This was the first Star Wars film that I saw in theaters. My father and his family, growing up in the seventies and eighties, were huge Star Wars geeks and throughout my childhood I had fallen in love with the action figures and Original Trilogy films. I don't remember much of my first viewing of Star Wars but, looking at the film now, it is still one of my favorite Star Wars film to watch. It is by no means the best; A New Hope was iconic and Empire was just superb in its plot but Episode I still grips me by its nostalgia factor, despite the fact it is only a decade or so old. Darth Maul is awesomeness and pure evil wrapped up in one terrifying Sith bundle, while Qui-Gon is, in my honest opinion, the epitome of what a Jedi should be; wise, compassionate, and willing to go against the rules to do what is right. The fights are spot on and the Podrace sequence is quite breath taking.
The only drawback is, of course, Jar Jar Binks. Honestly, the first few times I watched this movie as a kid, I actually thought Jar Jar was pretty funny. It was only after hearing some people's opinions about him that I began to realize that he was the most racistly sterotyped alien character in the whole franchise. Maybe "character" is too strong a word because he was little more than comic relief and idiocy. Still, I can forgive Lucas for that if, for nothing else; Maul and Otoh Gunga, the beautiful underwater city.
Well, that's my opinion of the film. Great locations and scenery. Great (and one not so great) characters. Great action sequences. Just a good, fun movie. This is what a Star Wars film should be. Sorry if I am gushing over it here but I think it is justifiable when most other people bash it. Let's only hope that Disney can equal this film with Episode VII.
Not Deserved of the Reputation It Has Received
This was the first Star Wars film that I saw in theaters. My father and his family, growing up in the seventies and eighties, were huge Star Wars geeks and throughout my childhood I had fallen in love with the action figures and Original Trilogy films. I don't remember much of my first viewing of Star Wars but, looking at the film now, it is still one of my favorite Star Wars film to watch. It is by no means the best; A New Hope was iconic and Empire was just superb in its plot but Episode I still grips me by its nostalgia factor, despite the fact it is only a decade or so old. Darth Maul is awesomeness and pure evil wrapped up in one terrifying Sith bundle, while Qui-Gon is, in my honest opinion, the epitome of what a Jedi should be; wise, compassionate, and willing to go against the rules to do what is right. The fights are spot on and the Podrace sequence is quite breath taking.
The only drawback is, of course, Jar Jar Binks. Honestly, the first few times I watched this movie as a kid, I actually thought Jar Jar was pretty funny. It was only after hearing some people's opinions about him that I began to realize that he was the most racistly sterotyped alien character in the whole franchise. Maybe "character" is too strong a word because he was little more than comic relief and idiocy. Still, I can forgive Lucas for that if, for nothing else; Maul and Otoh Gunga, the beautiful underwater city.
Well, that's my opinion of the film. Great locations and scenery. Great (and one not so great) characters. Great action sequences. Just a good, fun movie. This is what a Star Wars film should be. Sorry if I am gushing over it here but I think it is justifiable when most other people bash it. Let's only hope that Disney can equal this film with Episode VII.