The Phantom Menace Re-Release May 2024

[Ron]

Anakin 100% should have been older in TPM. IIRC, one of the early drafts put him at about 12 or so, which would have been a lot better from both a writing and acting perspective.

From day 1, I thought Anakin should've been an adult when we're first introduced to him. At least as old as Luke was in ANH. When I first saw promo images, I thought Ewan might be playing Anakin and Jake was playing Luke. I even wonder if it would've been best if he was already married to Padme and already a Jedi Knight or at least on his way to becoming one. I would've still liked to have seen him meet Obi-Wan but even that I would have been willing to sacrifice just for the sake of time management. We only had three movies to tell of Anakin and the Republic's fall. If you can forgo showing the rise of Anakin to a hero, you can focus completely on that fall. Think of when we first meet the Fellowship in LOTR. We didn't need to see them develop into heroes. Granted, Frodo is the main character but you get my point.

Episode 1: Full on hero alongside Obi-Wan.
Episode 2: His temptation to the dark side where perhaps he sacrifices his morals to achieve victory.
Episode 3: His turn and betrayal of Obi-Wan and the Jedi Order and the rise of the Empire.

I do wonder if there just isnt a version of this film that looks great projected in digital HD. it was shot on film, but a lot of the digital effects were a bit mushy even then. For instance this shot really stood out to me in the theater, the creatures in the top right that run away literally just looked like blurry blobs in the theater.

But then i pull up this HD version of the scene...and theyre still just blurry blobs.

View attachment 1821152

Yeah, unfortunately I think that's just as good as it can look. Although I wonder if those digital assets can be up-scaled and remastered. I assume those files still exist. Couldn't they be given a makeover and reinserted into the movie without having to completely remake it all?

Late 90s early 2000s were awesome. (Okay I'm probably biased.)

Couldn't agree more. That time felt like the time of the mid-70's to mid-90's in terms of great movies, shows, and cartoons.

 

[Kylash]

One shot that’s ALWAYS looked like junk was this one of Anakin and QuiGon talking at night. Pretty sure this was shot during the day and digitally darkened, horribly. And for some reason the framerate of this shot of Anakin is just really jerky and weird, like they had to slow it down or speed it up or something. The whole scene looks weird

 

[JediMichael]

I took a few screen shots between the old DVD and bluray. I forgot that the DVD still had all the film grain and dirt specs not cleaned off yet.
While lower quality, being a DVD, it reminded me more of how it probably did look in 1999.


The DVD.

Bluray. Clouds look softer here.

DVD.

Blyray. I noticed the DVD actually cut off the ends just a tad bit, but the placement and timing of the tanks were also changed up a little bit. I bet there is a lot of little things like that through out the films that George did that went unnoticed.

DVD

Bluray. These shots between two. You can really see where the sides were cut for the DVD....but, the CGI actually feels and looks slightly more realistic on the DVD, vs the more clear looking bluray. To me at least. I think the lighting and maybe even the colors gave this whole scene a weird look that felt like a cross of nearly real, but still cgi looking. But, its still a fun sequence with good sound. While capturing these shots, the sound doesn't play, but I could totally still hear all the sounds in my head.

 

[Captain Dunsel]

From day 1, I thought Anakin should've been an adult when we're first introduced to him. At least as old as Luke was in ANH. When I first saw promo images, I thought Ewan might be playing Anakin and Jake was playing Luke. I even wonder if it would've been best if he was already married to Padme and already a Jedi Knight or at least on his way to becoming one. I would've still liked to have seen him meet Obi-Wan but even that I would have been willing to sacrifice just for the sake of time management. We only had three movies to tell of Anakin and the Republic's fall. If you can forgo showing the rise of Anakin to a hero, you can focus completely on that fall. Think of when we first meet the Fellowship in LOTR. We didn't need to see them develop into heroes. Granted, Frodo is the main character but you get my point.

Episode 1: Full on hero alongside Obi-Wan.
Episode 2: His temptation to the dark side where perhaps he sacrifices his morals to achieve victory.
Episode 3: His turn and betrayal of Obi-Wan and the Jedi Order and the rise of the Empire.



Yeah, unfortunately I think that's just as good as it can look. Although I wonder if those digital assets can be up-scaled and remastered. I assume those files still exist. Couldn't they be given a makeover and reinserted into the movie without having to completely remake it all?



Couldn't agree more. That time felt like the time of the mid-70's to mid-90's in terms of great movies, shows, and cartoons.

I can get past most of the things that suck about the Prequels (and yes, overall, they are pretty mediocre films that only look marginally better against the Sequel Trilogy films)…

…but the most lingering disappointing thing about the way they closed out the story of the Prequels, to me, was the way that Vader’s suit was “fully realized in it’s final design on day one”…

Anakin really should have been seen, at the end of Episode III, in some sort of “Proto-Vader Suit” and not this:

 

[greenmachines]

I can get past most of the things that suck about the Prequels (and yes, overall, they are pretty mediocre films that only look marginally better against the Sequel Trilogy films)…

…but the most lingering disappointing thing about the way they closed out the story of the Prequels, to me, was the way that Vader’s suit was “fully realized in it’s final design on day one”…

Anakin really should have been seen, at the end of Episode III, in some sort of “Proto-Vader Suit” and not this:

View attachment 1821172

Agreed

 

[Treadwell]

One shot that’s ALWAYS looked like junk was this one

That whole testing his blood scene was the only one shot digitally, as a test. Sony or whoever loaned him a prototype or something.

Although the movie was shot on film, I think they said only one shot didn't get altered digitally. I think their pipline was 2K at best (word is that Eps 2 and 3 were shot in 1080, so that tracks).

 

[Kylash]

I took a few screen shots between the old DVD and bluray. I forgot that the DVD still had all the film grain and dirt specs not cleaned off yet.
While lower quality, being a DVD, it reminded me more of how it probably did look in 1999.

Stuff like the grass obviously looks sharper and nicer on the bluray, but like you said the cg almost ends up looking like its been sharpened with a filter or something. I guess we just had less critical eyes back in 99 lol.

 

[Kylash]

That whole testing his blood scene was the only one shot digitally, as a test. Sony or whoever loaned him a prototype or something.

Although the movie was shot on film, I think they said only one shot didn't get altered digitally. I think their pipline was 2K at best (word is that Eps 2 and 3 were shot in 1080, so that tracks).

Wow I didnt know that, it sure shows then, yeah its got a very weird digital look to it, i remember it even standing out back in 99. That combined with the bad bluescreen sky just make the whole thing feel off.

 

[AnubisGuard]

Although the movie was shot on film, I think they said only one shot didn't get altered digitally.

Iirc, it's the shot of the diox coming out of the floor vent near the start of the movie.

 

[AnubisGuard]

Wow I didnt know that, it sure shows then, yeah its got a very weird digital look to it, i remember it even standing out back in 99. That combined with the bad bluescreen sky just make the whole thing feel off.

What struck me this viewing was how rough a lot of the green screen was. They sure leaned on a lightwrap-type effect to try and blend actors into the sky/BG. A couple of times it chewed off Samuel L Jackson's nose!

Lots of comps with overly-hard edges, too. Some of the characters looked like cutouts at points.

Quite a bit of the cg holds up, though, particularly the pod race and the battle droids, but comp work has come a long way since then.

 

[JediMichael]

I'm glad George was pushing to expand technology, but, I think doing some tests probably shouldn't have made it on the film film.
And shooting II and III at 1080 seems so low resolution compared to film.

 

[batguy]

Anakin being a child in ep#1 -

I seem to be the only one on earth but I'm in favor of it.

Anakin needed a serious psychological wound to drive him to the dark side. The separation/loss of his mother is it. We needed to SEE that young age attachment and separation, not just hear about it.

Luke didn't need that because he had a different emotional drive. He was a teenager who desperately wanted a grander life away from that barren craphole. Then his aunt & uncle got killed (right there when he was a teenager). Both trilogies start with their protagonist Skywalkers just early enough to see their core wound/drive/whatever.


Maybe Ep#1 could have spent the first act when Anakin was a child and then skipped him up to teenage years after 40 minutes. But IMO we needed to see him as a child at the beginning.

And the idea of skipping forward a decade after the first act . . . IMO that doesn't really seem necessary either, it just seems like a desperate move to get past the kid-friendly part. That urge is down to Ep#1's quality. Nobody is desperate to skip past Short Round in 'Temple of Doom'.

I don't think spending 1 movie with Anakin as a child was really the problem. He just needed to be handled better. Particularly in Ep#2, which feels like the least efficient/productive/necessary movie out of all six.

 

[Joek3rr]

I can get past most of the things that suck about the Prequels (and yes, overall, they are pretty mediocre films that only look marginally better against the Sequel Trilogy films)…

…but the most lingering disappointing thing about the way they closed out the story of the Prequels, to me, was the way that Vader’s suit was “fully realized in it’s final design on day one”…

Anakin really should have been seen, at the end of Episode III, in some sort of “Proto-Vader Suit” and not this:

View attachment 1821172

It would have been cool if they had pulled out one of the old concept arts. George always said his favorite version was the version seen in the original novelization. But I can understand why they went with final look. Marketing.

They took an obscene amount of promo photos of this suit. And it was used absolutely everywhere. Still crops up today on random stuff.

 

[JediMichael]

Speaking of Vader's suit/mask. I know with every single film, its been redesigned a little bit. I remember the making pointed out how the original masks weren't symmetrical, so they made it that way, but it ended up looking better not being symmetrical.
I think his body, being Hayden, also just looked too small for this shot.

The rim of the helmet looks like it should possible go lower.
It also reminds me back when as a teenager, how my long hair looked a little bit....

 

[greenmachines]

Speaking of Vader's suit/mask. I know with every single film, its been redesigned a little bit. I remember the making pointed out how the original masks weren't symmetrical, so they made it that way, but it ended up looking better not being symmetrical.
I think his body, being Hayden, also just looked too small for this shot.
View attachment 1821242
View attachment 1821246
The rim of the helmet looks like it should possible go lower.
It also reminds me back when as a teenager, how my long hair looked a little bit....
View attachment 1821240

You just sprang that last bit on me after being serious through the whole post.

 

[Puterboy1]

I saw it and I thought it was great.

 

[Halliwax]

theatrical also on laserdisc.

Many many years ago I bought boot leg laser disc version on dvd… watched those for years…

Wish they could put the laser disc on bluray today…

 

[PoopaPapaPalps]

Anakin being a child in ep#1 -

I seem to be the only one on earth but I'm in favor of it...

I don't think spending 1 movie with Anakin as a child was really the problem. He just needed to be handled better. Particularly in Ep#2, which feels like the least efficient/productive/necessary movie out of all six.

I'm in complete agreement here, too. The tragedy of Anakin becomes more apparent in that he was a slave his entire life. From being owned by the Hutts and Watto, then to Jedi dogma, and finally to his own ambition and to the Emperor.

Like you say, it's all the handling of the subject matter that's at fault. AotC is a waste because it's such a 'nothing-movie' by its incredibly flawed execution; everything is there for something truly interesting. It's good to see that the Clone Wars is being set up as a proxy for something greater and more nefarious, and the Jedi order at this point is an antiquated and impractical organization; it's good to see Anakin develop and his darker tendencies emerge clashing with his more winning qualities, the building pieces of the Empire are all falling into place, setting the final film to hammer the joints tight. More than any of the PT bookends, everything in AotC also frames just how important Luke Skywalker is to the whole of Star Wars because he continues and succeeds at what Anakin starts, in trying to be a 'human' more than a Jedi, but it just fumbles every step of the way.

The best thing to come from AotC (and the PT as a whole, imo), is Genndy Tartakovsky's Clone Wars. I honestly wish AotC was remade and that the main ideas of the initial movie are truncated (and improved) into being the first third or first half of AotC, and then a slightly rearranged, adapted, live-action version of Tartakovsky's Clone Wars is the remainder of the movie. The movie would total 4 hours, but that could truly be called, STAR WARS: Episode II: The Clone Wars.

Spoiler: The recipe for truncating AotC using everything it has

Cold open to the final moments of a heated senate hearing with factions calling to grant emergency powers to Chancellor Palpatine to start building an army to fight the CIS. Amidala is there and she is part of a small group calling a referendum to oust Palpatine and elect a new leader, seeing as he's already overstayed his term by a prior grant of powers. The assassination plot from AotC still happens, but this time, the plot by CIS agents now targets multiple senators and Amidala is one of them, and it mostly works. Many are killed and Amidala is gravely injured and left with some scars.

Anakin has been pulled from a botched mission on Tatooine with Obi-wan on his first trial to becoming a Jedi knight, and is currently being reprimanded by the council. Palpatine pulls strings to have him be reassigned and appointed her bodyguard after Anakin tells him about his killing of Tuskens; Obi-Wan is still sent on a fact finding mission about the CIS plot. Padme retreats to Naboo to heal and Anakin and her bond over this time as he cares for her, and she soothes the pain he feels from Tatooine. It is here he reveals that on his mission returning to Tatooine, a mission to actually better conditions there, he learns about his mom and her dying in his arms. He doesn't tell her about the massacre, nobody knows beyond Palpatine. He shows his vulnerability to her here and that leads to them being intimate.

Obi-Wan still finds Kamino with the clones as a covert response to counter Geonosis, a giant secret CIS manufacturing plant right on the edge of Republic space. Obi-Wan is captured after finding dissident Republic officials convening with CIS leaders on Geonosis. Obi-Wan meets Dooku, who killed Sifo-Dyas (who's trail Obi-wan was following after Sifo-Dyas found out Dooku was working with a Sith Lord, after leaving the Order, to destroy the Republic on a prior fact-finding mission as they found government funding secretly going to Kamino). Dooku was the one that commissioned the Clone Army when he was part of the Jedi and convinced those dissidents within government of his goals.

News about Geonosis reaches the Senate, an emergency hearing is called. News about Geonosis also reaches Anakin, possibly by Palpatine or the Order (whatever makes more sense); Anakin goes to rescue Obi-Wan, Padme goes to Coruscant.

Anakin tries to rescue Obi-Wan but he gets ahead of himself, meets Dooku, gets his arm chopped off, and is captured. The senate as in chaos as high-ranking officials are ousted as the scandal on Geonosis breaks. Corruption is exposed within the system, making them look weak; there's now this sudden threat right at their borders, there's a new army that's right there waiting to be deployed; all these pressures forces a majority vote of emergency powers for Palpatine, including a very reluctant Padme. Palpatine sends in the clones.

The siege of Geonosis begins, Obi-Wan and Anakin escape. Due to his injuries, Anakin has to sit out this fight. The rest of the Jedi engage in taking Geonosis with the new army. Dooku escapes.
Intermission.

Anakin and Padme marry, a montage of adventures with other Jedi during the Clone Wars follows (we still need to focus on Obi-Wan and Anakin), but the rest of the movie plays close to as it does in Tartakovsky's Clone Wars, with a particular emphasis on Anakin now relishing the war and how certain liberties and freedoms are granted to him as a knight because of it, and how some times his nastiness manifests and is excused.

 

[Media Man]

I can get past most of the things that suck about the Prequels (and yes, overall, they are pretty mediocre films that only look marginally better against the Sequel Trilogy films)…

…but the most lingering disappointing thing about the way they closed out the story of the Prequels, to me, was the way that Vader’s suit was “fully realized in it’s final design on day one”…

Anakin really should have been seen, at the end of Episode III, in some sort of “Proto-Vader Suit” and not this:

View attachment 1821172

Never thought about it that way. It would be pretty cool to see an early Vader concept

 

[JediMichael]

One thing I was going to mention a week and a half ago, and then totally forgot.....but I was surprised with how much George loved tinkering with the films, that this shot where they forgot to add in Sebulba, still has him missing.