I approach Star Wars movies in two ways: critically, in terms of narrative and characters etc, and aesthetically. I generally dislike how futuristic, shiny and CGI the settings look in episodes II and III, particularly Coruscant, but with The Phantom Menace it’s totally different. I love the depiction of Coruscant, and I feel overall the film’s aesthetic fits in more with that of the original trilogy.
![](https://i2.wp.com/caps.pictures/199/9-starwars1/full/starwars1-movie-screencaps.com-9521.jpg?strip=all)
![](https://i0.wp.com/caps.pictures/199/9-starwars1/full/starwars1-movie-screencaps.com-9765.jpg?strip=all)
![](https://i1.wp.com/caps.pictures/199/9-starwars1/full/starwars1-movie-screencaps.com-10724.jpg?strip=all)
I’ve never really been able to put my finger on it. Maybe the colours are duller, sometimes more naturalistic, the sets and buildings seem/are practical, something like that. It’s just something I love about TPM and I wondered if any others have the same feeling. Aesthetically, with everything up to the costumes, it genuinely FEELS like a prequel to the original films more than AOTC and ROTS.
![](https://i.imgur.com/VR2dCpW.jpg)
This shot in particular from the theatrical cut is a great example of advanced technology combined with ornate and old-fashioned architecture, much like Ralph McQuarrie’s original concept art for Had Abbadon in the early 80s.