Grab your lightsabers, Kansas City, because the Force will be with you this weekend if you're planning on hitting your local theatres. Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, easily the most reviled chapter in the epic saga is coming at you, whether you like it or not.
Thirteen years after its original release, The Phantom Menace will grace screens in Kansas City and all over the world in three dimensional glory. Yes, that means you get to see Darth Maul, Natalie Portman and Jar Jar Binks coming right at you baby. That's pretty bombad.
In case you've been living under a rock, The Phantom Menace is the first in the prequel trilogy directed by Star Wars creator George Lucas. The film was originally released in May of 1999 and tells the story of how the Jedi accidentally discovered a powerful young Force-sensitive boy named Anakin Skywalker-- who would (Spoiler Alert???) someday grow to throw hissy fits before deciding on a whim to become Darth Vader.
Menace gets ragged on for being the weakest link in the saga chain. It was released to unrealistic hype and was bashed by both critics and "die hard" fans for being bloated with computer generated special effects and wooden acting. Sure it has its flaws, but the truth is that most of the fans that ripped the movies for being too childish had probably forgotten that they too were kids when the original trilogy was released between 1977 and 1983.
The current release has been met with skepticism from fans who feel George Lucas has raped their childhoods and is only seeking an easy money grab by cashing in on the 3D craze. The reality is that there is an entire generation of kids now that have never seen a Star Wars movie on the big screen and that really is the most important factor about this re-release-- allowing our children to see one of the greatest film series ever in theatres, even if TPM is arguably the worst in the series.
It's about the experience of seeing lightsabers and star ships and Jedi battling idiotic droids on the big screen. No more, no less.
Lucasfilm will be releasing another movie in the Star Wars Saga every year for the next five years; Attack of the Clones will come out next year, Revenge of the Sith the year after. Then we will finally get a re-release of A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back and finally Return of the Jedi.
The film stars Liam Neeson as Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn, Ewan McGregor as Obi Wan Kenobi, Natalie Portman as Queen Padme Amidala, Samuel L. Jackson as Mace Windu, Ray Park as Darth Maul and Jake Lloyd as young Anakin Skywalker.
So take your kids, your grand kids, you nieces and nephews and head out to your favorite Kansas City theatre-- and remember to watch Star Wars with your child-like eyes and remember how magical that galaxy far, far away really is.
The Force will be with you, Kansas City. Always.
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