Last night I took my daughter Sara to see "Star Wars: The Phantom Menace" on the big screen in 3-D. It's my least favorite of the "Star Wars" series, and I don't particularly like 3-D movies. Actually, I try to avoid 3-D movies if possible, preferring the 2-D version instead. But...this was a rare exception. I was curious as to how they would do "Star Wars" in 3-D. I also wanted Sara to have a chance to see "Star Wars" the way I saw it when I was a kid, and maybe she would feel some of the same magic I felt when I was her age.
We saw the movie at the local "Alamo Drafthouse" theater. I was later surprised to find out that the movie was completely sold out. I was expecting a small crowd. Not a sold-out crowd. The place was packed with Star Wars geeks.
The 3-D was pretty good, but not great. There were no mouth dropping "WOW" moments. There were very few moments of objects coming out at you. Even the "podrace" scene, which seemed to have lots of opportunities for cool 3-D tricks, didn't really impress me much.
The movie still had all the same problems as it did back in 1999. It was obviously aimed at small children, yet the story was far too convoluted for them to follow. Taxation on trade routes and blockades? Senators arguing in committees? How is a 6 or 7 year old going to understand all that? Then you've got Jar Jar, one of the most annoying characters ever created. It turns out, though, the kids love Jar Jar.
"What was your favorite part of the movie?" I asked Sara. "Was it the Obi Wan/Darth Maul fight scene?" (in my opinion, the best part of the movie)
"It was when Jar Jar's tongue went numb." Sara replied. "He's so silly."
So there you have it. Maybe George Lucas knew what he was doing after all. My daughter loves Jar Jar and all his wackiness.
From what I have read, Lucas plans to release a 3-D version of each "Star Wars" movie for the next 6 years. Which means we will have two more inferior films to go before we get to the classic, "Episode IV." I'd like to see that one again on the big screen, but I think I'll probably skip the next two.
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