Visually breathtaking, but with a childish plot.

Rating: 5/10 (24 May 1999)

True, all of the Star Wars films have been childish. But none more so than TPM. The biggest problem was the casting of Jake Lloyd as young Anakin. "Yippie!" he cries on more than one occasion. Give me a break! The character of Anakin need not be this young, and should have been played by a more seasoned actor. Especially since he's supposedly a genius inventor and pilot.
The story is mainly exposition. Characters are set up, but they go nowhere. Now we must wait for the next two movies to follow their stories. Episode 1 does not stand well on its own (unlike, say, Episode 4).
Performances by the older actors are quite good. Liam Neeson turns in the best performance of the movie (and probably of the series). Jar Jar Binks is comic relief in a movie that is already lighthearted. The character does not work, does not get laughs, and does not cease to annoy.
The special effects do not disappoint. The podrace is a key sequence, and is a lot of fun. The climatic lightsaber duel is easily the best of the series. But why do we need yet another sequence with a large space station?
The series can only go uphill from here...