There is one scene in The Phantom Menace that completely takes me out of the movie. It’s when they are racing in that little underwater ship with Jar Jar to Naboo, and escape giant sea monsters.
The problem is that it’s obvious that Liam Neeson and Ewan McGregor are completely oblivious to the giant creatures that ostensibly could eat them at any moment. That really drives home to the audience the point that the supposedly menacing creatures are simply CGI elements added in post.
I understand that it is difficult to act in front of a green screen, when you can’t see what is in the script. But when I saw that movie, I was left wondering whether the two actors were even adequately told what the audience would later see in the final film.
I blame the writer/director. George did so much better when he had the good sense to get other people to write his screenplays.