Wonderful Film

Rating: 10/10 (4 March 2002)

Great movie, and a great beginning to the saga. Deceivingly complex in it's storyline, and generally only loved by the true fans. 2nd in my opinion only to the first "Star Wars" in 77', but that film is so perfect it's impossible to top and I wouldn't have expected it too.
Easy to rip on only because "Star Wars" is such a huge target. Best film of 1999. And no, "Empire" is not the best "Star Wars." A wonderful movie, but it was very "confined" in it's scope. Half of the film was in a swamp or in a spaceship. Again, very confined.
"Phantom Menace" is the opposite. Huge complex vistas, thousands of things happening in each frame. What "Star Wars" was always supposed to be. In an era of cynicism and dark films (see "The Matrix"), it's nice to see a simple clash between good and evil again. A great ride.