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While it's not that bad a film I think the Star Wars era we all remember was a long, long time ago. Now follow me on this - Star Wars fever reached stratospheric heights between 1977 and 1983, and isn't there part of all of us that can't help but associate the series with that part of our lives? When I think of The Empire Strikes Back, I think of a sunny May evening waiting in line outside the Cinerama Dome in Hollywood, anxiously awaiting chapter 2 of the adventure that was still so new and fresh in my young mind. With Return Of The Jedi, there was an excruciating three year wait to find the answers to the Darth Vader/Luke Skywalker connection and all the other plot twists. And therein lies the rub - there was only a three-year wait to get to that next installment, so in retrospect the wait seemed so short.

Cut to 1999 and The Phantom Menace. There's something unfamiliar about it, making it not as inviting as the original follow-ups. I got chills when R2-D2 was introduced in the trailer, and you heard those comforting beeps and whistles from our friend from so long ago. But other than nostalgia, if you took away all the Tatooine sets and the John Williams score from Menace, would you know that this was the same universe and characters? I don't know - this isn't how I remember the saga and that's what makes The Phantom Menace so weak.

There are great elements to The Phantom Menace, enough to make it a pretty good film on its own - maybe. But Episode I's 's problem is that it isn't a stand-alone, it has three other chapters to measure up to, and it fails to uphold either the spirit or the style of the first three, even by meager Star Wars standards. It is no secret Episode I was a major disappointment for fans, but hey, its now on DVD, and even lackluster Star Wars is better than no Star Wars at all...

Video: How Does The Disc Look?

So, how does it look? Well, this isn't the same Phantom Menace you saw in the theater. Including about three minutes of new footage (inserted liberally throughout the film - see the supplements section below), this transfer has been struck from the same high-definition master created for the video and broadcast releases over a year ago, albeit with the new additions. Presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen, and THX-certified to boot, Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace boasts a generally stunning, though not quite perfect transfer.

But let me just say before I nitpick that it can be breathtaking. First, the superlatives. Black level is spot on, with rich contrast that is rendered evenly across the entire grayscale. Colors are perfectly saturated throughout, neither too pale in the more bland scenes nor oversaturated during darker interiors or the vibrant, climatic final battles. There is no bleeding, smearing, or noise, and fleshtones appear accurate. The overall level of detail is also excellent, with most scenes boasting that three-dimensional, you-are-there quality of the best transfers. As this is the last Star Wars film to be shot on old-fashioned 35mm film, yet grain is almost entirely absent except for a thin veneer present during the Tatoonine scenes (though this lends the transfer a very nice, film-like quality). Under the auspice's of the THX certification program, I noticed no artifacting at all even in the more chaotic sequences, which usually trip up the MPEG-2 compression encoding scheme of the format.

Unfortunately, as great as this transfer often is, there are a few drawbacks that, for me, keep it from being reference quality. The transfer can be a bit inconsistent, with the scenes on Tatoonine the main culprit. They exhibit a somewhat dark quality, with shadow detail wanting, lending the image a plugged up appearance. Sharpness is very good throughout, though again the Tatooine scenes appear soft at times. Another distraction is the amount of edge enhancement. Clearly, this is become the evil empire of the DVD format, and even Star Wars is not immune. Edges on high- contrast areas exhibit halos and some shimmering. Combined with the softness and murky shadow delineation, it can be annoying, though the edginess of this transfer is hardly extreme. Still, this could have set a new reference standard, but as is remains a very, very good transfer falling just short of perfection.

Audio: How Does the Disc Sound?

While the transfer is near-perfection, the soundtrack beats it - it is simply the best Dolby Digital track I have ever heard on DVD. This is the most aggressive mix since Saving Private Ryan, and if the podrace and the climatic Jedi duel don't become the home theater demos of choice for years to come, I'll kiss a wookiee! Lucasfilm has included the theatrical Dolby Digital Surround EX mix, which allows for an additional rear center surround channel (if you have an EX-equipped receiver, of course), though those of you without EX capability will still get a terrific 5.1 surround experience. (Stay tuned for a full review of the EX mix soon...watch this space!)

Recorded at the 448kb/s bitrate, this track is incredibly aggressive - there is simply never a dull moment with this mix! Overall dynamic range and fidelity is awesome. Rare for a modern, big-budget Hollywood spectacle, the music, dialogue and effects are perfectly balanced and not overpowering. (But then, what do you expect from Academy Award-winning sound designer Ben Burtt?) The separation among the front three channels is superb, with whooshes and whizzes all over the place, yet somehow not gimmicky. John William's score soars, with a rich, full feel absent even from the CD releases. The surrounds are active throughout, and the podrace and action scenes incredibly enveloping. Imaging amongst all the channels is near- transparent, from front to back and right to left. Even without EX decoding, the experience is a you-are-there, in-your-face experience, the best home theater sound currently has to offer. And the low-end is incredibly tight and loud - turn this puppy up and hide the children and pets!

If I had any complaint to make, it is that some of the quieter scenes sometimes lack the subtle ambiance in favor of bombast, but that is more reflective of the stylistic choices of the filmmakers and not a fault of the track. But no matter. The best I can say about this mix is that it makes wish I had better speakers, just like the best transfers make you wish you had a better television. Crank it up and enjoy.

Although It's been mentioned extensively, it bears repeating again to illustrate my point, that The Phantom Menace was indeed the first film ever released in the Dolby Digital Surround EX format. The reason I bring this up is because usually with new technology and extensions of existing stuff, it usually takes a bit of time to really get a grasp on how to properly and effectively use such new tools. Oddly, The Phantom Menace doesn't really reveal itself as an "inaugural" title as it still stands as the best the format has to offer.

The addition of the back surround channel can only be described as "seamless." It's presence seems to exist solely to create a solid soundstage in the back of the room that not only presents more than a handful of direct effects, but also many subtle, yet convincing imaging effects to the areas between the speakers. With a lot of the other EX soundtracks mixed and released after the theatrical debut of Phantom Menace, there seemed to be an overly conscious effort to make the center surround an "all or nothing" proposition. This often has the effect of sounding a bit more gimmicky and overt without the sealed quality that such a channel was supposed to provide. The best thing about the center surround channel in The Phantom Menace's 5.1 soundtrack is that you almost can't tell that it's there, yet it always is. The imaging and panning aided by the channel have been done so seamlessly that it never draws attention to itself.

Also included are English 2.0 and Spanish 5.1 surround tracks, along with English subtitles and English Closed Captions. And worth mentioning is that this disc has four subtitle streams: the full English subtitle track, captions for the audio commentary, and the film's intertitles in both English and Spanish (they are not burned in onto the transfer.) Oddly, there are no full Spanish or any French subtitle tracks at all provided, which seems like a bit of an oversight. (Note, however, that in a rather unusual move, Lucasfilm will be releasing a separate Canadian Region 1 release of The Phantom Menace. It includes a French 5.,1 track instead of the Spanish track provided here. The transfer, English EX mix and features remain the same.)

Supplements: What Goodies Are There?

In what undoubtedly will be the most analyzed, debated and criticized special edition ever released, Lucasfilm has crafted a very extensive set of supplements detailing every phase of the production of Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace. From conception to pre- production, throughout the arduous shooting and post-production, then on to the film's premiere, included are multiple documentaries, commentaries, stills and text, comprising over six hours-plus of bonus materials. But is even this enough to satisfy ever-rabid Star Wars fans? Let's see...

Let's start with the fully-animated, simple yet effective menus (Multimedia: Video excerpts and stills.) In a rather neat feature, every time you boot up the disc, one of three different "menu worlds" will pop up, making every experience a little bit different (well, until you get to see all three of 'em, that is.) Apparently, there are also secret codes to allow direct access to these three menu worlds, and cute little hidden animations you can find if you let certain submenus "cycle" enough times... see if you can figure 'em all out. (God knows I can't!)

Now, first a word on the main feature, which is a new extended cut of the film. Running about three minutes longer than the theatrical version, new footage has been inserted in a few key scenes - the opening and lap two of the podrace, a short "air taxi" sequence in Corsucant, and a bit of a alteration when Darth Maul bites it. I'm sure Star Wars-ites will be able to spot the changes instantly, though I had some trouble. Watch for them and see if you can figure out what is different...

Disc one houses the main feature, one hidden easter egg of outtakes (not labeled on the packaging, but I'll give you a hint...THX!) and the main extra, a new screen-specific audio commentary with director George Lucas, producer Rick McCallum, co-editor Ben Burtt, and effects gurus Rob Coleman, John Knoll, Dennis Muren and Scott Squires. All have recorded true screen-specific commentaries - Lucas, McCallum and Burtt solo, the rest apparently as a group - and then edited together into one seamless track. Certainly, it is a thrill to hear Lucas open the commentary by saying "This is George Lucas, and welcome to the audio commentary for Episode I"! (Let's hope we hear that on Episodes II, III, IV, V and VI!) And in a nice touch, DVD producer Van Ling has included optional subtitles to identify each speaker, which really helps in a track with so many participants. Very nice.

So, just how is the commentary? Given that this is an edited patchwork, there is never a dull moment nor any annoying gaps of silence. And, thankfully, there is none of the dreaded "let's just rephrase what is happening on the screen like a radio play" nonsense to dull the senses. All offer genuinely insightful comments on the challenge in mounting such an immense, effects-intensive production. However, that leads me to my one major caveat with this commentary (and the disc as a whole, actually). The focus is almost entirely on the technical, with little discussion on the film's themes, development of the script, the casting or the overall arc of the six-part saga. Certainly, this is an informative (though often dry) commentary, and Star Wars fans absolutely cannot afford to miss it. But outside of those interested in the purely technical side of moviemaking rather than storytelling, it may prove less-than- stimulating.

Moving on to disc two, here you'll find the lion's share of the included supplements, which are divided into four sections - "Trailers and TV Spots," "Deleted Scenes and Documentaries," "Featurettes, Web Documentaries and starwars.com," and "Animatics and Still Galleries."

Let's begin with the promotional. For you diehard completists out there, you'll find the film's near-legendary theatrical teaser and theatrical trailer, nicely presented in anamorphic widescreen and Dolby Digital 2.0 surround. Also includes are five (though not all seven) Tone Poems ("One Love," "One Dream," "One Destiny," "One Will," and "One Truth") and two short TV spots ("The Saga Begins" and "All Over Again") created for the film's theatrical release. All are presented in full frame and 2.0 stereo. Also included is the very popular "Duel Of The Fates" music video featuring the music of John Williams and rare footage of the scoring sessions not found in any of the other featurettes or documentaries. Oddly, this music video is the only extra not presented in anamorphic widescreen, instead only in 1.85:1 letterbox with the audio and 2.0 surround.

Onto the Animatics and Still Galleries section, you'll find two multi-angle animatics with a separate introduction by producer Rick McCallum and effects artist David Dororetz. Of the two included animatics - the "Podrace Lap One" and "Submarine" sequences - the second is a real find, as it features stand-ins for Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor and Jar Jar... very funny stuff. Each sequence is presented from four angles - the storyboard, the animatic and the final scene, as well as a composite of all three. The intro and two scenes run a total of a little over six minutes.

The three included still galleries are only fairly extensive, with about 75 stills. "Exclusive Production Photos," "Print Campaign," and "Posters" are just what they sound like, and in another nice touch from Ling, most stills include some interactivity. You can click either right or left to move through the stills, or down to view various permutations or alternate images, and some text is also included to help explain what we're seeing. Well done, though I was hoping for a bit more in terms of sheer volume of stills. (Damn, I'm hard to please!)

Rounding out this section is Star Wars: Starfighters - The Making Of A Game, a short four-minute featurette on the LucasArts title of the same name. To be honest, I wasn't much into this, and held little personal interest outside of a PR piece. Still, for you game fans this is a well put together piece, presented in full frame and 2.0 stereo.

A bit more substantial is the next section, "Featurettes, Web Documentaries, and starwars.com." The weakest of the bunch are the five featurettes ("Visual Effects," "Costumes," "Design," "Fights," "Story"). Each was created at the time of the film's release, and are what you'd expect from EPKs, fluffy bits of behind the scenes footage and interviews which function more as extended commercials than real in-depth peeks behind the scenes. Even the featurette on the story is disappointing, offering little real information on the beginning of the saga, or where the characters have been and where they're going. Still, these are here for fans, and each is presented in anamorphic widescreen and run about 7 minutes, for a total of 35 minutes of material. (There is also a hidden Podrace featurette somewhere around here... can you find it?)

Much better than the featurettes is the award-winning collection of 12 Web Documentaries - "All I Need Is An Idea," "Thousands Of Things," "Home Sweet Home," "Boys In Paradise," "This Is A Creature Film," "Prince Of the Jedi," "Assistant Directors," "3,000 Anakins," "It's Like War Now," "Costume Drama," "Bad Droid Karma," and "Movie Music." Diehard Star Wars fans will undoubtedly remember these, which are excellent five- to seven-minute segments (note that the intros by Lucasfilm's Lynne Hale have been edited out) focusing in on specific areas of the filmmaking process. Chronicling the production all the way back to 1994 when Lucas first sat down to write the screenplay, it is easy to see why these documentaries were so acclaimed. Some are surprisingly poignant - should I be embarrassed to admit I got a bit teary-eyed during "This Is A Creature Film," when artist Stuart is presented with a Yoda sculpture? Running over an hour total, this alone would have sufficed as an excellent, self-contained documentary. But wait, there is another...

Now, on to what may be the crown jewels of this set, the "Deleted Scenes and Documentaries" section. Seven deleted scenes ("Complete Podrace Grid Sequence," "Extended Podrace Lap Two," "The Waterfall Sequence," "The Air Taxi Sequence," "Dawn Before The Race," "Anakin's Scuffle With Greedo," and "Farewell To Jira") are included, though these are no ordinary scraps from the cutting room floor.

Running over 20 minutes, Lucas and his special effects team, led by supervisor Pablo Helman, have spent over six months fully completing these scenes. Left unfinished at the time the film was completed, it is fair to say considerable cost went into completing these, and aside from a few weak shots and some phony CGI, these look about as good as the finished film. All are presented in anamorphic widescreen and Dolby Digital Surround EX, and no seamless branching version is offered. But in my opinion these scenes don't add much to the film anyway - and why anyone would want The Phantom Menace to be any longer remains a mystery. The standout is undoubtedly the extended podrace sequence, and the big waterfall climax to the underwater submarine chase is also a winner.

Even better than just the scenes themselves are the two ways to access them - either via a straightforward submenu, or in a brand-new Deleted Scenes Documentary. Featuring interviews and introductions of the scenes by Lucas, McCallum,, and co-editors Ben Burtt and Paul Martin Smith, there are also technical explanations by effects artist Dean Yurke, and a great opening bit with editor Walter Murch and filmmakers Francis Ford Coppola and Philip Kaufman discussing the editing process and why scenes get deleted in the first place. Something like this is simply unheard of on a DVD, and along with the deleted scenes themselves, this runs 30 minutes. Most excellent!

Okay, now it is time for my favorite supplement on this disc, and what may be the best making-of I've yet seen on a DVD. Lucasfilm hired documentarian Jon Shenk to document the entire pre- through post-production process of Episode I, and when he was finished, Shenk ended up with over 600 hours of material. While some was culled for the web documentaries and the featurettes, there was much left over, so it likely that the one-hour documentary The Beginning: Making Episode I only scratches the surface. But what a documentary this is! Eschewing the traditional narrative and talking heads approach of most DVD documentaries, this is a true cinema verite, video diary-like look at the making of The Phantom Menace that has everything the film does not - drama, adventure, tragedy, emotion, and characters you care about and root for.

Presented in anamorphic widescreen and 2.0 surround, "The Beginning" is filled with moments that even the casual Star Wars fan will find highly entertaining and the fanatic will find priceless. I could list 'em all day and still not capture the magic - Lucas' daughter cutting off too much of Ewan McGregor's hair during his Jedi makeover; Steven Spielberg visiting the set and almost breaking one of the props; Lucas lamenting his lack of "coolness," the final Anakin screen tests revealing what may have been two better choices (in my opinion) for the role; a severe sandstorm that almost wipes out the Tatooine set; terrific fight and behind-the-scene footage, Rick McCallum swearing; and the first rough cut screening filled with dour faces and a matter-of-fact appraisal of the film's weaknesses (that, surprisingly, is never later refuted). And the incredibly poignant, haunting final shot. Yes, this documentary is that good, and for me worth the price of admission alone.

Last but not least, it is no surprise that this disc is littered with Easter eggs - I was able to find the outtakes and the podrace documentary mentioned above, as well as some of the menu animations. And I'm sure there are more... let the hunting begin!

DVD-ROM Exclusives: What do you get when you pop the disc in your PC?

Aside from the usual weblinks to the starwars.com website, we have the most extensive exclusive website yet created for a DVD. Launched on October 16, 2001, DVD Starwars.com is an ongoing portal only accessible if you have the disc in your ROM drive (and a PC, not a Mac.) So, what's here? For starters (see the image gallery for a preview) the layout is designed with all six episodes in mind, and features both Episode I content and previews of Episode II (and eventually, it stands to reason, Episodes III-VI.)

Aside from links to Starwars.com and their community forum, you'll find additional DVD-exclusive bonus features. First is the "Photo Gallery," which includes quite an array of stills not included on the DVD, but also never released before anywhere. The "Inside The DVD" section features additional info on the DVD, the transfer, the completion of deleted scenes, and interviews with the DVD crew including producer Van Ling and THX's Rick Dean. Perhaps most exciting for Star Wars junkies are the ongoing previews of Episode II, including the first installment "The Choice," an animated montage of new stills from Attack Of the Clones. (And watch for the teaser to "Come back on November 9, 2001.")

An ongoing DVD-specific Star Wars site, since the original writing of this review, Lucasfilm has launched a number of exclusive features including more Episode II previews, a guide to the disc's many easter eggs, and coolest of all, a new DVD In-Depth text commentary you can watch live with the disc in your drive. There is plenty of great stuff and likely more to come, so don't miss this, otherwise you won't get the full experience out of your DVD.

Parting Thoughts