Darth Maul | the m0vie blog

404. Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (#—)

Posted on December 21, 2024 by Darren

Hosted by Andrew Quinn and Darren Mooney, this week with special guests Luke Dunne and Alex Towers, The 250 is a (mostly) weekly trip through some of the best (and worst) movies ever made, as voted for by Internet Movie Database Users. New episodes are released every second Saturday at 6pm GMT, with the occasional bonus episode between them.

This week, George Lucas’ Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace.

A republic in decline finds itself slipping into fascism in the midst of a public dispute over trade tariffs. When Jedi Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi are dispatched to resolve the Trade Federation blockade of the peaceful world of Naboo, they begin an epic adventure that will bring them to the sands of Tatooine, where Qui-Gon encounters a strange young boy that he is convinced as the power to bring balance to the force: Anakin Skywalker.

At time of recording, it was not ranked on the list of the best or worst movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: The 250 | Tagged: ahmed best, alex towers, Darth Maul, democracy, fandom, fascism, film, franchise, george lucas, hollywood, imdb, jake lloyd, luke dunne, podcast, prequel, star wars, Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, star wars: the phantom menace, stufio, the phantom menace, tyranny | Leave a comment »

That One Scene…

Posted on February 13, 2012 by Darren

You know the one I’m talking about. It’s the one scene in a bad movie that really got you, that managed to suggest that maybe there was a bit more to the film than met the eye. If it came towards the start of the film, it probably built up expectations that the finished product couldn’t meet. If it appeared in the middle, it made sure that you didn’t quite nod off towards the end. If it closed out the movie, you probably left feeling more satisfied with the movie-going experience than you really should. Often, however, these sequences are just frustrating because they just end up teasing what could have been.

Mauled by critics...

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: Darth Maul, Darth Vader, george lucas, green hornet, Jar Binks, Jedi, John Williams, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Phantom Menace, Qui-Gon Jinn, star wars, Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, Trade Federation | Leave a comment »

Non-Review Review: Fanboys

Posted on July 14, 2011 by Darren

Fanboys is a film that is borderline mediocre, but the tragedy is that it actually could have been really good. It’s quite strange, because the movie seems intent to straddle two audiences – aiming at once for both cult geek cred and mainstream appeal. Of course, the paradox of such an approach is that it frequently ends up alienating both core groups. The film is arguably too deeply entrenched in geek culture to ever find a large mainstream audience, but it’s also far too bland, safe and stereotypical for a geek audience. So it clearly hopes to please everyone, but winds up satisfying no one. Which is a shame, because it seems like it’s actually having a great deal of fun.