Hated it then loved it

Rating: 9/10 (20 May 1999)

Top 10 Good and Bad things about Phantom Menace [Minor Spoilers]
1. Good - The swordfight - Including the standoff, and the high speed ballet complete with operatic score, was amazing.
2. Bad - Jar-Jar Binks - This character clearly should not have spoken english, if at all. I understood Chewy, who wasn't annoying, more than this guy. What's with downplaying to kids? The baby Greedo' bad enough, but what's with the kid with braces?!
3. Good - Darth Maul - To sum up: Less lines than Boba Fett, and a greater presence on screen.
4. Bad - Ethnic stereotypes - Yes! The accusations are true! Consider the following comparisons, hopefully unintentional, but the language is there: Jar Jar Binks (Jamacian); Federation Viceroy (Japansese); Boss Nass (German); Yoda (Chinese grammar in reversing the noun/verb, but that's pushing it); Junkyard owner (hoarse Italian, specifically Vito Corleone).
5. Good - Queen Amidala - An elected queen? Sure, okay. Lookin' good...
6. Bad - Weird heads and too much special effects with creating characters in particular - I'm referring especially to the jedi council member who had a three foot long balloon cord for a neck. Sure it's nice to experiment, but you're giving the likes of hammerhead (comedic - like the bilingual sportscaster) a bad name here. And about the underwater creatures: someone should have looked at "why there are no large meat eaters."
7. Good The main transport ship bears resemblance to the SR-71 Blackbird, the most ahead of its time machine ever built. Then of course there's the opening line: "I've got a bad feeling about this.." That sounded familiar.
8. Bad - First 1/2 hour - I was actually starting to think the 2 1/2 star rating from the paper was warranted. But then...
9. Good - The last 1/2 hour - **** indeed, and better the second time for me. Although there is one glaring plot flaw - they bet the pod racer against the freedom of one slave, then later sell the pod racer for money, then lament that they don't have the capability to free another slave (use the money!)
10. Bad - Microloreans theory - Don't get me started on this one. The inherent problems of giving a neorobiological explaination of the mystical supervenience of the Force smacks of teleofunctionalism, but besides, what's with the technical babble? This isn't Star Trek ya know. Then there's the immaculate conception, oh my.
Bonus: Can you name the *eight* characters in the Phantom Menace that are in the Trilogy?