here that TPM felt like more of an extended prologue rather than a part of the PT, particularly since it was so set so far before the succeeding two movies. TPM would've probably worked better as a standalone novel to help pave the way for the PT proper.
I slightly disagree about its irrelevance to the rest of the PT since it DOES show how and when Palpatine began his rise to power, it introduces us to Obi-Wan, Anakin, R2-D2 (I had no idea about his origin), and C-3P0 and shows how Obi-Wan became Anakin's master. However, there wasn't a whole lot that absolutely HAD to be shown onscreen IMHO (although we would've been cheated out of an AWESOME 3-way lightsaber duel with AWESOME supporting music by JW)
If I had been GL, I would've had TPM be a standalone novel (heck, I'd even allow for a soundtrack and/or videogame tie-in like what they did for "Shadows of the Empire") and started the PT (movies) with AOTC as it was (well, I would've made it better in some respects but anyway) , added another movie in between it and ROTS that featured some more of the Clone Wars and other political intrigue (kind of like what we're getting know with the TV series), and more or less left ROTS alone (although hopefully having had another movie set during the Clone Wars, it might not have needed to have quite so much "sandwiched" into it)

 

[Mr Light]

I always thought that Phantom Menace should have just been one of the novels. In the long run it's about as important as books like "Labyrinth of Evil" or "Dark Lord". Attack of the Clones should have been Episode I. You don't see how Anakin meets Padme but is that really important? Star Wars movies always begin in the middle of the story. Then Episode II could have been the important events of the Clone Wars ending with the Battle of Coruscant.

 

[Nowhere Man]

They could have told the basic story of TMP in a simple conversation or a few scenes. They could have handled it like Star Trek 09 did. Just make it short and sweet and to the point. Then combine that with AOTC. Call episode 1 Rise of the Empire. I would definately change some of AOTC, but keep the basic plot. Have Anikan and Padme be closer to age( about 15-20)and they would have the Lea/ Han type relationship. Replace all Gunguns with Wookies. Throw in a young Han and Boba (about 12-15 years of age), Make eposode 2 The Clone Wars. Keep Darth Maul until he is replaced by Vader in the end. Have Obi-Wan be about 25-30 in episode 1.Episode 3 is similar, but Anikan has already turned. Make episode 3 Fall of the Jedi. Everything else is basically the same, but the Rebellion is established Imeadiately after Order 66 and the Empire is created. Vader and Obi-wan duke it out the same way and is given the suit at the end just the same. Han Solo is doing some devious stuff for the empire orthe seperatist. Boba becomes a bounty hunter and befriends Vader. Chewy is used in the same way, but we see him indroduced in episode 2. The war starts over something more sinister like a Sith would do. Like Hitlerish, if you will. The gap between 3 and four would be closer by maybe 5-7 years, so Lea could faintly remember Padme. By episode 3 Obi-Wan would be 45-50 Anikan 35-40 and Luke/Lea 5-7 Han and Boba 25-30.

 

[The Master of Tarquin Hill]

I am pretty much fine with the movie as it is.

Is it geared towards a new generation of consumers? Yes.

It is what it is, and you will never change it.

 

[JoeZhang]

"The Phantom Menace" is on Spike right now, and despite my best intentions, I find myself watching it (and wincing every couple of minutes when something retarded happens).

The more I think about it, the more I wish this had been formatted more like "The Hobbit," as a prequel to the prequel trilogy. The whole story is so detached from the other two prequels that it doesn't feel like it's even a part of the trilogy. Anakin is a child. There are Gungans all over the place. Darth Maul is the main villain. And half the movie is about Pod Racing. The problem with all of these things is that none of them carry over into the other movies.

The Hobbit was always more of a children's story, and I feel like "The Phantom Menace" would have worked better if it had tried to be one as well.

Lucas admits in a 2006 interview with Empire magazine. The story he wants to tell is all contained in the last film, so all the stuff like the pod-racing is simply there to fill time. The film feels disconnected from the rest of the trilogy because it is.

 

[KB24]

WE might never change it, but ten years from now, who knows what George Lucas will do to it?