A worthy successor

Rating: 9/10 (21 May 1999)

The best movie in the world? Nah, but it's plenty good enough. The Phantom Menace has astounding visuals, riveting action, and, while its characterizations, like Star Wars's, are thin, this one has something Star Wars didn't: major star power. Liam Neeson, Ewan MacGregor, and Natalie Portman bring gravity and magnetism to their roles.
There's more pandering to the kiddies than I'd have liked to see in this movie -- could alien sidekick Jar Jar Binks have been more annoying through most of this film? -- but there is a lot of great stuff here too. The climactic light-sabre battle in which the evil Sith Lord Darth Maul takes on two Jedi Knights is one of the best action scenes on film. It's almost on a level with the fight between Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader in The Empire Strikes Back.
Hey, I just realized. Liam Neeson was also in Rob Roy, in which he participated in another one of the best swordfights on film. Coincidence?