Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace 2DVD 1999 Star Wars I - Baljós Árnyak / Directed by George Lucas / Starring: Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman

MADE IN HUNGARY

REGION 2 PAL DVD

Audio: English 5.1

Subtitle: English HOH, Hungarian, Czech, Danish, Finnish, Hebrew, Icelandic, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish

Total Runtime: 131 minutes + extras DVD

English Summary:

Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace is a 1999 American epic space-opera film written and directed by George Lucas, produced by Lucasfilm, distributed by 20th Century Fox and stars Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Jake Lloyd, Ian McDiarmid, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, Pernilla August, and Frank Oz. It is the first installment in the Star Wars prequel trilogy and begins the "Skywalker saga," though it was the fourth film to be produced chronologically. The Phantom Menace is set 32 years before the original film and follows Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi as they protect Queen Amidala in hopes of securing a peaceful end to an interplanetary trade dispute. Joined by Anakin Skywalker—a young slave with unusually strong natural powers of the Force—they simultaneously contend with the mysterious return of the Sith.

The Trade Federation upsets order in the Galactic Republic by blockading the planet Naboo in preparation for a full-scale invasion. The Republic's leader, Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum, dispatches Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice, Obi-Wan Kenobi, to negotiate with Trade Federation Viceroy Nute Gunray. Darth Sidious, a Sith Lord and the Trade Federation's secret benefactor, orders the Viceroy to kill the Jedi and begin their invasion with an army of battle droids. The Jedi escape and flee to Naboo. During the invasion, Qui-Gon saves the life of a Gungan outcast, Jar Jar Binks, from being run over by a droid transport. Indebted to Qui-Gon for saving his life, Jar Jar leads the Jedi to Otoh Gunga, an underwater city of Naboo. The Jedi try to persuade the Gungan leader, Boss Nass, to help the planet's surface dwellers but are unsuccessful. However, the Jedi do manage to obtain Jar Jar's guidance and underwater transport to Theed, the capital city of Naboo. They rescue Naboo's queen, Padmé Amidala, and escape from the blockaded planet on her Royal Starship, intending to reach the Republic capital planet of Coruscant.

Hungarian Summary:

Palpatine szenátor egy befolyásos politikus, aki a Galaktikus Köztársaság egységét fenyegető konfliktusok közepette fű alatt hozzálát, hogy megszilárdítsa saját hatalmát. A Naboo-t katonai fenyegetés alá vonja az arrogáns Szövetség, mely lassan elkezdi kivonni magát a Galakitkus Köztársaság meggyengült kormányzatásnak fennahtósága alól. Naboo ifjú királynője nehéz helyzetbe kerül. A Galaktikus Szenátus főkancellárja két jedilovagot küld a blokád alá vont bolygóra, azzal a feladattal hogy segítsék elő a konfliktus békés úton való rendezését. Qui-Gon Jinn-nek és tanítványának, Obi-Wan Kenobinak azonban már nincs alkalmuk tárgyalásokat kezdeni. Az inváziós hadsereg megrohamozza a bolygót, s a királynőnek menekülnie kell.

Cast / Szereplők:

• Liam Neeson as Qui-Gon Jinn, a Jedi Master who discovers Anakin and under the belief that he is destined to bring balance to the force as the prophesied "Chosen One", insists that the boy be trained as a Jedi, despite the Jedi Council's refusal to do so. Lucas originally wanted to cast an American actor in the role, but cast Neeson (who is Northern Irish) because he considered that Neeson had great skills and presence. Lucas said Neeson was a "master actor, who the other actors will look up to, who has got the qualities of strength that the character demands."^[4]
• Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan Kenobi, Qui-Gon's twenty-five-year-old Jedi Padawan, who holds his master in high regard but questions his motives at times, especially when it seems he is breaking the rules of the Jedi. McGregor was cast from a shortlist of fifty actors, all of whom had to be compared to pictures of young Alec Guinness, who portrayed the elderly Obi-Wan, to make a believable younger version.^[5] McGregor had a vocal coach to help his voice sound closer to Guinness's. He also studied several of Guinness's performances, from his early work and the original Star Wars films.^[4]
• Natalie Portman as Queen Padmé Amidala, the fourteen-year-old Queen of Naboo, who hopes to protect her planet from the Trade Federation's blockade invasion. Over 200 actresses auditioned for the role.^[6] The production notes stated that "The role required a young woman who could be believable as the ruler of that planet, but at the same time be vulnerable and open". Portman was chosen especially for her performances in Léon: The Professional (1994) and Beautiful Girls (1996), which impressed Lucas.^[4] He stated, "I was looking for someone who was young, strong, along the lines of Leia [and] Natalie embodied all those traits and more".^[4] Portman was unfamiliar with Star Wars before being cast,^[4] but was enthusiastic about being cast as a character she expected to become a role model. Portman said, "It was wonderful playing a young queen with so much power. I think it will be good for young women to see a strong woman of action who is also smart and a leader."^[7]
• Jake Lloyd as Anakin Skywalker, a nine-year-old slave boy and a skilled pilot who dreams of becoming a Jedi. Hundreds of actors were tested across the UK, Ireland, Canada, and the United States^[4] before the producers settled on Lloyd, who Lucas considered met his requirements of "a good actor, enthusiastic and very energetic". Producer Rick McCallum said that Lloyd was "smart, mischievous, and loves anything mechanical—just like Anakin."^[8]
• Ian McDiarmid as Senator Palpatine / Darth Sidious, a middle aged senator of Naboo and secret Sith Lord who is eventually elected as Supreme Chancellor of the Galactic Republic. McDiarmid was surprised when Lucas approached him sixteen years after Return of the Jedi to reprise the role of Palpatine because he had assumed that a younger actor would play the role in the prequel films.^[9]
• Ahmed Best as Jar Jar Binks, a clumsy Gungan exiled from his home and taken in by Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan. Best was hired after casting director Robin Gurland saw him on a Stomp performance in San Francisco.^[8] Best was originally intended to provide motion capture data, but his offer to voice the character was accepted. On the set, to provide references for the actors, Best was clothed in a suit made of foam and latex and a headpiece. Best's filmed performance was later replaced with the computer-generated character.^[10] Best frequently improvised movements to make Jar Jar look as clumsy and comedic as possible.^[8]
• Anthony Daniels as the voice of C-3PO, a protocol droid built by Anakin. He lacks a metal covering in this film; R2-D2 humorously refers to it as being "naked". A puppeteer dressed in a color closely matching the background—in a manner similar to the Japanese puppet theater Bunraku—manipulated a skeletal C-3PO figure attached to his front while Daniels read his lines off-camera. The puppeteer was erased from the film during post-production.^[8][11]
• Kenny Baker as R2-D2, an astromech droid that saves Queen Amidala's ship when other astro droids fail. Before the film's production started, fans campaigned on the Internet to retain Baker as R2-D2; Lucas replied that the actor would reprise the role. Baker is used for scenes where R2-D2 bends forwards and backwards and wobbles from side-to-side. Robots and a digital model were used in other shots.^[12]
• Pernilla August as Shmi Skywalker, Anakin's mother, who is concerned for her son's future and allows him to leave with the Jedi. August, a veteran of Swedish cinema, was chosen after auditioning with Liam Neeson. She was afraid of being rejected because of her accent.^[10]
• Frank Oz as the voice of Yoda, the centuries-old leader of the Jedi Council who is apprehensive about allowing Anakin to be trained. Yoda was mostly portrayed as a puppet designed by Nick Dudman based on Stuart Freeborn's original design. Oz controlled the puppet's mouth, and other parts were controlled by puppeteers using remote controls.^[10] Lucas fitted Yoda's filming around Oz's schedule as he finished and promoted In & Out.^[13] A computer-generated Yoda is featured in two distant shots. Warwick Davis (who played the part of the Ewok Wicket W. Warrick in Return of the Jedi in 1983) portrays him in the scene where Obi-Wan becomes a Jedi Knight.^[14] Lucas said he originally wanted to use a full-time digital Yoda, but the attempts did not work well enough at the time. Beginning with the 2011 Blu-ray release of The Phantom Menace, which was also used for the 3D reissue, a CG Yoda replaced the puppet entirely.^[15]
• Oliver Ford Davies as Sio Bibble, the governor of Naboo.