While Star Wars as a saga is undeniably cemented in icondom, some of the movies are coarse, and rough, and irritating…. That said, here is my conclusive ranking of each of the main 11 movies. Spoilers abound, so read at your own risk. Also, disclaimer: the reviews of the original series are based on creator George Lucas’s latest updated special editions.
1. The Empire Strikes Back (1980): The Empire Strikes Back is not just peak Star Wars, but peak cinema. The gold standard by which every other movie should be measured. It goes without saying that its plot twists are the most iconic of the saga. It strikes (get it?) the perfect balance between action and character development. Gorgeous alien landscapes, from those of Hoth to Dagobah to Cloud City, are paired with an excellent score and sound design. It deserves the first-place spot just for that one scene where Yoda, untrammeled by humanity, beats R2-D2 with a stick.
2. Revenge of the Sith (2005): It’s possible this movie is only so fantastic because Episodes I and II lower your standards so much, but fantastic it is. Revenge of the Sith breaks free from the clunky dialogue and irrelevant plots of the other two prequels, establishing itself as the emotional crux of the saga (the last 20 minutes of the movie in particular). Finally, the years of intergalactic politics and quiet conniving give way to a mass fall from grace that is as satisfying as it is tragic. The Republic goes up in figurative flames, and Anakin does so literally. It’s beautiful.
3. A New Hope (1977): A New Hope deserves credit just for being the first of its kind. This movie was such a good precedent that the sequel trilogy is still trying to replicate it, both thematically and character-wise, with debatable success. It establishes relevant lore without worrying too much about the boring parts, and introduces an intriguing cast of characters (namely Luke, whose strength lies in the fact that from the start he’s charismatic, but a little stupid and impossible not to root for).
4. Rogue One (2016): This movie manages, through clever technical elements and artful cinematography, to capture the look and feel of the original trilogy. Rogue One stays grounded in that nostalgic vibe while braving an organic plot. Its focus on a ragtag bunch of misfits whose story would normally be left for Expanded Universe material is refreshing; lightsaber battles do actually get old. CGI Grand Moff Tarkin did look a little wacky, but I’ll pretend I didn’t notice.
5. Return of the Jedi (1983): Return of the Jedi is a satisfying, if at times silly, conclusion to the original trilogy. It builds upon continuing themes concerning family and morality, and weaves in a new message: you should spend all your money on Ewok toys. From said Ewoks’ escapades against the Imperial Army to the plethora of weird aliens in Jabba’s palace, ROTJ is goofy, at times. It’s debatable whether that’s a bad thing or not. Above all, the contrast between Luke’s journey and the rest of the gang’s is funny—as he grapples with whether or not to kill his own father, they hang out with a teddy bear cult that worships C-3PO. What’s not to love?
6. The Rise of Skywalker (2019): This one falls near the middle of the scale not because it’s a middle-of-the-road movie, but because it’s at once amazing and terrible—it features some of the best twists and turns of the saga, and some of the laziest. The Rise of Skywalker is a completely unsatisfying amalgamation of far too many conflicting plot points that would have been good, were they better developed. I love the boldness of its chaos, however, and that it seems to be designed to give anyone who takes it too seriously a migraine. Was The Rise of Skywalker a good movie? It’d be hard to say yes. Was it fun to watch, though? Without a doubt.
7. The Force Awakens (2015): The biggest downfall of this movie, as with all of the sequels, is its fear of doing something new. It instead seems beholden to the pattern of the originals. How many times am I supposed to watch a scrappy nobody from a desert planet get shunted into joining a resistance in its exploits to defeat a masked, orb-building fascist? How many droids containing essential information have to be toted across the galaxy? How many kooky alien bar scenes must I endure? That said, what The Force Awakens lacks in plot originality, it nearly makes up for in character design and cinematography. It’s not a bad start to the new trilogy. Also, Harrison Ford’s still got it, even after all these years.
8. The Last Jedi (2017): The Last Jedi has its cool moments and its weak. Rey’s story, propelled by strong performances from Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver and Mark Hamill, is intriguing. The rest of the movie is not. Finn, along with Rose, is saddled with a bizarre sidequest that draws away from the action and ultimately proves meaningless. Poe’s writing ruins his character development. This movie sets up a downward trajectory for the remainder of the saga.
9. Solo (2018): It should be illegal to make a Han Solo movie with anyone other than Harrison Ford playing the title character. That said, Alden Ehrenreich actually did a pretty good job (and the same goes for Donald Glover). Solo wasn’t all bad; it picked up once the gang boarded the Falcon, and the Kessel Run was one of the most nerve-wracking action sequences of the saga. It was, however, pretty generic. The plot predictable, the characters (besides the obvious—Han, Lando, etc.) forgettable, this movie had its slow points. Sidenote: Celebrity cameos in big franchises are a risky move, and one that didn’t pay off this time. Woody Harrelson doesn’t belong in space!
10. Attack of the Clones (2002): It’s hard to even say this movie is better than The Phantom Menace. At least it’s bad in different ways. The juxtaposition of Obi-Wan’s galactic escapades and Anakin and Padme’s brunch dates is jarring and laughable. Additionally, while Ewan McGregor (Obi-Wan) is acting opposite a host of CGI aliens, it’s the Padme and Anakin scenes that feel lifeless. The awkward dialogue of Attack of the Clones drove a wedge between its leading couple, leaving him creepy and her listless. At the very least, this movie marked some of the best implementations of the Imperial March to signal Anakin’s descent to evil.
11. The Phantom Menace (1999): No Star Wars movie is worthless, but this one sure comes close. This movie is rife with things that could not have sounded like a good idea at any point: pretentious dialogue for child actors, offensively well-explained economic conflict, and Jar-Jar Binks: a wannabe original trilogy-Yoda, but taller and a war criminal. The scale of the conflict is so small it feels irrelevant. Shockingly, bureaucrat Nute Gunray is not a particularly exciting adversary in contrast to those of the originals. How dare this movie demand any of my attention.
Eva Buckner is a senior and the ECHO’s opinions editor and columnist. Outside of writing, she babysits and plays volleyball. She is also the vice president of East’s March For Our Lives chapter, and president of LitCon. Eva can be contacted at evahelenbuckner@gmail.com.
