Lucas tries something different. But does it work?

Rating: 6/10 (28 May 1999)

It's apparent that the tone and focus of the new film is quite a bit different from the original trilogy. Instead of high adventure and straightforward good-vs.-evil, we're seeing political machinations and the playing off of sides against one another (an ineffectual Jedi Council and Republic vs. an incompetent Trade Federation). Anakin Skywalker is an intellectual with great tactical sense who will eventually turn to the dark side; hence, it only makes sense that the prequels should be a little more cerebral in nature, and focus more on thought than feeling (the reverse of the original trilogy).
The question is, does it work? I think this movie has suffered quite a bit for the lack of collaborators like Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan, who helped write ESB and ROJ. Lucas has gained a lot of power and influence over the years, and I think too many people in Hollywood were too afraid to point out where a scene might be too long or unnecessary, where the ideas and characters were poorly developed, and so on.
The result is that we are given a fascinating tour through the universe of Lucas' imagination, but there is too much emphasis on the settings, and not enough on the characters. What I saw on the screen was an imagination that just wasn't reined in and given *focus*. The Phantom Menace is too often derailed by Lucas' anything-goes approach to world-building: just throw it in and hope for the best. He really needs to collaborate on scriptwriting and direction, before the pacing and flow of the next two movies are similarly marred.
This is not to say that TPM is a *bad* movie; far from it. The ideas are there. The adventure and hold-your-breath sense of danger is there, mostly (albeit through a more vulgar, FX-laden 90's sensibility). And when it all comes together (the beginning, the Pos Race, and the end), it works, and you can feel the Star Wars magic again. But it's not enough. It needs to be sustained throughout the entire movie to truly be considered "a Star Wars movie".
Otherwise, I don't regret seeing this movie at all; I would not hesitate to recommend this film to anyone even passingly familiar with Star Wars.
One last thing: I think TPM has gotten some unfair reviews, here and in the popular press, due to some misunderstandings. You just have to remember that the Trade Federation *never* were a threat, nor were they intended to be; everyone, including the Republic and the Jedi Council, were manipulated into doing exactly what Palpatine / Darth Sidious wanted. That's why it's called "The PHANTOM Menace," not "The Overt, Vaguely Ineffectual Menace." Plotwise, I guess it's more of a Prologue than an Episode One; I suppose we'll have to take it in the context of the next two movies before we can fully understand exactly what Lucas wanted to accomplish here.
Second, the mitichlorions (or whatever) grated on me too; the Force didn't need a biological explanation. However, the Jedi Council implied that they only connect the Jedi to the Force; they are not the Force. So, the Force by itself doesn't really lose much of its mystical significance, and this shouldn't be a serious obstacle to your enjoyment of this film.