The visual imagery comes off the screen in leaps and bounds, and it allows Lucas the freedom to construct intricately detailed action sequences that put the audience right in the action.
Comment
02/27/01
Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999)
63
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:153
Fresh:97
Rotten:56
Average Rating:6/10
Consensus: Lucas needs to improve on the plot and character development, but there's plenty of eye candy to behold.
Runtime: 2 hrs 16 mins
Genre: Science-Fiction/Fantasy
Synopsis: The first of three prequels to George Lucas's celebrated STAR WARS films, EPISODE I: THE PHANTOM MENACE is set some 30 years before the original STAR WARS EPISODE IV: A NEW HOPE in the era of the... [More]
Starring: Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Jake Lloyd
Director: George Lucas
Reviews for Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
Let the movie speak to the child inside you -- the child that is still optimistic and that still believes in magic.
02/21/01
I'm glad I saw this movie. You'll be glad you did too. It's an amazing adventure into technology and glitz.
01/01/00
Top CriticBeing amazed has never been this boring.
01/01/00
Top CriticStar Wars of the next generation!
01/01/00
The biggest letdown since the Clinton presidency!
01/01/00
Eye candy isn't a reward in and of itself--it has to be backed by substance.
01/01/00
I'd have to say it's a better picture than Return of the Jedi while falling into the same third-act trap of juxtaposing a terrific swordfight with boring, slapstick scenes of combat.
01/01/00
Not a great film, but it is magical and majestic.
01/01/00
Delivers exactly what every kid of any age wants: wows. And plenty of them!
01/01/00
In special effects, Lucas has moved a galaxy beyond. In energy, not yet.
01/01/00
Outstanding!
01/01/00
The special effects are as awesome as you would expect, and this is an extremely slick production.
01/01/00
The wow-factor action is irresistible, and Lloyd is no less appealing than '60s Disney star Kevin Corcoran!
01/01/00
Lucas has made a deal with the devil, trading strong characterization and narrative for visual indulgence and verbal convolution.
01/01/00
Phantom had me from the moment it touched down on Naboo.
01/01/00
Who would have guessed that The Phantom Menace would be so incoherent, so completely bereft of a grand adventure's surging thrills?
01/01/00
It is an understatement to say that the movie is a disappointment; it is the disappointment of the millennium.
01/01/00
Phantom Menace is unlikely to convince folks who waited in ticket lines for weeks that they made the right choice.
01/01/00
Finally someone has crossed the line where reality and fantasy are indistinguishable!
01/01/00
Latest News for Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
July 20, 2009:
Much Anger? Jake Lloyd Talks Star Wars: Episode I 
Recently we marked the 10th anniversary of the cultural juggernaut that was Star Wars: Episode I -- The Phantom Menace, a film that received mixed reactions from fans -- to put... More...
May 29, 2009:
10 Years of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
Ten years ago this month, excitement reached fever pitch ahead of the release of Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace. After 16 years without a Star Wars film in cinemas,... More...
May 18, 2009:
The Phantom Menace Turns 10
Ten years ago tomorrow, "Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace" arrived in theaters -- and to commemorate the occasion, author Matt Springer has released a free e-book... More...
March 31, 2009:
The Legacy of The Matrix
1999 was one of the most important years for modern cinema. Ten years on, we're celebrating a remarkable twelve months of movies with new features around some of the year's best... More...
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