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George Lucas’s much-anticipated return to the Star Wars universe after sixteen years affords the writer/director the advanced technology needed to bring his vision to life, yet there’s little life to be found in the story or characters of his Episode I: The Phantom Menace. Ready for a winding synopsis? Here goes…

Ewan McGregor stars as a young Obi-Wan-Kenobi, the apprentice to an older Jedi named Qui-Gon Jinn, played by Liam Neeson (Schindler’s List). The two are sent on a mission to settle a taxation dispute between the greedy Trade Federation and the inhabitants of a planet called Naboo, which is governed by Queen Amidala, played by Natalie Portman (The Professional). The Jedi quickly discover there are darker forces at play in the conflict, possibly connecting back to the galactic government on Coruscant, where Senator Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid, returning from Return of the Jedi) is feigning support for Naboo, while simultaneously pitting a Sith Lord named Darth Maul (Ray Park) against the intervening Jedi. Stopping to refuel on Tatooine (the desert planet from the original Star Wars), they meet a young slave boy named Anakin Skywalker (Jake Lloyd) who Qui-Gon believes will restore balance to the Force. They free the boy and bring him with them on their journeys, fully unaware that the angel-faced kid will become the future Darth Vader.

It’s a shame the considerable talents of Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, and Natalie Portman couldn’t be put to better use. All three appear insufferably constrained in their roles. Jake Lloyd as young Anakin is just plain bad, and to a great degree, the movie rides on his incapable shoulders. The only actor with any gravitas or charisma is Ian McDiarmid as the duplicitous Palpatine. He’s the only cast member at home among the stilted dialogue, green-screen environments, and computer-generated imagery.

Speaking of computer-generated imagery, The Phantom Menace features a supporting character named Jar Jar Binks (Ahmed Best) who is almost fully ‘CGI’. While the technology allows the character to integrate remarkably well with his live-action co-stars, the character itself is an embarrassing blight on the reputation of Star Wars. The animators bring him to life with Looney Tunes mannerisms with little-to-no realism or believability, and Best’s voice for the character grates on the nerves in short time. The character spends the entire film deflating scenes that might otherwise be dramatic or compelling with his puerile, imbecilic humor.

George Lucas knows story structure and mythology like nobody else, but he’s terrified of injecting the least bit of drama into these movies, insisting the genre can’t handle it. The result is the emotionally hollow Episode I, which is about stuffy non-personalities fighting in space and on distant planets over trade routes and taxation — something far more specific, and far more boring, than ‘a fight against good and evil’ as displayed in the original Star Wars trilogy. There’s tons of dramatic potential in Anakin Skywalker’s fall from grace, but there’s very little sign of it here. It would also have been nice if Ewan McGregor had more to do as Obi-Wan Kenobi, but his character spends half the movie stuck on a ship, and the rest of it in Liam Neeson’s shadow.

While the film is an utter failure dramatically, there’s undeniably amazing craftsmanship on display, especially from sound designer and editor Ben Burtt. The highlight of the whole movie is the Pod Race through the dunes and valleys of Tatooine, thanks primarily to Burtt’s amazing work recording, creating, and layering sounds. John Williams is also in peak performance, delivering a score on par with the originals. Between Burtt and Williams, the soundtrack to The Phantom Menace is easily the best thing about the film. Trisha Biggar’s costumes, Doug Chiang’s conceptual designs, and Industrial Light and Magic’s visual effects are all worthy of mention, too.

There’s enormous talent behind the scenes of this movie, and there are little moments here and there that are amusing, at least on a visceral level. But the whole simply does not equal the sum of the parts. In the end, Episode I is so underwritten and over-produced, it disappoints.

With Pernilla August, Anthony Daniels as C-3PO, and Frank Oz as Yoda.

Oscar Nominations: Best Visual Effects, Best Sound, Best Sound Effects Editing