Worst of the Saga, but not unwatchable

Rating: 7/10 (18 March 2006)

I have to admit, George Lucas dropped the ball with Episode I. It just was not the Star Wars that fans had come to know, love, and expect. Gone were the snappy comebacks of Han Solo, the mysteries of the Force and the wise teachings of Ben Kenobi, and the awesome, evil power of Darth Vader and the Empire in favor of politics in favor of dull dialog, politics, midichlorians, an entire species of unfunny sidekicks, and Liam Neeson (at least there was one high point that stood out :P ).
There was some good among the bad, however. Ewan Mcgregor gave a performance as Obi-Wan that was just fine, and let you know that there was much more to come from him in the future, as did Natalie Portman. The special effects in the film were incredible for the time, and most of it stands the test of time (Puppet Yoda looked much better in the original trilogy than in this film). The lightsaber choreography is excellent throughout the film, and the 'Duel of the Fates' at the end of the film is one of the most incredible (and tragic) sequences in the whole saga.
All in all the movie was just OK, nothing compared to the original trilogy or even the other two movies in the prequel trilogy. It did leave you wanting more, however, and even though Episode II wasn't spectacular Episode III more than made up for the first two chapters. An interesting bit of trivia, star actress Keira Knightly played the decoy Queen in this movie, a fact I didn't learn until very recently. If you haven't seen this movie before I really have no idea what to tell you, but it's worth checking out even if it isn't the best movie in the saga. It's part of the Star Wars series and that alone means it's one of the movies you must see in your lifetime.