A Good Beginning!!

Rating: Null/10 (22 May 1999)

I thoroughly enjoyed the film. I'll admit it took a little while to get use to the fact that you won't be seeing the familiar characters, but Lucas has laid a good foundation for his story. The most challenging story to tell is the one of Anakin Skywalker. He's cast a very good young actor named Jake Lloyd ,who for some reason has been getting some pretty bad press about his acting. This central person so important to the Starwars legend is wonderfully told. Jedi knight Qui-Gon Jinn played by Liam Neesen sees the force in the child and takes him under his wing. The much talked about villian Darth Maul, while not seen much is used effectively. Basically a Hitman he's a person of few words but totally impressive. The light saber battle is spectacular.
As for the technical aspects of the film, it's loaded with state of the art digital effects that are a wonder to see. All in all the StarWars films will in years to come be a gauge by which to view the advancement of film technology. Lucas at the forefront in this field will undoubtedly use the future episodes to introduce the world to these advancements. Lastly I couldn't help thinking that while movies have certainly improved in terms of effects and sound, the actual film itself hasn't.