George Lucas has crossed over to the dark side.

Rating: 2/10 (31 May 2000)

The first Star Wars movie can be seen as a metaphor for the rebel filmmakers taking on the evil empire of Hollywood. For the rebels, telling a good story was everything. In Hollywood, marketing ruled. Only in Hollywood would filmmakers do dumb things like these: Designing a scene to be turned into a video game. (The pod race.) Putting in a character solely for comic relief. (You know who!) Writing a story that's driven by action, instead of by characters. Star Wars was the work of a true storyteller. The Phantom Menace was ruled by merchandising. George Lucas has crossed over.