I saw it 5 times before judging...

Rating: 1/10 (2 August 1999)

and then came home and watched the first 3 movies. And after a lot of thought I'm going to have to say, and it hurts me so, that this movie has disappointed me. Not because it wasn't a well executed play of computer graphics (I really liked the effects) and intense action, but because that's about all there was to it.
The original movies made it so much easier to get involved with the characters. And while Return of the Jedi had the annoying Ewoks, at least it finished up the tale and fate of Luke and his father.
But The Phantom Menace was just too childish, even for my children ages 7 and 10. Some very unbelievable luck, a largely annoying (dumb) side-kick, some rather disappointing revelations of the once-mystic Force, and some very dry acting left me feeling lost. Why George? For me, it is like losing a friend. I'm going to pretend I didn't see it, and that only the original trilogy was all that has ever existed and that the Force is as Yoda explained in the Empire Strikes Back.