I was 17, close to 18, when I saw The Phantom Menace. Saw it opening night at the largest single-screen theater in DC. It was magical and people were cheering, applauding, and having a damn good time. To this day, the best experience I’ve had watching a movie in the theater.
I remember when Rey-Rey Starpaltine came back in time and cut off Darth Maul's head with one mighty swing of her laser sword while shouting, "The Force is Female, Bitch". Whenever I watch it again, and I see Qui Gon and Obi Won ask her how she did it, and she replies, "The Power of One", I still get shivers
I remember the excitement of Empire opening when I was a kid then movies such as Batman, Jurassic Park, Terminator 2 to name a few. Movies these days just don't open like this anymore. It's kinda sad really. They come and go so quickly
I've certainly got to hand it to Lucas, he sure knows how to polish a turd. In this case he even gave the turd gold plating! A perfect example of style and hype over substance.
I remember seeing the film when it came out, there was so much hype for the film. I was over the moon to watch a new Star Wars film at the cinema. I am personally very fond of the prequel films, I know they haven’t aged that well but I have a lot of nostalgia for them. I have never seen so much merchandise and hype for a film since. Great memories.
YOU CAN NOT EXPLAIN THE FEELING AS A 6 YEAR OLD SEEING IT. Nobody will get it unless they lived it. It's literally like new video games VS older ones. Being young and having that stuff was just 100X more FUN than it is today.
Great film that changed everything and did so much for digital technology and later digital cinema. Just sad that Hollywood was bitter against Lucas for him escaping the Hollywood system. At that time the highest grossing movie franchise of all time was Star Wars run by its creator and he had all his companies he self-funded to help make his movies. TPM was a George Lucas Movie and that’s why people disliked it but that’s why I love it. Not that the other films weren’t his films but they were the first ones released and people had a idea in their heads of what Star Wars is and because TPM was very different that’s where the distaste started. If a corporation had control of Star Wars at that point we probably would have got something like TFA.
I flew over to New York and watched it at 4am on opening day at the United Artists Union Square cinema. Wasn’t going to wait two months to see it. Not the best film but one of the best cinema experiences I have ever had.
@@VideoTasties It was. As soon as the words STAR WARS lit up the screen the cinema erupted. Only time I have had a cinema erupt in unison was for Rocky 3 during the fights. Made a point of watching it quite a few other films on that trip as we were still in the era of the delayed releases from the US to the UK. I remember watching Election , Go and a good few others on the trip as well as Episode 1 in a few other cinemas including the Ziegfield which I loved the architecture of. Of course I visited the Virgin Megastore in Times Square to pick up region 1 dvds. One of the best holidays I have ever have in retrospect.
The expanded universe and the prequels exist because people wanted more Star Wars, not because Lucas had more story to tell. Not everything needs a backstory, and some things are better left to the imagination. In 16 years, Lucas couldn't come up with anything interesting enough to justify another trilogy, so he should have let it be. His edits to the originals were an early sign that the prequels wouldn't be good. Han is transformed from a no-nonsense rogue to a self-defence pussy. The subtlety of Vader's silent internal conflict is made explicit with a cartoonish exclamation. Jabba and Boba having cameos in ANH destroys our anticipation of finally seeing them in RotJ and ESB. Similarly, the prequels spoil key revelations within the original trilogy. The reveal of Vader's true identity is robbed of its gravitas. Luke and Leia being siblings is no longer a twist. We already know that the humble Yoda is in fact a great Jedi Master, and we already know that the Emperor can shoot lightning bolts from his hands. It works so much better with him as a sinister offscreen presence until the penultimate chapter. It was always implied that Yoda and the Emperor had mastered the Force to such an extent that they no longer needed lightsabers, so their use of them in the prequels is totally out of character. It was also implied that the Emperor's grotesque appearance is what happens when you are consumed by the Dark Side, but the prequels ruined this with that idiotic scene where he fries himself with his rebounded lightning. Vader killing the younglings was a step too far. It wasn't necessary to include anything that sinister. The original trilogy now retroactively suggests that child murder is a redeemable offence. This is a reprehensible message, especially coming from a franchise that was primarily aimed at children. The introduction of midichlorians is by far the most egregious mistake. It completely inverts our understanding of the Force, which until this point had been a mysterious cosmic energy that only gifted individuals could master. With dedication and discipline, one could attain telekinetic and telepathic abilities. Its nature and origins were intentionally vague, and this is why it worked. The Jedi, once the guardians of peace and justice, are transformed into dim-witted bureaucrats who are more concerned with tax disputes and abducting impressionable children. Because attachment is forbidden by the Jedi code, the children are not allowed any contact with their families. The Jedi also have no qualms about cloning sentient beings to use as cannon fodder, which makes them seem more villainous than the Separatists they fight against, who use only droids. It makes us wonder why Luke viewed them with such admiration. How can we root for protagonists who display more arrogance and hypocrisy than the supposed villains? Star Wars has been pulled in every direction imaginable, first by an out-of-touch Lucas and now by the woke mob, and the damage has been irreparable. Hearing a pint size Anakin squealing “yippee” in TPM is unbearable. How can we take Darth Vader seriously after that? Star Wars was never intended to become as big as it did. It was a low budget movie inspired by Arthurian legend, WW2 and 50s sci-fi serials. In contrast to its humble origins, it became a sprawling corporate abomination. Disney then swallowed it up, and it devolved into self-insert fanfiction. Every character, no matter how fleeting, has been retconned with a stunning-and-brave backstory. This dead horse has been beaten so many times. It's just a puddle of glue now.
I was 17, close to 18, when I saw The Phantom Menace. Saw it opening night at the largest single-screen theater in DC. It was magical and people were cheering, applauding, and having a damn good time. To this day, the best experience I’ve had watching a movie in the theater.
That's nice
As a long-time Star Wars fan, I can truly say this wasn't what I was expecting when I saw it at the cinema, & not in a good way🤔
Seems to be the general consensus
Great Film! One of my all-time favorites
I remember sitting at the bus stop afterwards and feeling sad and confused, lol no other way to describe it.
I was 14 when I saw it in theaters in 1999. It was the first movie I saw that when the credits rolled I exclaimed; ‘what was that shit?’
@@t7489 😂😂
I remember when Rey-Rey Starpaltine came back in time and cut off Darth Maul's head with one mighty swing of her laser sword while shouting, "The Force is Female, Bitch". Whenever I watch it again, and I see Qui Gon and Obi Won ask her how she did it, and she replies, "The Power of One", I still get shivers
I think you have just written the new trilogy
I remember the excitement of Empire opening when I was a kid then movies such as Batman, Jurassic Park, Terminator 2 to name a few. Movies these days just don't open like this anymore. It's kinda sad really. They come and go so quickly
Very True, I have done videos of JP and Batman too
I've certainly got to hand it to Lucas, he sure knows how to polish a turd. In this case he even gave the turd gold plating! A perfect example of style and hype over substance.
Yeah it's not great
I remember seeing the film when it came out, there was so much hype for the film. I was over the moon to watch a new Star Wars film at the cinema. I am personally very fond of the prequel films, I know they haven’t aged that well but I have a lot of nostalgia for them. I have never seen so much merchandise and hype for a film since. Great memories.
It might be the last big hype film
@@VideoTasties25 years ago too, time flies.
YOU CAN NOT EXPLAIN THE FEELING AS A 6 YEAR OLD SEEING IT. Nobody will get it unless they lived it. It's literally like new video games VS older ones. Being young and having that stuff was just 100X more FUN than it is today.
I agree
i saw this the day it came out at the movies i remember i thought it was going to be crowded but i was the first one there
@@nicholaswoodall3840 nice 👍
31:19 is that you? 🙂
Great film that changed everything and did so much for digital technology and later digital cinema. Just sad that Hollywood was bitter against Lucas for him escaping the Hollywood system. At that time the highest grossing movie franchise of all time was Star Wars run by its creator and he had all his companies he self-funded to help make his movies.
TPM was a George Lucas Movie and that’s why people disliked it but that’s why I love it. Not that the other films weren’t his films but they were the first ones released and people had a idea in their heads of what Star Wars is and because TPM was very different that’s where the distaste started. If a corporation had control of Star Wars at that point we probably would have got something like TFA.
Valid points
I flew over to New York and watched it at 4am on opening day at the United Artists Union Square cinema.
Wasn’t going to wait two months to see it.
Not the best film but one of the best cinema experiences I have ever had.
I bet that was amazing
@@VideoTasties
It was.
As soon as the words STAR WARS lit up the screen the cinema erupted.
Only time I have had a cinema erupt in unison was for Rocky 3 during the fights.
Made a point of watching it quite a few other films on that trip as we were still in the era of the delayed releases from the US to the UK.
I remember watching Election , Go and a good few others on the trip as well as Episode 1 in a few other cinemas including the Ziegfield which I loved the architecture of.
Of course I visited the Virgin Megastore in Times Square to pick up region 1 dvds.
One of the best holidays I have ever have in retrospect.
The expanded universe and the prequels exist because people wanted more Star Wars, not because Lucas had more story to tell. Not everything needs a backstory, and some things are better left to the imagination. In 16 years, Lucas couldn't come up with anything interesting enough to justify another trilogy, so he should have let it be. His edits to the originals were an early sign that the prequels wouldn't be good. Han is transformed from a no-nonsense rogue to a self-defence pussy. The subtlety of Vader's silent internal conflict is made explicit with a cartoonish exclamation. Jabba and Boba having cameos in ANH destroys our anticipation of finally seeing them in RotJ and ESB.
Similarly, the prequels spoil key revelations within the original trilogy. The reveal of Vader's true identity is robbed of its gravitas. Luke and Leia being siblings is no longer a twist. We already know that the humble Yoda is in fact a great Jedi Master, and we already know that the Emperor can shoot lightning bolts from his hands. It works so much better with him as a sinister offscreen presence until the penultimate chapter. It was always implied that Yoda and the Emperor had mastered the Force to such an extent that they no longer needed lightsabers, so their use of them in the prequels is totally out of character. It was also implied that the Emperor's grotesque appearance is what happens when you are consumed by the Dark Side, but the prequels ruined this with that idiotic scene where he fries himself with his rebounded lightning. Vader killing the younglings was a step too far. It wasn't necessary to include anything that sinister. The original trilogy now retroactively suggests that child murder is a redeemable offence. This is a reprehensible message, especially coming from a franchise that was primarily aimed at children.
The introduction of midichlorians is by far the most egregious mistake. It completely inverts our understanding of the Force, which until this point had been a mysterious cosmic energy that only gifted individuals could master. With dedication and discipline, one could attain telekinetic and telepathic abilities. Its nature and origins were intentionally vague, and this is why it worked. The Jedi, once the guardians of peace and justice, are transformed into dim-witted bureaucrats who are more concerned with tax disputes and abducting impressionable children. Because attachment is forbidden by the Jedi code, the children are not allowed any contact with their families. The Jedi also have no qualms about cloning sentient beings to use as cannon fodder, which makes them seem more villainous than the Separatists they fight against, who use only droids. It makes us wonder why Luke viewed them with such admiration. How can we root for protagonists who display more arrogance and hypocrisy than the supposed villains?
Star Wars has been pulled in every direction imaginable, first by an out-of-touch Lucas and now by the woke mob, and the damage has been irreparable. Hearing a pint size Anakin squealing “yippee” in TPM is unbearable. How can we take Darth Vader seriously after that? Star Wars was never intended to become as big as it did. It was a low budget movie inspired by Arthurian legend, WW2 and 50s sci-fi serials. In contrast to its humble origins, it became a sprawling corporate abomination. Disney then swallowed it up, and it devolved into self-insert fanfiction. Every character, no matter how fleeting, has been retconned with a stunning-and-brave backstory. This dead horse has been beaten so many times. It's just a puddle of glue now.
Very well said 👏
Thanks for putting this together. Luckily the Matrix came out same year otherwise I surely would have turned to the dark side.
Yeah the matrix outshined it