Had its moments

Rating: 5/10 (10 April 2005)

I just re-watched "The Phantom Menace" for the first time since it first came out. I came to several realizations (some bad, some good): 1. Regarding Jar Jar...he wasn't all that bad. There was just too much of him. Lucas should have either had less of him at the beginning or had him be more serious at the end. Also, since Jar Jar became such an important character, he probably should have been a little more serious than he was. After all, not all the Gugans (sp?) were like him. There were a few that the audience were shown that had more seriousness to their characters.
2. The actor who played Anakin...what the hell were they thinking hiring him? I remember hating that actor's performance the first time I saw it, and nothing has changed. The kid had no chemistry with anyone he was acting with. I know that kid actors aren't supposed to be incredibly good, but with a character as important as Anakin, they should have tried harder to get a kid who was at least halfway decent. This kid was awful. He couldn't even say, "Yippee!" without it sounding totally fake.
3. The special effects...oy. They are awesome, however, it's hard to buy that this movie took place 30 years before Star Wars Episode IV. The technology they have looks much more advanced. They should have toned it down some, made it look more natural, and older than the technology from the previous trilogy.
4. The other actors...they are awesome. They did as best they could, considering some of what they had to put up with. Their performances were enjoyable, and most of them interacted as well as they could. Unfortunately, every time they were in scenes with the kid who played Anakin, their scenes ended up being uneven, because that kid could not act.
5. Yoda...I'm glad they still had the puppet Yoda in this one. I don't like the CGI Yoda in "Attack of the Clones" (except for during the fight scene with Dooku). I think the puppet looks more natural than the CGI.
6. Plot...this movie actually has a good plot, when you get past all the flashiness, CGI, and bad acting.
This movie is not a total loss, though when compared to the earlier movies, it just doesn't hold its own. "Attack of the Clones" was better, though there were problems with that one too. I am looking forward to "Revenge of the Sith," tentatively willing to venture hope that Lucas might actually make a prequel that holds its own with the first trilogy.