Rating: PG
Genre:
Science Fiction
Theatrical Release: 05/19/1999(USA)
Release Date: 10/16/2001
SubTitles: English
Dubbed: English/Espanol
Sound: DDS2.0/DD-EX/THX
Run Time: 360 Minutes
Flags: Suitable for Children, Sci-Fi Violence
Distributor/Studio: 20th Century Fox
In 1977,
George Lucas released
Star Wars, the ultimate
sci-fi popcorn flick-turned-pop-culture myth machine. It quickly became the biggest money-making film of all time and changed the shape of the film industry. After two successful sequels (1980's
The Empire Strikes Back and 1983's
Return of the Jedi) that extended the story of the first film,
Lucas took some time off to produce movies for others, with mixed success. In 1999,
Lucas returned to the
Star Wars saga with a new approach -- instead of picking up where
Return of the Jedi left off,
Star Wars: Episode I -- The Phantom Menace would be the first of a trilogy of stories to trace what happened in the intergalactic saga before the first film began. Here,
Obi-Wan Kenobi (
Ewan McGregor) is a young apprentice Jedi knight under the tutelage of
Qui-Gon Jinn (
Liam Neeson);
Anakin Skywalker (
Jake Lloyd), who will later father
Luke Skywalker and become known as
Darth Vader, is just a nine-year-old boy. When the Trade Federation cuts off all routes to the planet Naboo,
Qui-Gon and
Obi-Wan are assigned to settle the matter, but when they arrive on Naboo they are brought to
Amidala (
Natalie Portman), the Naboo queen, by a friendly but opportunistic Gungan named
Jar Jar.
Qui-Gon and
Obi-Wan plan to escort
Amidala to a meeting of Republic leaders in Coruscant, but trouble with their spacecraft strands them on the planet Tatooine, where
Qui-Gon meets
Anakin, the slave of a scrap dealer.
Qui-Gon is soon convinced that the boy could be the leader the Jedis have been searching for, and he begins bargaining for his freedom and teaching the boy the lessons of the Force. The supporting cast includes
Pernilla August as
Anakin's mother,
Terence Stamp as
Chancellor Valorum, and
Samuel L. Jackson as Jedi master
Mace Windu.
Jackson told a reporter before
The Phantom Menace's release that the best part about doing the film was that he got to say "May the Force be with you" onscreen.
~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
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