This 2016 short film from the minds of Star Wars fans, is easily comparable to the original trilogy and prequel films. "Darth Maul: Apprentice" was a fan-film released online, and it's one of the best pieces of Star Wars media... It's an impressive visual spectacle, and a film filled to the brim with a surprising amount of substance.
Praises:
1.) The Visuals: Okay, first I will discuss the less important aspects of the film, then move on to the writing and story. But first...the visuals. The film's visual style is...how do I put it...astounding. While the CGI effects don't look especially real, for a fan-film, they're pretty impressive. Along with that, the make-up and costumes are well made and clearly had put has a lot of effort put into it. The cinematography is perfect, and the film is shot on real location. And if the film had a bigger budget, or was made a few years earlier, it would look like a big budget blockbuster. And even still, just look at the film, and it would be hard to guess that it was a fan-project.
2.) The Characters: Now, into the more important parts of a movie. The characters are all excellently written. First I will discuss the two main Jedi, then the title character.
The two main characters of the film are, and the Jedi are very simple characters, but I like to say, less is more, and as this is a short film, these kinds of films value that saying. The master and apprentice relationship is pretty well demonstrated. Simply through visuals we can see the bond they share, by staying by each other's side and defending each other. And both actors (Mathis Landwehr and Svenja Jung) gave excellent performances (for a fan-film). But the two also contained flaws, as the Jedi master was too confident in his abilities to fight Maul, soon leading to his own demise. And the apprentice didn't have the confidence to fight him. Until she was cornered by the Sith at the end of the film, finally taking the courage to fight him, but it still wasn't enough. And she was killed as well.
However, the most interesting character in the film was Darth Maul. As he relentlessly hunted down the Jedi, we saw his compassion. As he kind of felt bad about killing every Jedi. Evident by the final confrontation, where he clearly hesitated in killing the Jedi apprentice. But sense his master was watching him, he mercilessly killed her. In a scene that was both heart-breaking and chilling to the bone. The film shows us a side we never saw to Darth Maul, his compassion and sorrow, a side that was killed by his master, Darth Sidious. As in just 18 minutes, we see the complete transformation and arc of this man. Loosing his softer side, soon being taken by the monster in him.
The only depiction of Maul I can compare it to is the one in "The Clone Wars" series. And in that, he is a much different person. This is early Maul, someone who didn't out as a demented person, but became one. It's very much a Nurture vs. Nature thing, Maul being turned into an evil person. At least, that's my interpretation.
3.) Story and Themes: The story of "Darth Maul: Apprentice" is a story of survival. The two main Jedi being ill-equipped to survive. And Darth Maul hunting them down. He was the hunter, and they were the hunted. Maul learning to embrace his status as the hunter, and do what he believed needed to be done. Even when it would have been a good choice to run, a suggestion the Jedi apprentice made to her master, but the master being too cocky. Believing he could be the hunter, but being dead wrong. And when the apprentice was cornered, she decided to survive, but wasn't equipped for the challenge.
Again, maybe I'm reading too deep, and it was just meant to be a cool fan-film. But I believe there was an overarching theme in this film. And the fact I was able to get all that from a short fan-film, still surprises me. And while this film is able to make me think like that, and write this review, some two or even three-hour films can't write this well, with more time than this film has to tell its story simply boggles my mind.
Well...to conclude, less is more. Sometimes, by having less your more creative, and you are able to craft something more interesting. This film is somehow better than the stuff Disney is making with Star Wars, because it's made by people who don't care, and have no passion for Star Wars. This on the other-hand, is made by people who like the franchise, and wanting to make a good film about Star Wars. It's a film that shows, art doesn't come from who has the most money, it comes from who has the most passion. And the force is strong with this one.
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