Very beautiful, quite moving, bad plot.

Rating: 9/10 (13 July 2002)

The most beautiful SW movie ever, for sure. Excellent camera work, extremely realistic views, marvelous open scenes. The outside pictures are a real delight, almost all of them - on Naboo, and all the cities from outside, and especially the sea planet.
The music is great.
The fight scenes are very good, though just a little over-exposed at times. I personally did not like Yoda fighting, but I admit it was impressive.
The love story is for the first time real and moving. Hayden Christensen is very, very good. There are few actors in the world that can do love confessions the way he does.
*Spoilers inside*
Amidala is not at her best, kind of had to suspend her own character development for about 20 years (and never go beyond her 18s) to wait for Anakin to grow up. And the character of a Queen, a Senator, who is renowned for bravery and decisiveness, is not very Natalie Portman - like. She is charming and beautiful and mysterious (at times), but is not a tough nut by any means.
The plot (at least to me) was quite vague and pointless and some of the action sequences were out of line. Why at times the heros have to do the things in the most difficult way (and sometimes in outrageously stupid ways) is a complete mystery to me.
*End Spoilers*
That said, I would put it as the best SW movie ever. OK, at least one of the best. Don't miss it. One of the best fairy tale movies made. You'll certainly enjoy every minute of it. I just saw it for the first time, and want to see it again, and again.
9/10