Rating: 
Summary: Great Movie......Not so great star wars movie
Review: This is a great movie, if it were a stand-a lone film, but it's not, it's part of the star wars series. It's got great special effects, a descent plot, and lots of action. Too bad the jar jar binks character was so stupid, and Jake Lloyd couln't do drama if his life depended on it. Plot - 8/10 This is a descent plot for the first episode of the pre-trilogy. They use too many big words and government lingo, and most kids under 12 will have no idea what they're talking about. BUt the trade federation forms a blockade around a small naboo planet. The queen sends two jedi knights, obi wan and qui gonn to negotiate. The negotiations fail, and they uncover a plan that has the trade federation invading the Naboo. Qui Gonn and obi go to naboo, and find aid with the Gungans. They rescue the queen, and escape the blockade. Their ship is damadged on their way to coruscant. they meet young anakin skywalker for the first time, and the rest is history. Sound - the sound in this movie is great. Especially during the obi wan and qui gonn vs darth maul lightsaber battle. The music is the other half that the battle was the best battle yet. The sound effects were also great, with every lightsaber beam, and laser bolt flying on the screen, it makes the viewing experience a better listening experience too. Acting - bad acting. Except for darth maul, captain panaka, and Qui gonn. the rest was all bad. period. Action - this movie delivers a ton of action. Their are many action scenes.....qui gonn obi wan vs trade federation droids opening, the underwater chase, the naboo ship escaping the blockade, the pod race, and the final four battles. Naboo fighters vs trade federation ship, darth maul vs 2 jedis, the gun fight inside the naboo palace, and the Gungan army vs the Droid army. all great action scenese. I just hope attack of the clones will clear up some of the confuscion caused by this movie.
Rating: 
Summary: star wars-episode 1
Review: it's a good start to the star wars story. sure it's not "MATRIX", but what is?
Rating:
Summary: Lucas the producer should've fired Lucas the writer-director
Review: Okay, I won't argue with anyone who says that this is a mediocre installment in the STAR WARS cycle. Yes, I agree with those who would love to see Jar Jar Binks fried in a nuclear reactor. But after pondering this movie long and hard and weighing it in comparison to the other "episodes," I have to come to the conclusion that it's a slightly paler version of the very first STAR WARS movie released long, long ago in two-and-a-half decades far, far away. Meaning that, IMHO, had "The Phantom Menace" been released in 1977 and "A New Hope" come out in 1999, the chances are pretty good that we'd be saying the latter film was the stinker while the former was the new, exciting film masterpiece of sort-of science fiction. What's the common denominator? George Lucas wrote and directed both these installments. Look, you can love the STAR WARS mythos all you want and only a grinch would say that George Lucas doesn't have a vivid imagination. What he also has is a tin ear for scripted dialogue, an inability to craft an engaging narrative and a love of style that crushes substance. There's a reason why "The Empire Strikes Back" and "The Return Of The Jedi" work as well as they do. Irwin Kirschner, Richard Marquand, Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan were able to give flesh and blood to Lucas' cosmos and MAKE YOU CARE ABOUT IT. After getting past the "golly gee" aspects of the "A New Hope" that so wowed us all in 1977, only an apologist would be unable to admit that the dialogue was flat and corny beyond belief and that the only reason the acting wasn't equally as bad is that Sir Alec Guinness, Harrison Ford and Peter Cushing wouldn't allow it to be. Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher improved phenomenally once Kirschner and Marquand were at the helm; in the first movie, they were as one-dimensional as Jason Lloyd and Natalie Portman are in this one. All by way of saying that, his baby or not, George Lucas should've stuck with laying out the concept and let others do the heavy lifting on this movie. He ain't got what it takes as either a writer or a director, at least not as a director of ACTORS (He's pretty good with animated creations, I must confess). That said, "The Phantom Menace" is an entertaining if not extraordinary two-plus hours. The high-tech hijinx certainly is where Lucas feels most at home and those parts of the film (such as the race on Tatooine) are exciting to watch. But, see, so was the battle at the location of the Death Star in the first film. Lucas does all that stuff just great; it's with directing people that he screws up. Maybe he should tag-direct with another director, say, an Anthony Minghella or a Sam Mendes. Then maybe this leg of the STAR WARS cycle would have some of the heft of the previous one. The present set-up doesn't work. Finally, it's telling that the last film Lucas did that concentrated on people---and WORKED!---was "American Graffitti," almost thirty years old. It had a small budget, was shot in about a month-and-a-half and still does a brisk business. Think about it, George.
Rating:
Summary: The Phantom Mangle
Review: Well - it's not as bad as Return of the Jedi, but then what is? George Lucas completely reinvented Star Wars for a new generation, starting with this glorified kids' movie. And that is its greatest flaw: it's made for kids. And, pretty much, for kids alone. The original series was made for adults, but inclusive of kids - this new series is made for kids, and not of great interest to adults. In the movie's favor, the effects are incomparably good, as is only to be expected. The action is fast and furious, the pod race and the concluding robot battle especially. The light sabre duel with Darth Maul, and his phenomenal acrobatics throughout, are almost worth the price of admission alone. But the film is dreadfully short of substance, even for a Star Wars entry. The characters are mere sketches, not fully developed individuals. When Obi-Wan met his demise at the hands of Darth Vader in the original Star Wars in 1977, the audience gasped. When one of the Jedi Knights is similarly dispatched in The Phantom Menace, there is less any kind of emotional impact than the mere passing thought, "Well, I guess he zigged, when he shoulda zagged." The spectacle is still present - indeed, vastly improved - but the heart and soul of the series just isn't there. Worst of all, the Jedi Knights themselves, who seemed so glamorous and exciting twenty years ago, in this installment (and in the following Attack of the Clones) come off more as a self-important organization consisting of pompous superiors and obsequious underlings. If you're looking for something for junior at Christmas, look no further. If you're planning on watching it with him, however, look for something else.
Rating: 
Summary: Embarasing
Review: These new star wars movies are an embarasement to Lucas. Nothing but lipservice to the first trilogy. A disgrace with no merit of their own.
Rating:
Summary: BAD BAD and MORE BAD
Review: Just flat out bad, bad bad. I've been waiting for the next set of movies since 1983 and boy did this fall on its' face. Growing up with the original three movies I always hoped that GL would finish up the story-but this outing failed horribly. If you want it, wait for the dvd boxed set that will eventually be released after the EP III is released. Bad....bad....bad.....
Rating:
Summary: The Emperor of the Dark Side and much more!
Review: Actor Ian Mcdarmid has a somewhat cloud surrounding his character,Senator Palpatine. True viewers(fans)of the Star Wars movies learned a lot more from The Stars Wars Episode I,Phantom Menace. His deceiving intentions will be revealed some in Attack of the Clones,but everything of course will be revealed in Episode III. Amidala,Anakin/Vader,Luke&Leia,The identity of the Emperor(No Georgio did not tell me.)I have even seen the future remakes of the original three movies, all complete with modern technology and of course different actors with a very updated version of "Star Wars,The Empire Strikes Back,and The Return of the Jedi".I don't yet know of the actors bcause the writers are having a tough time with Episode III. I think that Episode Three might need to come out in more than a one part movie, they (Lucasfilms) may need at least a two part series to release. A good possibility could be Thanksgiving 2003 for Part I of episode III, and Christmas 2003,or New Years 2004 for the release of par two of Episode III. I have a lot more, but just like Episode III there is too much to tell and not nearly as much time as one would like. However if the powers that be, if they choose,I can write parts for them since I have a better understanding than anyone else except G, of course. I do have to say good bye for now and I to shall take a great interest in watching.
Rating:
Summary: or how to spoil the good old trilogy
Review: I must say I'm no Star wars die-hard fan. I like the old trilogy, it reminds me of my childhood and I think they are good examples of good entertainment films.
However, I think 'The Phantom menace' is a horrible film. I just think Lucas should have left the legendary trilogy as it was, but since he decided to make new episodes, at least he could have done it better.
The phantom menace is very bad, in my opinion: the actor's interpretations is simply absent (how can an actor transmit credible expressions talking to a blue screen, talking to no-one?), the so worshipped effects are nothing to me: many people love computer effects, but I just think they're too obvious. When I see the old films, ok the effects are old-fashioned today but I believe what i see: now, I only see computer images: they're so obvious, I feel I'm seeing a cartoon and not real images. The evil character has the personality of an egg. There's the most upsetting and hateful character ever made, a guy with elephant-ears and simply unlistenable voice. And there's a race scene which gets more and more boring. and... is there a story?
In conclusion, my opinion is that this film is almost ridiculous. I have already seen Episode II and it's quite better, though I still think some of the horrible aspects of I are still present in II.
Rating: 
Summary: "I have a bad feeling about this"
Review: The most famous phase in a Star Wars movie is "I have a bad feeling about this" and its made by Obi-Wan (Ewan McGreggor) and i can't decide if he's talking about the movie itself, or the annoying Jar Jar Binks.
Great DVD, so-so movie.
Rating: 
Summary: The Phantom Menace
Review: In 1999 a film was released called Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace. It was the most anticipated film, well ever. Soon after it's release, many were complaining about how inferior this film was to the Star Wars legacy. I think just the opposite. While Phantom Menace isn't was good as the original trilogy, or Attack Of the Clones, The Phantom Menace is still a worthy inclusion in the Star Wars saga. My only major complaint is that annoying character Jar Jar Binks. But I got around him rather quickly. Other than that, this is an exciting chapter in the Star Wars saga. The trade federation is setting up a trade boycott of the planet Naboo. Queen Amidala (Natalie Portman) sends two Jedi knights named Qui Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson) and Obi Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) to negotiate with the federation. But Lord Sideous has other plans. An invasion of Naboo. Qui Gon and Obi Wan escape with Amidala from Naboo, and are heading for Coruscant. But the ship breaks down, and they are stranded on the planet Tatooine. There, they meet Anakin Skywalker (Jake Lloyd) a young boy with extraordinary talents. Qui Gon decides to take him to Coruscant to be trained as a Jedi. Meanwhile, Sideous sends his apprentice Darth Maul (Ray Park) to capture the queen so she can sign a treaty making their invasion legal. On Coruscant, Amidala decides she wants to form an army with Jar Jar's natives to take back her planet, and save her people. Overall Grade: A (10+++)
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