The science fiction purist may be dismayed by the grandiose space-opera quality. Some will lament Lucas reliance on computer animation over acting talent. Film has always been about technology and illusion, from the first magic lantern to postwar film noir to the high-tech of Jurassic Park and Star Wars. Star Wars is. It is true to its genre Lucas sets out to entertain and to tell a story.
Science fiction lends distance that adds perspective to contemporary issues.
By setting his story on other worlds, Lucas lets us see ours in new ways. The Phantom Menace adds new depth and breadth to a story which was already epic by any standard. But mostly, it is true to the structure and purposes of myth, and here is the significance for the Christian. Christian language, like all religious language, is mythic. That does not mean make-believe.