Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace(1999)
Twentieth Century Fox May 19, 1999 | Wide
Two Jedi escape a hostile blockade to find allies and come across a young boy who may bring balance to the Force, but the long-dormant Sith resurface to claim their former glory.
Releases
Original Release (20th Century Fox) | May 19, 1999
2012 3D Release (20th Century Fox) | Feb 10, 2012
2024 Re-release (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures) | May 3, 2024
Box Office Results
All Releases (3)
$487,576,624
$558,938,030
$1,046,515,409
$430,220,482
$493,216,789
$923,437,271
Current Showtimes
Your Location or
(U.S. Only)
Director & Top Cast
Technical Specifications
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio: 2.39 : 1
Other Details
Country of Origin: United States,United Kingdom
Language: English,Sanskrit
Summaries
Plot Summary
- This First Episode follows the young years of Anakin Skywalker (Darth Vader).It is the taxation of trade routes to outlying star systems that is in dispute. To resolve the matter, Trade Federation has blockaded the planet of Naboo in hope of resolving a galactic trade dispute but in secret preparation for a full-scale invasion.The Republic's leader, Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum (Terence Stamp) of the Galactic Republic secretly sends two Jedi Knights Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson) and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) to negotiate with Trade Federation Viceroy Nute Gunray. The 2 Jedi masters come aboard Gunray's flagship around the planet Naboo.Unknown to them, the Trade Federation is in league with the mysterious Sith Lord Darth Sidious (Ian McDiarmid), who orders them to invade Naboo with their immense droid army and also to kill the two Jedi. The Jedi's transport ship is destroyed in the hangar.Gunray attacks the Jedi with his droids, but the Jedi manage to fight them off and get to the flight deck. The Jedi masters almost reach Gunray, but are engaged by advanced droids with shield generators, that the Jedi cannot penetrate.Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan escape and flee to the surface of Naboo. Meanwhile, Gunray launches his droid armies at Naboo. Amid the invasion, Qui-Gon rescues a bumbling Gungan outcast, Jar Jar Binks. The Jedi masters inform Jar Jar that an invasion force has landed on the planet, and they would need much bigger force to fight them off. As Jar Jar brings them to an underwater Gungan settlement, the Trade Federation captures Naboo's leader, Queen Amidala (Natalie Portman).Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan fail to persuade the Gungan leader Boss Nass to aid the planet's surface dwellers. Boss Nass believes that the war belongs to the surface and the water dwellers will not be impacted by it. Plus, he adds that the Gungan do not like the Naboo.Through a Jedi mind trick, Qui-Gon secures a submarine, and Jar Jar's freedom to guide them to Theed, the capital city of Naboo. The Jedi and Jar Jar travel through the planet's core to get to Theed quickly. They reach about the same time as the invasion force of droids.Qui-Gon & Obi-Wan rescue Queen Amidala and her escort. Since all communications have been jammed by Gunray, the only way to make contact with the Senate is to travel there. The group makes their escape from Naboo aboard her Royal Starship, intending to reach the Republic capital planet of Coruscant, to seek help from the Senate. Sith Lord Darth Sidious tells Gunray that Amidala is naive and that controlling her should not be very difficult.Their ship is attacked by the Federation blockade, which damages the ship's hyper-drive, forcing the party to land on the desert planet of Tatooine for repairs, situated beyond the Republic's jurisdiction. R2-D2 is a droid designed to fix the Queen's ship while it is in flight, by going outside the spaceship and undertaking the necessary repairs. Meanwhile Gunray reports Amidala's escape to Lord Sidious and he assigns Lord Maul to recover the lost ship and Amidala.The Jedi at Tatooine visit the settlement of Mos Espa to purchase a new part for the hyper-drive. They encounter a junk dealer, Watto, and his nine-year-old slave Anakin Skywalker, a gifted pilot and engineer who has built a protocol droid, C-3PO (Anthony Daniels).Qui-Gon and a handmaiden named Padmé, who had accompanied Qui-Gon on orders from Amidala to learn more about the planet, befriend young Anakin Skywalker (Jake Lloyd), a 9-year-old human slave gifted in piloting and mechanics. Qui-Gon senses a strong presence of the Force in Anakin and feels that he may be the "Chosen One" an individual the Jedi believe will fulfill a prophecy by bringing balance to the Force.Watto turns out to own the parts required to repair Amidala's ship, but Qui-Gon has no way of paying him as Watto refuses to accept payment in Republic currency. Qui-Gon tries his mind tricks on Watto but fails as he is a Toydarian. Qui-Gon leaves with Jar Jar and Padme, as he tries to find another source for the part he needs. As he checks out the market, he runs into Anakin again who takes him home in light of an oncoming dust storm. Anakin shows C-3PO to Padme, whom he is building as a protocol droid to help his mother.At Anakin's insistence Qui-Gon wagers both the required hyper-drive part and Anakin's freedom on a pod race. Anakin knows that Watto is addicted to gambling and will not refuse a wager. However, Podracing is fast and dangerous and Anakin is the only human who claims to be able to do it. Anakin wins the race and joins the group to be trained as a Jedi, leaving behind his mother, Shmi (Pernilla August).Sidious sends a fake transmission to Amidala, informing her of the devastation on Naboo, and when Amidala opens the message, Sidious is able to track her location and sends Darth Maul. On route to their star-ship, Qui-Gon is attacked by Darth Maul (Peter Serafinowicz), Sidious's apprentice, who was sent to capture Amidala. After a brief light-saber duel, Qui-Gon escapes on-board the star-ship with the others.Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan escort Padmé to Coruscant so she can plead her people's case to Valorum and the Galactic Senate. Qui-Gon asks the Jedi Council for permission to train Anakin as a Jedi. The Council becomes concerned that this may indicate the reappearance of the Sith, an opposing order that followed the dark side of the Force and had long ago disappeared. After testing the boy the Council refuses, worried that he is too old for training and that the fear and anger that he harbors will cloud his future. Undaunted, Qui-Gon vows to train Anakin anyway.Meanwhile, Senator Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid) of Naboo persuades Amidala to call a vote of no confidence in Chancellor Valorum. The vote removes Valorum from power and leads to Palpatine's nomination for the position. Though she successfully pushes for the vote, Amidala grows frustrated with the corruption in the Senate. To stop the Federation invasion by herself, Amidala decides to return to Naboo. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan are ordered by the Jedi Council to accompany the queen and investigate the return of the Sith, whom they had believed to be extinct for more than a millennium.On Naboo, Padmé reveals herself as Queen Amidala and forms an alliance with the Gungans for the battle against the Trade Federation. Jar Jar is promoted to general and joins his tribe in a battle against the droid army, while Padmé leads the search for Gunray in Theed.The Gungans march into battle to divert the Federation army away from the capital, allowing the others to infiltrate the palace. Once inside the palace hangar, the Jedi free several Naboo pilots, who regain their star-fighters and assault the Federation droid ship. As they make their way to the throne room, the infiltration team is confronted by Darth Maul.Qui-Gon and Obi Wan engage Maul while the others take an alternative route. Once inside the palace hangar, the Jedi free several Naboo pilots, who regain their star-fighters and assault the Federation droid ship. During a battle in a hangar, Anakin flees to a star-fighter and accidentally triggers its autopilot, traveling to the battle against the Federation droid control ship and inadvertently causing its destruction from within, which deactivates the droid army.Meanwhile, Queen Amidala and her forces fight their way into the palace and capture Nute Gunray, Viceroy of the Trade Federation In the reactor core, Qui-Gon re-engages Darth Maul by himself, but is mortally wounded. Obi-Wan catches up with and defeats Maul in another intense light-saber battle. With his final breath, Qui-Gon instructs Obi-Wan to train Anakin to become a Jedi.In the aftermath, the newly elected Supreme Chancellor Palpatine congratulates Queen Amidala on her victory and promises to watch Anakin's career with great interest. During Qui-Gon's funeral, Mace Windu (Samuel L. Jackson) and Yoda (Frank Oz) agree that Maul was killed by Obi-Wan. However, because there are always two Sith at any given time (a master and an apprentice), they believe that another Sith still exists, although who is that Sith is uncertain. Grand Master Yoda promotes Obi-Wan to the rank of Jedi Knight and reluctantly accepts Anakin as Obi-Wan's apprentice.The Republic arrests Gunray, and Palpatine is elected as Chancellor. That evening, the heroes of the Battle of Naboo attend Qui-Gon's funeral. The following day, a celebration of their victory on Naboo and the reconciliation of the Gungans and Naboo is held, where Queen Amidala rewards Boss Nass with a peace-making trophy.
Storyline
- When the Trade Federation organize a blockade around the planet Naboo, the Supreme Chancellor Valorum sends the Jedi Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi to negotiate the end of the blockade. However the evil Viceroy Nute Gunray is ordered to kill the Jedi and invade Naboo. However the Jedi escape and Qui-Gon saves the life of the clumsy Gungan Jar Jar Binks. The outcast native takes the Jedi to his submerged city and the Gungan leader gives transportation to them. The Jedi head to the capital to warn Queen Amidala about the invasion. However she has been captured by the Federation droids but the Jedi rescue the queen and her court and they flee in a spacecraft that is damaged when they cross the blockade. They land on a desert planet and Qui-Gon Jinn goes to the town with Jar Jar, the droid R2-D2 and the queen's assistant Padmé to seek the necessary part for the spacecraft. When they find the component, they do not have money to buy it. But the slave boy Anakin Skywalker offers to dispute a race with his pod to raise the necessary money. Qui-Gon feels the Force in the boy and accepts his offer. Will the boy win the race? What will happen to Naboo? Will Queen Amidala be capable to convince the politicians to release her planet from the Trade Federation? — Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil While the ruthless Trade Federation ravage the peaceful planet of Naboo, Jedi Master Qui Gon Jinn and his apprentice Obi Wan Kenobi are sent to rescue and protect the young Queen Amidala, who is determined to convince the Senate to help her restore peace to her home. Escaping to the planet Tatooine, the Jedi come across an eager slave boy named Anakin Skywalker who dreams of becoming a Jedi. What they don't know however is that they are being used in a sinister plot by the mysterious Sith, hiding deep in the shadows. — Blazer346 Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) is a young apprentice Jedi knight under the tutelage of Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson) ; Anakin Skywalker (Jake Lloyd), who will later father Luke Skywalker and become known as Darth Vader, is just a 9-year-old boy. When the Trade Federation cuts off all routes to the planet Naboo, Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan are assigned to settle the matter. — maschzentertainment When the evil Trade Federation plots to take over the peaceful planet of Naboo, Jedi warrior Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi embark on an amazing adventure to save the planet. With them on their journey is the young Queen Amidala, Gungan outcast Jar Jar Binks, and the powerful Captain Panaka, who will all travel to the faraway planets of Tatooine and Coruscant in a futile attempt to save their world from Darth Sidious, leader of the Trade Federation, and Darth Maul, the strongest Dark Lord of the Sith to ever wield a lightsaber. — Anchorhead
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