Bender Says

Bottom Line: A movie worth seeing whether you are a sci-fi fan or not. The effects alone make the movie worth your money.

Pros: * Special Effects. * Good Lead Characters. * Great Music * Exciting light saber battles and pod racer    scenes.

Cons: * Politics get in the way. * Alien accents that sound like today's    ethnic accents. * Jar Jar Binks!!

Wow, that's all I can say. I went to The Phantom Menace (TPM) expecting a disappointing which paled in comparison to the other Star Wars films, but I was wrong. This new film by George Lucas, the genius behind all the other Star Wars movies, is a prequel to the initial 1977 production.

Nine-year-old Anakin (Jake Lloyd) is introduced as the boy hero who eventually becomes Darth Vader (sorry I gave it away). Liam Neeson and Ewan McGregor star as Jedi Knights. I'm sure not many people (if any) went for the acting - which is a good thing. These actors/actresses just can't live up to the original Star Wars. Ewan McGregor will never be an Alec Guiness and Jake Lloyd still has a long way to go. Natalie Portman was surprisingly good as Queen Amidala as was Liam Neeson.

The easiest way to enjoy this movie is go in with low expectations. If you enter with your expectations too high, you'll be disappointed. If you don't expect anything, you'll be surprised. I felt that this movie was geared too much towards attracting the younger crowd (damn Jar Jar Binks) rather than the die-hard Star Wars fans. The crowning achievement of the visual and sound effects was of course the pod race. Lasting a good six minutes, this is the showcase for what those nerds at ILM can do. The lightaber battel was amazing, again showing off ILM's talent. Darth Maul with his bo-like dual-ended lightsaber kicks some serious Jedi butt.

Bender