Review of Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999) by Benjamin P — 15 Feb 2016

I think after many re-watches, much soul searching and deep deep thought. I have settled on a Two star rating for Episode 1.

It is utterly terrible on so many levels, and manages to cast actors I like a great deal (McGregor, Neeson, and Portman), and create characters I could not care less about. Jar Jar was a dreadful misstep, as was the idea of focusing on a precocious eight year old who can't act. The Pod Race is merely a Turbo Terrific short of a Wacky Racers episode, and the best thing in the whole movie (Darth Maul) is underused and dispatched ignominiously as a one shot villain. The saber duel is great in places, but Lucas constantly interrupts it with 'Yipee' and 'Meesa no have a boomba' moments of shitness.

HOWEVER.

It is the one and only time the prequels had some genuine production design flair, and it benefits from not everything being computer generated.

It was a dreadful disappointment at the time, and still is. It isn't the worst of the prequels though, so it's a two, as I need room to go DOWN.