Saw it in a small theater and left said theater confused more than anything. It didn't feel like Star Wars! Midichorians? Virgin birth? (please...) Annoying kid? Strangle-worthy CG idiot? Convoluted storyline? (which I still don't fully understand! Do I need to be a political expert or something?) ARGH!
The only positives for me were the pod race and the lightsaber battle (the closing force field thing was cool), two effects/stunt scenes, which are not what a movie should be about. It's supposed to be a big sweeping epic, not a tech demo. I do think that Liam Neeson did a nice job.
Anyway, despite all that, I don't hate the movie...just Jar Jar. To that end, I have enjoyed several fanedits of the movie and look forward to more! :p