a really great beginning

Rating: 7/10 (20 May 1999)

i was pretty sure this movie was going to be awful. as a fan of the original star wars trilogy, i thought that at best it would be disappointing, and at worst insulting. fortunately, i was wrong.
my complaints first: yes, jar-jar is intensely irritating, though he becomes less so as the movie progresses (and he stops talking so much). yes, it's a little bit too fast-paced to give the same feel as the first trilogy. no, darth maul doesn't get nearly the screen times a bad mother such as himself deserves. and yes, the CGI definitely can be distracting at times, as they frequently seem out of place.
apart from that, though, the movie is incredible, and certainly a worthy addition into the lineup. the screenplay had enough moments where real fans could tell what was about to happen to keep us happy, and the presentation had enough eye candy to sate everyone else.
ewan mcgregor should win an award for accent copying. his take on alec guinness is uncanny. liam neeson was wonderful as qui-gon, maintaining the same jedi calm that made obi-wan so impressive in the original trilogy. natalie portman did her job pretty well, and jake lloyd made me stop hating him with his performance (although he still looks a tad too much like the kid from liar liar for my tastes).
oh yeah--and ray park is now my hero. ewan and liam handled their light sabers well, but darth maul's stunts were absolute jaw-droppers. the entire three-way duel scene, which was effectively intercut with a couple of other battles, rocked intensely.
the special effects are just ridiculous, they're so good. both cities on naboo are gorgeous, as is coruscant (i nearly soiled myself the first time they showed coruscant). the CG droids all look great, and there are plenty of them. however, there are some effects that are too showy to seem at home in a star wars flick (the little screen splash when queen amidala finishes her transmission at the beginning, for instance). overall, though, this is a minor concern.
in fact, overall this movie takes its place as number two in my heart, right behind a new hope--certainly a worthy addition to the series.