Star wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace
Written and Directed by: George Lucas
Starring: Liam Neeson, Natalie Portman, Ewan McGregor

Okay well this movie is about to be released on video so I guess I will throw in my two cents before it is too late. Most people have already had their say about this movie. There have been plenty of mixed reviews on this one. All the movie critics and hardcore fans said it was terrible, and all the poseur Star Wars fans LOVED it. I’m somewhere in the middle of them (as usual).

I saw it on opening night, which was pretty fun. The exciting atmosphere made the movie really enjoyable, but on the other hand, the added hype raised my expectations for it too. So you know, it was good, but at the same time it was disappointing. I think that was a natural feeling. No matter what was up on that screen, it would have been a bit of a disappointment to most people. After I saw it a couple more times, I came to appreciate it for what it was: a children’s fairy tale story and a vehicle for some amazing special effects.

Lucas did a good job of capturing the feeling of the Star Wars world, although at times this movie definitely feels more cartoony than the first three movies did. I will concur that yes, Jar Jar Binks was kind of annoying . Basically you have to realize that a movie where a young kid is the hero is going to be partially a kid’s movie. Just accept it and stop whining about it people!

The story wasn’t anything special, but I mean, in a lot of ways we all knew what was going to happen. It’s tough to write prequels that are still going to keep the audience on the edge of their seat. The whole Queen Amidala decoy thing was kind of lame. It could have been a cool idea if they had done it right I think. The dialogue was painful at times too. The story was just there to give the special effects people an opportunity to do their thing.

There was a lot of talk about how there was too much computer animated stuff in the movie. Honestly, it was all fine except maybe for the Gungans. It was a little too obvious that they were animated characters to me. Their movements seemed too stiff and robotic to me, and also there were times that the actors didn’t seem to be looking right at them. That was unfortunate, because it reminds you that you’re watching a movie. If you’re going to be drawn into the story you have to be able to forget that you’re sitting in a movie theatre watching this on a screen. Either way, the special effects in this movie were awesome. My favourite part of the movie was definitely the light saber duel at the end. I was blown away.

In light of some of the movie’s shortcomings, it is amazing that it still feels like a Star Wars movie. But it does.The music from John Williams is solid once again, and also I think the actors really did a great job, especially Natalie Portman, Liam Neeson and Ewan McGregor. It really is a fun movie, you just have to have realistic expectations and a bit of an open mind I guess. — Sean