Star Wars: Episode 1 The Phantom Menace

(Twentieth Century Fox)

After all the hype, George Lucas's prequel looks like the Empire's new clothes. The story is an unmythic tale of trade routes and tax disputes, with Jedi knight Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson) and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) sent to rescue kabuki-coiffed Queen Amidala (Natalie Portman) from the nasty Trade Federation. Naturally their escape attempt takes them to Tatooine, so that nine-year-old Anakin Skywalker (Jake Lloyd) can bail them out. All this leads to a climactic confrontation with bad guy Darth Maul (Ray Park). The movie has no heart, dark or otherwise, only state-of-the-art accouterments.