Rating: 
Summary: I wanted to like the movie more!
Review: Really, I did. But episode 1 just lacks even the most basic chemistry that ANY of the original films had. I'm not saying I didn't enjoy myself at the film, or that this is not one of the better DVD's out there. Both are true. Unfortunately, this DVD has extra features that command more attention than the film itself. I thought this film was done very well in some respects and I did find the story line interesting as I tried to tie in events from the previous films. But this film is doomed to be the first part of a six part series so by nature it is slower.The DVD looks great and sounds great. The extras are voluminous. Lucasfilm did a great job in that regard. In the future, Lucas and Co. should worry more about having believable actors & actresses than CG backgrounds. Can't really recommend this or trash it. It's just average.
Rating: 
Summary: Weakest of the series...
Review: Lucas goes bonkers, and just about blows it. Principle flaws of Episode 1...
1) Virgin birth for Anakin. Umm, a virgin slave? get real...
2) Providing a hokey mechanism to explain the force. Worse, one that has a LOT of implications...
a) agency-not just a product of life force, now it is a bunch of microbes with an agenda.
b) if microbes give you power, they would be growing them in Vats.
3) Anakin, a nine year old, not only races BUT builds his vehicle and C-3PO. Right. Unnecesary bolony. Bringing C3po and R2D2 into this first series was unnecasary bolony as well.
4) Jar-Jar. Sure, what we needed was a disney style side kick for comic (albeit racially motivated) laughs. Uncle Remus rides the galactic wave, messuh yessuh three bads cotton full suhhh jar jar binks suhhh!!!)
5)Gee,obviously free trade is evil and best achieved through blockade.
6) Politics simple, to the point of being dumb. A stark contrast with the message of lord of the rings, of the lure of power on good people-who turn to darkness through doing the wrong thing for the right reason...
7) Why are the combat droids not autonomous?
8) Why do the combat droids interact verbally, with overdeveloped military courtesy?
9) Um, a nine year old combat pilot. Right! For a start... Ohh, for a remaster, with no Jar Jar,pod race, etc... A do-over... Sigh. Too bad. The biggest error was taking a story that appealed to all ages and dumbing it down for the under-six crowd. Too bad, ohh too bad.
Rating: 
Summary: Very Good
Review: I agree that Jar Jar Binks was overused and annoying, but brushing that aside, I enjoyed the film. It may not be the best of the Star Wars films (Empire Strikes Back may be the best so far), but it is a noble effort. It's still better entertainment than most of what you'll see on free TV. The DVD quality is quite good. Best moments: seeing Yoda alive again.
Rating: 
Summary: Phantom Menace [stinks] big time!
Review: This piece of high-tech CGI [junk] was shown on TV just recently and as a big Star Wars fan I said: "Let's give it another try, maybe I hyped it too much the first time. Maybe my expectations were too high..." Nope. I was right. This [stinks] even more on second viewing. There won't be a third... As a screenwriter wannabe, I read that you have to make villains smart and heroes smarter. Also, villains get all the lucky breaks in the final conflict. Heroes don't get any and that's what make them heroes - winning without luck or referee's help. This makes you feel satisfied in the end. Having said that, in Phantom Menace the hero (Anakin) destroys the evil mothership by pure chance. Oh, wait! Maybe he got the lucky break in advance because he becomes evil Darth Vader later... Yeah, right! Look George, I know this is a movie for kids, a 2-hour toy commercial, a moneymaking machine for you so that ILM can develop complete virtual reality CGI movie that will need no actors, but still... There is no way you can atone for this lack of respect for the fans of your work. If you wanted to make money you just had to publish Episodes IV, V and VI on DVD. So there. And since hope springs eternal, I hope Episode II will be better (which won't be that hard, looking at this mess)...
Rating:
Summary: Great Fun!
Review: Great fun, fantastic pod race, one of the best light saber battles, JAR JAR BINKS MUST DIE!!! When is episodes 4-6 coming out on DVD?
Rating:
Summary: Great DVD
Review: The DVD as many reviewers have stated here is great in the feature department. I lot of goodies for people that enjoy how a film is put together. Excellent commentary features and the DVD web exclusive feature also good. The film itself was not bad but everyone has pointed out the horrible parts already so i won't go over that again. One final note even the menu selection is very cool too.
Rating:
Summary: Where Did We Go Wrong?????
Review: There is no emotion, There is peace.
There is no ignorance, There is knowledge.
There is no passion, There is surrenity.
There is no death, There is the force. Now to the film. Ha ha! What reviews that this film received. I like this film because of Jar Jar Binks. Jar Jar Binks is very funny. Jake Loid acted well! playing Anakin Skywalker. I sure like this film. The negative reviews of this film make me laugh so hard! I'd fall down in a faint. This is by far a very great film. I'm sure I'm gonna love episode II as well as this one. I know because I saw this first in the theatres, and then on VHS. I got the regular film, not the witescreen addition. I also bought this at a store down in Utah. I highly recommend this to future fans.
Rating: 
Summary: The New Star Wars Movie
Review: The Phantom Menace was the biggest hit of 1999. The movie has spectacular special effects and a great soundtrack. It does have flaws, though. The story line isn't bad, but the acting could have been a whole lot better. Also, Jar Jar is incredibly annoying!
OK, here's the story:32 years before the first Star Wars movie, Obi-Wan(Ewan McGregor) and Qui-Gonn(Liam Neeson), 2 Jedi Knights, are sent to stop a blockade of a small planet. After they get the picture the planet's being taken over, the Jedi rescue the queen(Natile Portman) and head to the planet Coracaunt to get help from the Galantc Republic. On the way, they get stranded on Tatoine and meet Anikin Skywalker(Jake Lloyd) and his mother Shmi(Prunilla August), who help the Jedi get off the planet.
If you have a dvd player, get the dvd. It has a documentary,deleted scenes, a commentary, and about a bajillion other extras.
This is a good movie, but watch it with an open mind. Don't think it'll be as good as the first Star Wars movies, 'cause it just isn't that good. On its own it's a pretty good movie.
Rating:
Summary: Losing that Sense of Wonder?
Review: Never has a movie so polarized the cinema-going world as "Star Wars, Episode I: The Phantom Menace." If you've seen the movie, you fall into one of two camps, generally speaking:
* Fanboi: Overused terminology, to be sure, but you know what's going on here. Has seen the first trilogy seventeen times. Laughs at "Expanded Universe" aficianados. Bought the "Hardware Wars" special edition for the special effects upgrade. Considers Episode I an abomination of all things bright and wonderful, especially Lucas' Unholy Trinity of Jar Jar, young Anakin, and the entire Gungan race.
* Kids: Don't know what everyone's all upset about. Decent movie, but no "Empire", that's for sure. Was that Jar Jar fellow supposed to appeal to us, by the way?
The biggest problem I had with this movie was that it seemed to go out of its way to insult the intelligence of its target audience, by which I mean children age 6-16. I don't like getting hit over the head with comic relief any more than kids do, and Jar Jar was just too much for anyone. But enough about the albatross.
From a more sober perspective, this movie has little else to be ashamed of. It's technically accomplished, sporadically riveting, and has a couple of truly great set-pieces (the podrace and the Darth Maul battle scenes). The really interesting buzz being generated by the upcoming Episode II is that it forces you to re-evaluate your stance on Episode I. That's high praise indeed, but I'll believe that once I've seen it.
Rating:
Summary: Good Movie, Great Extras
Review: Despite what some others have said, I think this is a really good movie. It's got great action sequences, unbelivable art direction, costumes, and sets. And the story I found to be engaging and fairly complex for what's supposedly a "kids movie". The podrace is perhaps the best action sequence in any movie ever, making the chariot race in Ben Hur look like a Sunday stroll through the park. The DVD has tons of extras, very well produced and the video and sound quality are excellent as is to be expected from Lucas and friends. I highly reccomend this DVD.
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