Entertainment always has a price

Rating: Null/10 (19 July 1999)

After seeing TPM for the first time, I came out of the movie with some observations many of which have been repeated countless times through the dialogue of other users. I will try not to repeat those obvious ones(such as the griping over Jar Jar). One thing I believe is worth mentioning is how astounded I was that Ewan McGregor actually portrayed Obi Wan to such great detail that I could swear he was kin to Alec Guiness. When you watch, note how he carries himself, how calm his personality is(granted ALL jedi have this characteristic,however I believe Obi Wan to be the most calm and cool of all the jedi, even more so than Yoda whose old age and wisdom gives him the authority to be hyper(after all he is a muppet)). This quality in Obi Wan was seen in the trilogy and I truly believe that McGregor kept the style close to the character already developed for him. Next was the Darth Maul thing...to all you Darth Maul fans...HE IS NOT A FORCE TO BE RECKONED WITH!! I cannot believe the hype over him, he was not in the movie long enough to determine how powerful he really was. Also, I believe that his role was not to be this all encompassing butt-kicker that everybody wanted...remember at this point in the story the Sith want to remain "on the D.L." so that they can gain more power in the galaxy through treachery and deceit rather than out and out war...having said that, Darth Maul is an absolute joke...more like a sorry decoy than another, more in-shape Darth Vader. More complaints about him...I've seen better face paint on WCW's Sting...it looked utterly stupid the only thing he had going for him were those kicks he threw.
Enough about Darth Maul...next...Anakin...give Jake Lloyd a break...he is a young kid...just as Anakin was at this point in the story...all the "accidental" being in the wrong place at the right time stuff has to happen in order to et the kid some respect...Anakin was NOT a trained jedi in this film...having natural ability in the force meant that he had quick reflexes and a knack for "doing the impossible" even by accident so lay off of him...he did a great job for an 8 year old.
Lastly...Natalie Portman portrays the queen with all of the style and grace of royalty. She is a beautiful young lady who will make a name for herself not by being in this film but for doing a good job in this film. Her monotonous voice when she was to be commanding was wonderful for getting the point across...when she used this voice, she meant that it was her way or the highway...she did this well...some people are just looking to pick the film apart...for all of you 25+ year old Star Wars fans remember this film is for the young...enter the Milky Way and get your head out of the Star Wars universe...although all movies have flaws, and this movie has plenty, watch for what it is--a great STORY! This film was good. YODA RULES THE UNIVERSE!!!!