Star Wars Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)

Synopsis

This record-breaking global blockbuster was the first new instalment in the Star Wars serial for 16 years, and recounts the events which occured a generation before the original Star Wars film. Jedi Knight Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson) and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) have come on a diplomatic mission to the planet Naboo, intending to open discussions between the planet's leaders and the heads of the Trade Federation.
See more This record-breaking global blockbuster was the first new instalment in the Star Wars serial for 16 years, and recounts the events which occured a generation before the original Star Wars film. Jedi Knight Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson) and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) have come on a diplomatic mission to the planet Naboo, intending to open discussions between the planet's leaders and the heads of the Trade Federation. But when they are ambushed by Federation robots, they quickly realise that the negotiations are merely a cover for a hostile invasion organised by the evil Sith master. Hooking up with Jar Jar Binks (Ahmed Best) and the Naboo Queen Amidala (Natalie Portman), the Jedis manage to escape from Naboo and journey to the trade planet of Tatooine, where Qui-Gon meets a young slave boy named Anakin (Jake Lloyd), whom he identifies as a potentially powerful Jedi.
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Our review

"A mere curtain raiser for Episodes II and III, Lucas' return to Jedi school suffers from a dull script taken up by too much talking, deliberating and intergalactic politics, making way for the odd action scene to justify the videogame tie-in."

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