The Phantom Menace Review
- Video
- 2009
- 1h 9m
A serial killer decides to poorly dissect the critically acclaimed Star Wars prequels to determine their TRUE "flaws".A serial killer decides to poorly dissect the critically acclaimed Star Wars prequels to determine their TRUE "flaws".A serial killer decides to poorly dissect the critically acclaimed Star Wars prequels to determine their TRUE "flaws".
- Shmi Skywalker
- (archive footage)
- Jar Jar Binks
- (archive footage)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- Captain Panaka
- (archive footage)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
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It might appear odd to review a Youtube documentary on IMDb, but I feel that it went a bit beyond that and actually delved more into the professional docu/mockumentary area.
It can of course appear to be a little too spiteful, which I don't really condone - but at the same time, Redlettermedia brilliantly made it a character so that they could really maximizd the satire and go overboard with the hate - whilst still providing some good points.
I would not say it reallt showcases any things I didn't already believe oe know about the problems in the film, but that shouldn't be the point. Make up your own mind.
All in all, however, Stoklasa provides some very entertaining commentary mixed with mockumentary and satire.
Like other views on the subject, it can get a bit extreme, but if you like me are not a big fan of the prequels - I suggest you give this a watch anyways. It's well crafted and all around pretty funny.
This is like MSTK3000 but using an analytical approach to the entire movie, including some hilarious sideshow bits from time to time. Clearly a great deal of time was spent preparing this lampooning of a very poor movie. While you might think it would get boring quickly... it doesn't. The jokes mostly hit and there is a remarkable amount of hilariously bad material in this film to easily fit into 100 minutes but this film is only about 70 something in total.
It's no fluke the other reviewers gave this film such a high grade. There is no commercial motive. It's just damn hilarious.
I love this review: it holds a single film up for judgement against modern cinema itself and clearly shows how The Phantom Menace simply doesn't hold up to its cinematic predecessors, Star Wars or otherwise. While I enjoyed the movie when it came out, even I can admit and willingly point out things wrong with the movie. That's the fun of criticism; you can still be critical regardless of whether the targeted work is good or not and still say something meaningful in the end. This review is one of the most entertaining, sincere and outright hilarious things I've ever seen. It's a masterpiece not just of internet culture and fandom itself, but also film criticism and how self-awareness, and awareness of other's mistakes, leads to learning stuff you never knew you wanted to know at all: in this case, how a fictional serial killer knows more about story structure than late-90s Lucas did when he made the prequels.
I LOVE this review and the series which follows is equally brilliant. It's fantastic filmmaking, criticism and a thorough analysis of cinema that even Roger Ebert (a man who rated The Phantom Menace 3.5/4 stars) praised for its open-ended dissection of 'The Hero's Journey'.
Stoklasa clearly has a great knowledge of film and he displays it here by thoroughly breaking down every element of the film to convey why he believes it was so awful.
It's entertaining and informative.
The only way it could be better is if it came with a deluded fanboy that you could force to watch it.
Did you know
- TriviaUpon its online premiere in December 2009, the review was widely linked to by many people across the internet, including celebrities such as actor/writer Simon Pegg and writer/producer Damon Lindelof; the latter of whom wrote in a Twitter message about the Plinkett review, noting "Your life is about to change. This is astounding film making."
- Quotes
[first lines]
Plinkett: Star Wars: The Phantom Menace was the most disappointing thing since my son. I mean, how much more could you possibly fuck up the entire backstory to Star Wars? And while my son eventually hanged himself in the bathroom of the gas station, the unfortunate reality of the Star Wars prequels is that they'll be around. Forever. They will never go away. It can never be undone.
- ConnectionsFeatures Flash Gordon (1936)
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- Runtime1 hour 9 minutes
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- Aspect ratio
- 4:3