Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace

Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)

Timing: 2:16 (136 min)

6.572/10
15696

7.925/10
387741

6.5/10
921000

All about film

Video 21

Photo 334

Actors and characters

Release date

1999-05-19

Country

United States

Production

Lucasfilm Ltd.

Genre

Adventure, Action, Science Fiction

Budget

$115 000 000

Revenue

$924 305 084

Website

http://www.starwars.com/films/star-wars-episode-i-the-phantom-menace

Director

George Lucas

Actors

Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Jake Lloyd, Ian McDiarmid, Pernilla August, Oliver Ford Davies, Hugh Quarshie, Ahmed Best, Anthony Daniels
All actors and roles (10)

Scenario

George Lucas

Producer

Rick McCallum, George Lucas

Operator

David Tattersall

Composer

John Williams

Artist

Audition

Robin Gurland

Editing

Ben Burtt, Paul Martin Smith, Abdelaziz Ben Mlouka
All team (178)

• The first scene shot during filming was the conversation between Darth Sidious and Darth Maul.
• The sound of the fluttering wings of Watto the merchant was achieved by sound designer Ben Burtt by opening and closing an ordinary umbrella.
• Before filming as Queen Amidala, Natalie Portman had not seen a single film from the original Star Wars trilogy.
• Natalie Portman missed the world premiere of 'The Phantom Menace' due to preparing for a university session.
• Sofia Coppola and Keira Knightley received short roles as Padmé's handmaidens in the film. In fact, the striking resemblance between Natalie Portman and Keira Knightley became a stepping stone for the latter's subsequent acting career.
• Due to Liam Neeson's height, the set decorators had to spend an additional $150,000 on new sets in which the actor could fit.
• At a press conference dedicated to the DVD release of "Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith" (2005), animation director Rob Coleman announced that an updated version of "The Phantom Menace" was in development, making the first episode the last film in the saga where puppet Yoda would be replaced with one generated using digital technology.
• "The Phantom Menace" is the only "Star Wars" film that features the unique Jedi ability to accelerate.
• Qui-Gon Jinn's comlink is a slightly modified Gillette Sensor Excel razor.
• After the credits have finished rolling at the end of the film, Darth Vader's ominous breathing can be heard.
• The images of all Gungans were created using Jar Jar Binks’ engine.
• In the scene of the Galactic Senate meeting, one can distinguish several delegations, including Wookies and a group of aliens resembling the famous E.T. from Steven Spielberg's film "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" (1982).
• During the filming of the battles, Ewan McGregor often involuntarily imitated the sound of a lightsaber.
• Initially, Mace Windu (Samuel L. Jackson) was supposed to be an alien.
• "Padmé" in Sanskrit means "lotus".
• Darth Maul blinks only a couple of times throughout the entire film. This was because Ray Park, who played him, found it difficult to blink in contact lenses, so Park suggested the idea of a villain who never blinks.
• Haley Joel Osment and Michael Angarano auditioned for the role of young Anakin Skywalker.
• The name 'Jar Jar Binks' was invented by Lucas's son.
• During the Gungan attack on the Trade Federation troops, the game Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds is shown on the TF battle displays.
• The scene of the lightsaber battle between Darth Maul and Obi-Wan with Qui-Gon was filmed over a month. It is the first duel of its kind to involve more than two Jedi or Sith.
• In the credits, Jabba the Hutt, opening the podrace, is listed as 'Jabba the Hutt playing himself'. At the same time, it is not indicated in the credits that Ian McDiarmid plays Darth Sidious.
• During the battle of the Gungans with the Federation forces, a droid with serial number “1138” on its back flashes by: this number was included in the title of George Lucas's first full-length film, called “THX 1138” (1971). One of the ships flying over Coruscant just before the conversation between Darth Sidious and Darth Maul is identical to the “Discovery” from the film “2001: A Space Odyssey” (1968). The same ship's escape pod is visible in the scene of the conversation between Qui-Gon and Watto in the background among other rusty parts in Watto’s “shop” on Tatooine.
• In early versions of the script, the planet of Queen Amidala was called Utapau, but ultimately this name was given to the planet where Obi-Wan fights General Grievous in “Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith” (2005).
• The only scene in the film that does not use visual effects is the scene of filling the meeting room with gas at the beginning of the film.
• Haley Joel Osment and Michael Angarano auditioned for the role of young Anakin Skywalker.
• The communicator used by Qui-Gon Jinn for communication is based on a Gillette Sensor Excel women's razor. The props team repainted the razor gray and added several metal details to it.
• The name "Jar Jar Binks" was invented by Lucas's son.