A 25th Anniversary Retrospective of ‘Star Wars: The Phantom Menace’
Just like The Phantom Menace, I too came out in 1999. Some would also say that I’ve also been met with mixed reception since release. But I hope my merits since then have at least swayed people’s minds a bit.
Star Wars: The Phantom Menace has a special place in my heart. Watching it as a young boy is one of the earliest memories I have as I remember my father reading out loud to me the opening credits of that film. I also had one of the original posters for the film hanging up in my room. And I remember vividly my older brothers and I collecting so many of the toys from the movie, clashing the plastic lightsabers against one another in our garage. Regardless of how people feel about this film, after 25 years, it’s amazing to see how far this movie has come and how much our thoughts and discourse about it have changed since its release.
Politics, Fate, and Jar Jar
When compared to the original trilogy, The Phantom Menace is noticeably different. It puts a larger emphasis on the politics of this universe, religious parallels, and kid-friendly humor. This thematic shift is part of the reason why The Phantom Menace was met with such mixed reviews. When looking at old reviews of the film, many critics cite Jar Jar Binks and the film’s heavier focus on politics as points of criticism.
But as time went on, others began to examine these aspects more closely. Individuals like Dave Filoni, Sam Witwer, and Ahmed Best began sharing their interpretations. Who can forget Dave Filoni’s analysis of “Duel of the Fates” and how he believes the track title pertains to Anakin and who would be looking after him? Or how actor Ahmed Best responded to theories of “Darth Jar Jar,” and in doing so, explained how he channeled Jackie Chan and drunken boxing into his performance, providing the Jar Jar with more nuance. As time went on, people had more opportunities to think about these ideas and see the reasoning behind them. People began to see some of the deep insight contained within the film.
Fervor to Vitriol; Vitriol to Exuberance
Many individuals remember vividly the excitement surrounding this movie’s release. Our very own Brian Miller explained some of this in our podcast, SWNN Live! a few months ago. He mentioned seeing all the toys around and having a calendar that counted down to the movie’s release. Ask some of these people who were there. Or look at some footage of people lining up to see the movie on opening night. Or check out photos and videos of some of the toys and marketing surrounding the film. Many would say that nothing else has quite come close to it. However, that excitement soon subsided.
Years later, critics and people online still made fun of and ridiculed the prequel trilogy. Places like Rifftrax and Honest Trailers express some of the hate that people felt towards The Phantom Menace. And often, those who defended the film in comments sections or forums were mocked online. Actors involved in the film were bullied. Ahmed Best has been very vocal in the past about how he thought of committing suicide because of this harassment. And it would take a while for the general consensus of this film to eventually change.
A Generation of Redemption
As time went on, and as social media became more prominent, feelings began to change. As Ewan McGregor explains it to a young report during the Obi-Wan Kenobi press tour, the generation that The Phantom Menace was made for had grown up and become more vocal:
“Because I guess you were a kid when those films came out… So we made them for you and it was an odd experience to make those movies… You know, like Moses [Ingram] said, when you step into this world it’s a big deal, it’s scary. And those films were critically not liked very much. They weren’t written very nicely about by the critics.
But what we didn’t hear at the time was people your age, your generation. We meet those people now that really love our films, but it’s taken us fifteen years for us to hear that. But it’s so nice, it’s really nice. It changed my outlook, my relationship with Star Wars it’s different because of that, I think”
It’s this resurgence that also helped encourage him to come back to the role in the Obi-Wan Kenobi mini-series. But I think the memes also helped.
At Star Wars Celebration in 2019, the film’s trailer was played for the film’s 20th anniversary. I remember how surprising it was to see how many fans were cheering and hollering in excitement while watching it. Seeing that many people react so positively to The Phantom Menace — live and in-person — showed that more people weren’t afraid to show their support.
Star Wars: The Phantom Menace Hasn’t Changed But We Have
Movies don’t exactly change after they’ve been released. Sure, there may be different versions, alterations, and edits to certain films. But for the most part, movies largely stay the same throughout their lifetime. But Star Wars: The Phantom Menace has had a life of its own long after it first came out in theaters in 1999. And so have we.
25 years is a long time. Scientifically speaking, we are not the same people we were 25 years ago. Our cells have died off and been replaced with new ones. I was just born then. And change within ourselves is great. Change — whether physically with our bodies or mentally with how we perceive things — is natural. So however you may be celebrating “May the Fourth” this year, whether you’re watching The Phantom Menace in theaters or watching The Clone Wars on Disney Plus, we here at Star Wars News Net hope you have a fun time and embrace the changes just on the horizon.
Born and raised in Hawaii, Jay Goodearl runs the YouTube Gaming channel “Good Games, Dude” His channel aims to open up video games to beginners and immediate players and help them understand what makes games the art form that it is.
