Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace effort after a 22-year hiatus following "Star Wars" in 1977. "The Phantom Menace" was released in theaters on May 19, 1999, almost 16 years after the premiere of the previous "Star Wars" film, "Return of the Jedi". The film's premiere was extensively covered by media and was greatly anticipated because of the large cultural following the "Star Wars" saga had cultivated. It received mixed reviews; critics praised the visuals, action sequences, John Williams' musical score and some of the performances, but criticized the screenplay, characterization, and Ahmed Best and Jake Lloyd's performances (as Jar Jar Binks and Anakin Skywalker respectively).
Changes in Star Wars re-releases to a theatrical re-release on April 10, 1981, while others place it much earlier at the re-release in July 1978. This change was made to bring the original film in line with the titling of its sequel "The Empire Strikes Back", which was released in 1980 with the subtitle "Episode V". In the "Star Wars" film, Han Solo is cornered in the Mos Eisley cantina by the bounty hunter Greedo, and the confrontation ends with Han shooting under the table and killing Greedo. The circumstances of the shot varies between versions of the film. In the original 1977 theatrical release