Agreed, tying back to my ‘does Naboo have untapped natural resources?’ thought; it would have been a trivial, effective scene to show that and convey the stakes that writes itself if resources are indeed the case. After the heroes have returned to Naboo they’re flying over the idyllic countryside to the meeting with the resistance forces, and fly up over the mountains/hills...to find a barren landscape that’s been blasted open by orbital bombardments to open up pits for mining dotted with heavy duty mining equipment that has been landed since they left that are already starting to strip mine. You could even have one of the heroes point out they can see chain gangs milling about; you don’t have to make it explicit that those are Naboo being used as slaves, so that you avoid making it too dark for the kids, but because we were told earlier in the film in Sio Bibble’s transmission that the people were being rounded up into labour camps we’re able to make that logical connection. Then later, instead on the Gungans engaging the droid army on an open plain, have their plan be too draw the droids into the forests and swamps, but when they get to the one nearest the droids, they find a field of stumps where it’s been chopped down because the trees only grow on Naboo and their wood is highly sought after by the galaxy’s rich for high end furniture and objects d’art; that way the fight happens on a battlefield that disadvantages the Gungans because they have no choice.bronnt wrote:The big issue is that the audience needs to know what the villain's plan is in order to know the stakes. We're told people are suffering, maybe dying, without being shown it and without a significant explanation of why. The stakes need to be clear for the audience: "We need to stop (plot point) in order to prevent (consequences)." Unfortunately, there is no villainous plot that needs to be stopped other than Amidala signing a peace treaty....which they stopped the instant she was smuggled off the planet.Dînadan wrote: Lots of detailed problems with why the plot makes no sense.
It doesn't even need to be intricate or subtle: in "Guardians of the Galaxy", which I loved, Ronan just wants to get a magic stone so he can destroy a planet. It's clear, it's straightforward, and it gives context for the heroes to take action. He's not a well-developed villain with complex motivations but he makes sense in the story. The villains of "The Phantom Menace" are the Trade Federation (more than anyone else) and we don't know what their plans or goals are at all. It removes any investment in the plot itself.
Going back to your point about villains having straightforward motivations and not needing to have super intricate plots, we don’t even need to look outside Star Wars; the villains in the OT had simple reasons/motivations most of the time and rarely if ever were evil for evil’s sake. Just sticking to Episode IV for brevity:
The Empire are chasing down Leia’s ship because she has something they want (the plans), not just attacking passing ships just to be evil. The use of lethal force on the rebel troops inside is not them just going in and shooting up the place, but because those are enemy combatants and are using lethal force on them. Vader killing Captain Antillies is not an act of evil just to be evil, but is him interrogating Antillies and either deciding he has no useful info so kills him as part of the coverup, or consisting Vader immediately turns around and starts roaring orders in anger could be Vader slipping up in a moment of anger.
Down on Tatooine, the massacres of the Jawas and Lars farm is part of them trying to cover up the Death Star plans, not going down and killing for the sake of it. The Jawa massacre is even made to look like a Tuskan Raider attack; not very well, but good enough to fool Luke and probably other locals that aren’t ex-Jedi in hiding. And if Tuskan Raiders would attack an armoured sandcrawler they wouldn’t be deterred from attack a farm with two old people on it, so it’s reasonable that’s what the Stormtroopers were going for as well when they torched the place rather than torching it just because they could.
In Mos Isly, okay we don’t get an explanation for Dr Evazan and Ponda Barba’s aggression towards Luke, but even then they’re not doing it for evil’s sake; if anything it’s no different to any other drunks trying to pick a fight in any other bar. As for Greedo, he’s a bounty hunter so is doing it for the money. Likewise in the Special Edition, Jabba’s motivation is that Han has cost him money.
Over on the Death Star, the officers explicitly tell us that they haven’t built a planet destroying superweapon just to be evil, it’s been built because they think the best way to maintain power is through fear and having an icon of fear like the Death Star furthers that idea. Even the destruction of Alderaan is stated to be them making an example to terrify the masses, not just blowing stuff up to be evil. Vader choking that Moff? He’s making a point after Motti belittled him and the Force, which also indirectly challenges the Emperor’s authority. Petty sure, but not evil for evil’s sake. The torture of Leia is not done just to be evil, but is to get vital information out of her.
Finally, the attack on Yavin is the Empire trying to crush an illegal insurgency, so once more is about trying to maintain control. Again, they’re not attacking passing ships and blowing up worlds just to be evil, destroying the Rebel fighters is them using lethal force against an opposing force that is using lethal force against them, and blowing up Yavin is about crushing the Rebellion and making an example to terrify everyone else into line.
But that's too easy... and actually, though it may cost me some nerd score, I didn't mind Episodes 2 or 3. 1... well, I like the beginning and end... actually, to elaborate, on re-watching I'd likely watch until they escape Naboo, then skip chapters to the arrival on Coruscant. The Tatooine part of the story can go die in a hole for all I care. 
