Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace opened in theaters on May 19th, 1999. The fans waited a long time to get more Star Wars stories from George Lucas and when it finally came it was met with mixed reactions. Some fans loved it, while others were disappointed.
I’ve got an old news report here for you to watch that features the fans coming out of a midnight screening of the film at the old Burbank AMC theater offering up their reactions for the movie and as you’ll see, more people actually liked it than hated it. This is actually the theater that I saw the movie in when it came out, so this brings back some memories.
Before going into the theater to watch the movie, one fan said, “There’s no way it’s gonna be a disappointment.” When the reporter asks crowd of fans if they expect to see a “lousy movie,” the line outside the theater yells, “No!”
Obviously, some fans were disappointed. One fan admits, “I mean, I don’t want to bag the movie, but I really didn’t think I cared about the characters. It really didn’t have any personality.” Another said, “Thumbs way down. I think I deserve a public apology from George Lucas.”
There were some fans who loved it, though. One fan told the reporter, “I liked the special effects, I thought Lucas did a really good job.”
Another said, “It was so intense. I mean, my heart was beating, it’s still beating now. I just screamed, literally.”
Finally, a guy dressed up as Darth Maul said, “It was amazing, it was everything I thought it was gonna be and more.”
Out of the 19 moviegoers that were interviewed, ten said they “loved it,” seven “liked it,” and two “hated it.”
What was your reaction to The Phantom Menace as soon as the end credits started rolling?