Just not up to the standards of the original

Rating: Null/10 (12 February 2000)

Phantom Menace has received loads of flak from the critics, and I agree with a lot of it. I don't mean that the movie isn't worth seeing, but there ARE some shortcomings. First of all, the character Jar-Jar Binks. He isn't funny, he's annoying. Some could argue that he's just like R2-D2 or Yoda, but they don't really get on your nerves they way he does. Then there's the ugly fact that many of the aliens in Phantom Menace resembled certain ethnic groups. The Trade Federation aliens sounded unmistakably Oriental. The Gungans sounded (and in the case of their leader, looked) vaguely Jamaican. There is some explaining to be done. Also, the screenplay doesn't allow for much character development, if any. If the acting seems poor, don't blame the actors. It's the script's fault. And, although polished and well done, the special effects are, really, nothing special. Remember that when Star Wars came out, no one had ever seen anything like it. The computer animation and digital effects in Phantom Menace are good, very good, but they're not revolutionary. The entire movie is just not up to Star Wars' standards. This movie is geared toward a younger target audience than any of the others. In fact, it's almost a children's movie. The two aren't in the same class. Star Wars was nominated for, among other awards, Best Picture, and Best Screenplay. The only awards Phantom Menace has a chance of being nominated for are the technical ones. And those aren't guaranteed wins, either. Of course, the movie has good points, too. The cast (with the notable exception of Jake Lloyd) is excellent, Liam Neeson, Ewan MacGregor and Natalie Portman standing out. And the final lightsaber dual between the two Jedi and Darth Maul is superb. I think that it's George Lucas's own fault that Phantom Menace was not as popular as Star Wars. First re-releasing the original trilogy, then coming up with the special edition, all designed to make people interested in Star Wars again. But it worked too well. He got people's expectations up so high that no movie could have satisfied them. It's a shame. But I'm waiting eagerly for Episode II anyway. George Lucas knows what he's doing, and I wouldn't be surprised if Episode II knocks everyone's socks off.