Star Wars: Episode I - Cloak Of Deception

Wow. This really is a piece of art. The edit is well paced, seamless and more importantly.... enjoyable. Thank's for this edit HAL, I no longer have to watch the original release as this is now my go-to version of the film.

Having watched other edits, the difficult part is getting the opening correctly paced. Other versions are far to fast, but you've managed to pitch it perfectly. It doesn't feel rushed, the Gungan homeworld has been removed and the Neimodians are more of a threat. Outstanding.

The rest of the film is just as good. The podrace is excellent, Jar Jar's annoyance is reduced and I like your version of Anakin much better than the original. My one critiscism is that C3PO is kept in the film, but that is more of a personal choice.

Technically the edit is almost seamless, even for someone who has watched TPM numerous times. There were a couple of places in which there was some drop-off in the sound, but they are minor and didn't distract me from the film.

A must see edit. I can't wait to watch your versions of EpII and EPIII.

I've long been waiting to find prequel edits that I felt could sit side by side with the Original Trilogy. I'm not knocking other edits...its just, as was mentioned in another review, they move along at BREAKNECK speed and don't feel like a Star Wars movie. Having read the cuts in HAL9000's list as well as seeing his run time, I was intrigued. Plus, having to do a lot of re-scoring on my own edits, I wanted to see how he did the Pod Race scene. I'm very glad that I did.

My wife and I had a date night and curled up to check this movie out. Neither of us have seen Episode 1 in years, and we thoroughly enjoyed this edit. Some high points for me were the mentioned Pod Race scene, the evolution of Jar Jar from a character I hated to an almost relate able character, and most of all, Anakin!

In this edit, Anakin is thoughtful, heroic, and takes action on his own. It falls MUCH more in line with the description Kenobi gave in Episode IV than what we actually got in the prequels. I couldn't stand Jar Jar OR Anakin when I first saw Episode 1 (Yippie!!!!) but, as I told my wife when the movie ended, I honestly liked him in this on and was intrigued to see where his story goes. In this, HAL9000 accomplished an almost impossible feat.

I highly recommend this edit. As many have said, Episode 1 has been edited ad nauseam but for what I was looking for in the Prequels, this will certainly sit on the shelf next to the Original Trilogy....I am very much looking forward to seeing what HAL9000 can do to salvage Episode II.

Well, well, well, HAL9000, how can I tell you this? It's actually quite easy, thank you. Thank you very much.
You got me and my father into the prequels, he thought that they were lame and boring before this edit, he now thinks they are pretty decent movies (same thing for me). This is the way to watch The Phantom Menace, and nobody is going to say anything else.

This actually makes Phantom Menace... good? Certainly stronger than the theatrical versions of any post-OT SW film except possibly Rogue One. There's a bit of unevenness with volume levels, but other than that, my only complaint is that there's *still* a bit too much of Jar Jar, and of Jake Lloyd's awful acting (though it may be difficult to remove much more), and it would be very easy to remove the idiotic force-speed scene in the opening scene on the CIS flagship (a force ability that is used once and *never again* and completely undoes most of the suspenseful moments in the... idk, entire franchise galaxy?).

If for no other reason than the *genuinely good* podrace, I strongly recommend giving this a shot, even if you, like myself, have no affection or nostalgia for the original cut of TPM.

Always a plus when more of Jar Jar is cut, both his childish dialogue and his clown antics.
Removing the mumbo-jumbo about Midi-chlorians is also an improvement.

In general, I’ve found most of the cuts and changes to be sensible ones. The film improved a lot in terms of pacing as well.

Also, I had never before realized the number of children yelling “Yipee” throughout the film, was this a private joke from George Lucas, one that only he could understand?