A good film with many faults

Rating: 8/10 (19 May 1999)

Well, I saw TPM earlier today. I went in expecting a superior film to the first three. It wasn't. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't a bad film by any means. It just wasn't a *great* film.
Problems:
My main complaint is the directing/editing of the film. The pacing of the film felt very bad to me. We jumped from scene to scene without so much as time to inhale. This is the type of film that you should be able to soak into yourself. I take a breath, and I want to breath the hot, dry air ot Tatooine. The lushness of Naboo. I want to cower at the sheer magnitude of Corucant. Anybody remember the scene in Star Wars with Luke standing in the desert watching the set of the two suns? There was no "action" in that scene. Yet it was for me one of the things that still stands out about the "first" film. TPM wasn't all bad for this, but nothing really stands out. (Granted Corucant AKA Trantor AKA Helior was pretty cool looking!)
Anyway, I would love to have had the occaisional moment to enjoy the scene
The other problems come directly from the above. Characterization is the worst offender. It's not that the characters were played badly. They just weren't given enough time to really shine. QiGuon was portrayed very well, but came across to me as being a little bit wooden. Not the fault of the actor, as his performance was excellent. Just sloppy editing. (And if you don't believe that editing makes that much difference, compare the two versions of the Babylon 5 pilot, "The Gathering". It's remarkable what a difference good editing makes.)
I have a minor complaint about the computer animation. It's actually too smooth. People don't walk quite that perfectly. We hit the ground with a thud and a light jerk, and our next step does not always fall the same as its predecessor. Also, while they are getting very good at skin texture, I am finding that they don't know how to handle clothing on top of that skin quite as well. If I twist my arm, my shirt slips a little. It's not a second skin unless I'm in spandex. (Trust me, a bad thing!)
Darth Maul. He was very underused. It would have been far more interesting to have seen him much earlier on, directing the attack maybe. He has a very cool voice and an imposing presence, so I'm at a loss as to why he didn't get more time. He could have been THE STAR of this film. The perfect villain.
Lastly, Jar Jar Binks. He's a neat idea, but I have two major problems.
One, he had WAY too much screen time. I have nothing against a bit of comic relief, but this movie isn't a comedy. If you must have him, fine, but we don't need to be blundgeoned. It came across to me as a great new toy to be shown to everybody. He will, in fact, ultimately date this film more than any muppet ever could.
Two, comic relief should not be an embodied character trait in a film such as this. It comes across to me as sloppy writing, and I *know* that George Lucas is not a sloppy writer.
THE GOOD
I have NEVER seen effects this good. I've been a special effects buff for years, and this blew everything out of the water. Once again, the rest of the industry is going to have to play catch-up to Star Wars.
The choreography was UNBELIEVABLE. (Good, that is!) I never thought that the light saber duels in the previous three films could be classified as an insomnia cure. Seriously, it's THAT GOOD.
Darth Maul. Dispite a lack of screen time, what he has is good stuff. Once again, UNBELIEVABLE choreography! Incredible!
Darth Sidius & Emperor Palpatine. Both (heh) did a fabulous job. Lucas was right. Palpatine came out as a great guy! Sidius/Maul-2000 anybody?
The Queen. I know a lot of people didn't like her. I thought hers was the strongest performance in the film. She was the strong character that Leia wanted to be.
MY OPINION
Over all, I felt the acting performances were very strong. But you're only as good as the material you are presented.
While I was ultimately disappointed by this film, I did enjoy it. I may even watch it a second time. I want to pay more attention to the background next time. I have this feeling that I missed something that was right in front of me.
Directing/Editing - 40% Writing - 60% Acting - 90% Special Effects - 95%