Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace

Director: George Lucas
Year Released: 1999
Rating: 2.0

Poor, poor George Lucas. He waited for twenty years to return to the director's chair and continue the Star Wars saga with a trio of prequels, or, films that took place before the first three Star Wars. This film focuses on the life of young Anakin Skywalker (we know him better as the guy who would become Darth Vader and also Luke's father) and his Jedi training. The premise is certainly interesting: we get to see a young Obi-Wan Kenobi (played by Ewan MacGregor) being trained by a more experienced Jedi (played well by a low-key Liam Neeson). We see a small, but still grotesque Jabba the Hutt presiding over one of the film's high points: a "pod race." We are also treated to a stripped-down but still functional C-3PO, his little buddy R2D2 and the wise old Yoda, still in need of a text on grammar. But a lot of the film's charm comes from our knowing what becomes of them in the later films (which we've already seen). There's only one new character worth mentioning, and that's Darth Maul, a red-faced, menacing warrior dressed in all black and sporting a dual lightsaber, which looks like a glowing red bo-staff (for the karate-inclined). However, Lucas seems rusty with the direction. He should have known that Maul is one of the best characters in there (he doesn't talk, he snarls; he doesn't tip-toe, he leaps) yet he insists on putting him in there for only five or so minutes, then has him 'killed off' at the end. One of the best sequences in the film comes at the end when he and the two Jedi engage in a lightsaber duel. The sword fight is so well-directed, you want to stand up and cheer. But unfortunately, the whole film fails to work at that level. The negatives (in no particular order): a.) The Plot. Simply put, I was lost. There are apparently some political problems that are causing war and chaos (there's an organization called the Trade Federation that has something to do with the Dark Side, but I'm not sure) that I can't seem to follow. All I can say is, it has something to do with good and evil. Beyond that, I'm clueless. b.) Developing Characters. To repeat what so many critics have said, the characters in the film are underdeveloped. While Lucas attaches an excuse to this - they'll be explained in the next two films - that does little good right now. Other films manage to explain a little about their characters in the same amount of time (2 + hours), so why can't you? Hmmm. c.) Jar Jar Binks. This needs a whole new category. Jar Jar Binks is an "actor" created by Lucas' people at ILM whose main purpose is to interact with the human actors and also to add a degree of humor to the film. Wrong. Jar Jar is a pathetic, unfunny, unnecessary, obviously fake homosexual/African-American rabbit-thing that doesn't belong in there. C-3PO and R2D2 did a perfect job of adding that 'cuteness' factor in the first three Star Wars films. I hope Lucas has enough sense to eliminate this annoying thing in the second film. d.) The Acting. Why is Natalie Portman so stiff? And what's with her accent? And why are the alien creatures so poorly dubbed? e.) The Dialogue. Now, of all things, THIS could have been corrected. He had twenty years to work on it - couldn't he get Coppola or John Sayles to fix some of the lines? Overall, the special effects and sound effects were wonderful, and there are many people out there who might (and did) enjoy it, but it falls well short of a recommendation.