Episode One in 3D

Yesterday night, I went to go see the re-release of Episode One. I know, I know, it's a horrible fuckin' movie, but I had to go check this out. The opulence of the new visual presentation really highlighted the weaknesses in the story- I swear every time fucking Anakin opened his mouth, I found my self reaching for my remote, and then weeping silently since I'm at the theater and can't just fast forward through that talentless little brat.

Anyway, visually Ep 1 is one of my favorite movies. The main reason, is when I designed the Choicer nation, I drew heavily on Alphone Mucha, art deco, Japanese imperial fashion, ect.... and seeing the movie for the first time, it became obvious ILM drew on those same influences to build Queen Amadila's look. I saw Ep 1 multiple times in the theater, when it first came out, just because it was like seeing an Otherverse America movie get made.

Anyway, the film looked AMAZING in 3D, no shock there. The podrace scene was stunning, and I didn't remember how well done the score was during that scene. The music drops away completely during the end of the first lap, and the second lap is almost completely silent: just the roar of the engines and whine of the wind. And when the score kicks back in during lap 3 I was almost cheering. Really a great scene.

The final Jedi battle was also very pretty and stylish, but didn't seem too changed by the addition of 3D. One scene that was defiantly improved by the format switch was when the sea monsters in the planet's core attack the Gungan submarine. That was actually creepy in 3D.

Two things I noticed. The actress playing Shimi Skywalker did a really strong job. I didn't realize how good she was as the character until this viewing. Likewise, the way the film foreshadowed the Padme/Amadila secret identity was great- the little glances between the two women, which I didn't notice the first few times I saw the film.

Anyway, it was a good night, over all.

Expect some cool products soon too....
CHRIS