watch it more than once

Rating: Null/10 (14 June 2000)

I saw Star Wars Episode 1 on opening day at 12:15am which was the second screening. Being a big Star Wars fan, I was extremely excited in seeing this "new" Star Wars film. After the movie, I have to admit that I was pretty disappointed. The movie was fairly different from the other Star Wars films and I found Jar Jar Binks to be rather annoying. Also, Nute Gunray and the Trade Federation "aliens" were given Asian accents and some of the Gungans were too. Jar Jar's speech was poking fun of Blacks. Also, the movie simply didn't have to look and feel of the other Star Wars movies that made them so great. That was my first impression when I viewed the movie in the theatre. I recently received the Widescreen edition of the Phantom Menace for my birthday. So I thought, what the heck, why not watch it again. I watched it again and then a few times more and now I have to say that I love it! It may not have the look and feel of the classic Star Wars series but hey, this is a "new Star Wars film." The battles, especially between Obi Wan and Darth Maul were amazing. So, my recommendation to those people who did not like the Phantom Menace is to beg them to watch the film again. Like I said, I didn't like the film when I first viewed it either but if you give it a chance and watch it more than once you will realize just how strong the force is with this movie.