 | It was disappointing. |
| For the first thirty minutes, I felt the movie was dragging along, and I didn't feel
attached to the story or the characters. There was something missing. |
| It got better after that, but even at the height of the battles and chases, I never felt
gripped into the scene or passionately supporting either the good guys or the bad guys. |
| "The Matrix" was so much better in 'pulling' you into its world and gripping
your mind with its suspense and contrast of good and evil. |
| The Phantom Menace was not so menacing after all, and didn't have much screen time
either. |
| But comparing this with the first Star Wars film, I think what it lacked was the human
touch. In the original Star Wars, you had the love tussle between Luke Skywalker, Princess
Leia and Han Solo, which most people could relate to. You had the stronger sense of
heroism and felt that urge to 'save the universe'. And Darth Vader was really evil. Also,
you could feel the Force. |
| This human and emotional element was what made the likes of "Titanic",
"As Good As It Gets" and even "A Bug's Life" such hits. |
| However, with "Star Wars Episode 1", this part was very thin. The characters
don't relate so well to you, even though they had 2½ hours to develop depth in their
personalities. The tone was more moderate, more subdued. No real sense of danger or
malevolence. Therefore no strong need for championing a cause. The victory didn't feel
sweet nor satisfying. The reward didn't seize you with tearful joy. |
| And mind you, I didn't even expect anything from the film, in spite of all the hype.
There really was something amiss throughout the whole movie. |
| Even the THX Sound System didn't live up to its name. Maybe it could be because we were
third row from the front that diluted its supposedly 3D Positioning sonic effects. And
being in the centre of the row didn't help much. |
| If there's any consolation, the special effects especially of the computer-generated
animated beings, were totally superb. Practically 80% of the movie was computer-generated.
I think the real human actors were probably filmed in an empty studio which was later
populated by superimposing the virtual world. Or maybe the human actors were superimposed
onto the virtual world. At this rate of computer wizardry, you don't need humans or props
anymore. You can build everything in the computer. |
| Well, I guess everyone will want to see this movie. But don't expect leaving the cinema
feeling inspired or in awe. If you do go to see it, then may the Force be with you -
you'll need it. |
