“Star Wars” Movies: Ranked — The Trilogies

IX. The Last Jedi

No surprise here that “The Last Jedi” is “last”; many fans consider this movie the worst “Star Wars” film because they feel it disregards established characters, particularly Luke Skywalker. Instead of portraying Luke as the hopeful hero who redeemed Darth Vader, the movie presents him as a psychotic maniac, which some viewers saw as a betrayal of his character. Also, the part where Luke basically teleports over to the planet Crait to face Kylo Ren made no sense at all. At that point, they should have done something different with Luke, like make him still the bubbly guy that he was in the original trilogy and have a different sort of plot for Kylo Ren (Ben Solo), because Han and Leia’s kid is Kylo Ren. Luke would never try to kill one of his own, especially his own family. Many viewers also believe the story could have taken a different direction. Rather than portraying Luke as a disillusioned hermit, they would have preferred him to remain the hopeful and determined character from the original films. Some fans feel that Ben Solo’s fall to the dark side could have been explored in a way that did not involve Luke contemplating violence against him.

VIII. The Phantom Menace

Now I know everyone is going to be like, “How in the world is ‘The Phantom Menace’ at eight?” For a lot of people, it’s in their top three ranking, if not what they believe to be the best “Star Wars” movie, but to be completely honest, it was boring. I mean, the only reason why it’s not last is because of Darth Maul and the beginning of possibly one of the best friends-to-enemies stories of all time in any film ever made, when Anakin and Obi-Wan Kenobi meet for the first time. There are so many more negatives than positives for me in this film. 

Number one: overuse of politics. A large part of the story revolves around trade disputes, Senate procedures, and political negotiations. For me, it felt like this made the movie less exciting than the original trilogy’s straightforward adventure story. This overuse led to a longer script that is heavily criticized by many fans. Number two: weak main characters. People often argue that characters like Qui-Gon, Padmé and especially young Anakin are not developed deeply enough for audiences to become emotionally invested in them. Compared to iconic characters such as Luke, Han and Leia, some fans found the cast less memorable. Number three: Qui-Gon Jinn doesn’t get enough development. Although Qui-Gon is an important character, some people feel the movie doesn’t spend enough time exploring his background, motivations, or relationship with the Jedi Order. As a result, his death near the end of the film doesn’t have the emotional impact it could’ve had if audiences knew him better.

VII. A New Hope

Now this is where I will lose a few people, if I haven’t already. First of all, I’m not saying it’s a bad film whatsoever. I actually like this film, but compared to the rest of this list, I think the rest of the movies blow“A New Hope” out of the water. Now, giving credit where credit is due for the 1970s, when this movie came out, it was absolutely one of the best movies ever made — but for me, like the last two, it gets boring fast. Like, I don’t really want to see C-3PO and R2 walking through Tatooine for 20 minutes, and I do not care at all about that dialogue. The fight between Darth Vader and Obi-Wan was cool, it just ended too fast and felt rushed a little at the end. But during a rewatch, I just want the movie to move on already. Some of the dialogue during the slower sections doesn’t do much for me either, and once you already know where the story is going, they become even harder to sit through. That being said, once Han Solo, Chewbacca and the Millennium Falcon become a bigger part of the movie, I think everything improves. The characters have more chemistry, the story starts moving faster, and the adventure actually starts feeling like “Star Wars”. The Death Star section is probably my favorite stretch of the movie because there’s constantly something happening, whether it’s the group rescuing Leia, escaping stormtroopers, or eventually getting into the space battle at the end.

VI. The Force Awakens

This movie is definitely one of my personal favorite “Star Wars” movies. The way they played out the entire film with new lore and characters mixing in with the original trilogy characters makes this a great movie. Kylo Ren has to be one of the best and most misunderstood villains in “Star Wars”; people don’t remember how big his appeal and debut were. Many fans saw Kylo as intimidating and mysterious, kind of like Darth Vader with his long black robe, but nobody knew who he was yet. The mystery had fans in a spiral, and may I say, Rey and Kylo’s relationship and how they made that become what it is in the film, to me, is the most underrated relationship in cinematic history. On the topic of why it’s not at eight or seven, which is where most people would have this movie ranked, is because, unlike the last three, this movie is not boring; this movie hits you with a new turn every which way. A stormtrooper-turned-Resistance member, Kylo Ren, killed his own father, Han Solo. This movie had it all, but since it’s at six, it only gets better from here.

V. Return of the Jedi

Now we are getting into the cream of the crop and rising to the top, because at number five, we have “Return of the Jedi.” This is the third and final movie of the original trilogy, and it did not disappoint. This movie brought us a lot of fighting and star power throughout the movie as Luke would beat his father, Darth Vader, and the Jedi would restore the galaxy once and for all, with help from the Ewoks, of course. This movie also let us in on the relationship between Luke and Darth Vader, after we learned from the previous movie, “Empire Strikes Back,” that Vader is Luke’s father. This movie showed us that redemption is possible, as its central message is that people can change. Despite Darth Vader’s terrible actions, Luke refuses to give up on him. In the end, Vader chooses to save his son and turn back to the light.

IV. The Rise of Skywalker

Out of all my takes in this reading, this definitely will be the most controversial. Now, may I give a round of applause to J.J. Abrams, the director of this film. This movie was absolutely amazing. Bringing back Palpatine and understanding the power that Rey possesses with the Force, and her being related to Palpatine — while a lot of people thought these choices were stupid or that they didn’t make sense, they made the movie better. After an okay movie in “Return of the Jedi,” this movie made up for it in the first 30 minutes. It also showed an understanding of Kylo Ren and his struggles with the dark side as he saved Rey and basically risked it all for her, even though he would die shortly after. Whether you love or hate some of the decisions the movie made, you cannot deny that it went for something huge. This movie kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time, and even though I know putting it this high will probably be controversial, the excitement, character moments and overall experience are exactly why “The Rise of Skywalker” earns my number four spot.

III Empire Strikes Back

“The Empire Strikes Back” is often considered one of the best of the “Star Wars” movies because it tells a deeper and more emotional story than the first, “A New Hope”. Throughout the movie, Luke Skywalker faces many challenges and learns important lessons about patience, courage and the Force from Yoda. Darth Vader becomes an even more powerful and intimidating villain, making the conflict feel more serious and exciting. The shocking revelation that Vader is Luke’s father is one of the most famous plot twists in movie history, and completely changes the story. The film also develops the relationships between characters, especially the growing connection between Han Solo and Princess Leia; this certainly adds emotion and tension. Unlike many adventure movies, the heroes do not win in the end, which makes the story feel realistic and leaves everyone on edge for the next film.

II. Attack of the Clones

If you don’t have this movie ranked in your top three, then you just don’t know “Star Wars.” This movie gave us a real look into Anakin Skywalker and his search for power through the Force. It also gives us some of the best relationships and friendships in movie history, with Anakin and Padmé as well as Anakin and Obi-Wan Kenobi. The film also features one of the best fight scenes in “Star Wars” history in the beginning of the Clone Wars. “Attack of the Clones” also gave us several important details that shaped the rest of the “Star Wars” saga: the movie expanded the universe with new planets, battles and characters, helping connect the events of the prequel trilogy to the original trilogy.

I. Revenge of the Sith

Now, to nobody’s surprise, “Revenge of the Sith” has to be the clear and easy number-one choice for the best “Star Wars” film ever made. This movie showed us a lot of things: the power of love and lust, along with Anakin’s dreams of Padmé dying in childbirth. He had to find a way to save her, and while doing that, he killed her in the process — to me, this is one of the saddest and most heartbreaking scenes in all of “Star Wars.” One thing this movie highlights so well is Anakin’s thirst for power and distrust of his training. He felt so inclined to do his own thing that it put him and everyone in the galaxy in jeopardy. This movie also has, in my opinion, the best final battle scene of all time between Obi-Wan and the newly named Darth Vader. This battle gave us the best lightsaber battles and one-liners of all time, and it showed us the true power and will of a friendship-to-enemies relationship. Now, if it were a level playing field with no high-ground takeover, I would say Anakin wins that fight a million times over. That is why “Revenge of the Sith” is the best “Star Wars” movie of all time.