Pure entertainment in the Star Wars tradition

Rating: Null/10 (23 July 1999)

As a fan of the original episodes of the series, I have made a concerted effort over the last year or so not to expose myself to any `spoilers' or to much of the plethora of information that has been available.
It has been obvious for some time that the reviews of this film would be mixed as people's expectations have been so high and the hype so great. This can only be expected in this day and age and due to this, one can maybe understand how some people have been disappointed with the end result. Because of these factors, I was determined to reserve my judgement until the closing credits.
So sitting in the theatre, completely open minded to what was about to unfold in front of me, the 20th Century Fox fanfare rang out, immediately the hairs on the back of my neck stood up and a grin found it's way across my face. Here I was, transfixed like a child again watching the original SW movies at the cinema for the first time. Like all of the original trilogy, the action started at blistering speed from the off. I soon crept to the edge of my seat where I remained for much of the movie. When the pace became a little slower, we were treated to some excellent characterisations such as Boss Nass, voiced by Brian Blessed. Although a lot of the intended comedy in the film didn't work especially well, we were still treated to some light relief. The first encounter with C3PO, still under construction and the commentators in the superb pod race sequence particularly stand out. As for the main characters, performances were adequate for an action/adventure. A highlight for me was Natalie Portman's mature performance as the Queen of Naboo. I also thought Ewan Mcgregor's portrayal of Obi-Wan was suitably respectful to Alec Guiness and bodes well for the next two episodes.
As you'd expect from the man who owns ILM, the visual effects are extraordinary and on a grand scale. The CGI has a lifelike and almost fluid reality to it especially scenes involving the computer generated Gungans. The action comes to an end with the climactic light sabre duel between Qui Gon (Liam Neeson) and Obi-Wan versus Darth Maul (Ray Park). The choreography and special effects in these scenes come together to make one of the most gripping spectacles I have ever seen on the big screen.
All in all, Star Wars Episode One: The Phantom Menace is a piece of pure entertainment in the spirit of what we have already seen of the Star Wars saga.