great start to the Star Wars Saga

Rating: 8/10 (20 May 1999)

Ok, so it isn't perfect, but I can't help it, I loved it! From the spectacular visual and audio effects to the interesting plot and performances. After seeing the Phantom Menace I left the theater feeling satisfied and anticipating the release of episode 2 more then ever. One major criticism I have is that the special effects should have been tamed down at the start of the movie. The effects should have been very progressive and built up, this would have made the decline even more amazing. Some critics have said Jar Jar Binks is one of the major down falls of the movie, I disagree. He is such a minor character (yet not so minor if you pay attention to the plot) that he could never ruin a movie of such grand proportion. Jar Jar is a good and humorous character, who although adds quite a bit of goofiness at times serves his purpose. Perhaps we should learn to deal and cope with JarJar as the characters in the story do. Very strong performances by Neeson and McGregor. Portman also shows some very promising acting skills, I hope to see her in some future roles (she sure is cute =) ). While on the other hand, Jake Lloyd could have used a little more coaching in his deliverance of certain lines which came out quite artificially. We must take into consideration his young age and inexperience and we must also note that he looked the part and played certain scenes very well. Speaking of scenes, the pod race and final sword fight scenes were awesome! My adrenaline was going full throttle as I rooted for the good guys and hoped for the best. So, as you can see I was certainly pleased with the production and I highly recommend you see the film as soon as possible. But let me point out that if you aren't a fan of the first Star Wars series that you will not like this one.