I'd like to see a 10 year-old rate this movie...

Rating: Null/10 (25 June 2002)

..unfortunately, there aren't a whole lot of 10 year-olds writing reviews. That generation had to like this movie.
I think the obvious criticisms for this movie is somewhat warranted, but this was a very good effort for Lucas. Many of us were hoping this would parallel The Empire Strikes Back, and I think it did a good job living up to that. There was a high degree of emotional conflict in the movie, and I thought it had a great deal of drama for an action movie. It's a great setup for the final installation.
Personally, I think people get too critical of the new Star Wars films. I sat next to a couple of "12-ish" year-olds in this movie, and they laughed at the humor, were captivated by the action and really enjoyed the movie. When I go back and watch the old Star Wars classics, especially the original, the acting was terrible and dialogue was canned. Yet the story, drama, special effects and classical "good vs. evil" theme made it one of the most popular movies ever.
We tend to forget the age we were when we got hooked on the originals. The special effects set the original apart from other movies. Now, there's plenty of competition in that area. If we change our frame of reference to the age we were when we saw the original trilogy, we have to consider this movie a success. I think Lucas did a good job of satisfying both a young and older audience. Heck, the plot line is this movie was intricate and often confusing. It had to be hard for some of the younger viewers to put together. It was never that complicated in the original trilogy, but it made it more interesting for this episode.
I was captivated by the action, special effects, and drama in this movie. It took me 3 months to see this movie because of all the negative reaction by the audience. I think Lucas made the right adjustments and produced a great movie. I'm really looking forward to the next chapter --- something I couldn't say after Episode I.