All Star Wars movies ranked
Hello, Everybody and welcome to my first ranking blog post where I rank all of my favorite movies from worst to best. Growing up I was surrounded by everything Star Wars and I didn't become invested until I was 12 years old, and since then I've been a huge Star Wars fan! Since that today is May the 4th be with you, I'd like to show my biased opinion on all things Star Wars movies. And So, without further ado, here's my ranking of all of the movies in the franchise.
12. Star Wars: Episode I- The Phantom Menace
It’s pretty obvious why I ranked this movie so low and here’s why. For starters, it’s awful. The dialogue is really bad, the visual effects are soo cringed, it has bad acting (all due respect to Liam Neeson and Ewan McGregor), and it was just soo boring! At least we got Darth Maul. Now, it could’ve been better if it had practical effects or that George Lucas wouldn’t have creative control over the prequels. The fact that this was going to be the biggest movie of the century since well... ever and that there hasn’t been a Star Wars movie since 1983 is BAFFLING to say the least and moviegoers couldn’t believe what they saw. Did we really need to find out that C-3PO and R2-D2 were created by Anakin Skywalker who would eventually become Darth Vader. Speaking of Anakin... GOD! I hated that kid! He was so bratty and got creepy towards Padmé asking her if she’s Angel. Like... really? Oh and I couldn’t help roll my eyes when he said “Yippee!” Ugh. This was one Jake Lloyd’s first film appearances and one of his last. After it’s film release, he was bullied at school and later stopped acting entirely and disappeared from the public eye. In 2015, he was diagnosed with schizophrenia before verbally abusing and physically assaulting his own mother. That same year, he was arrested for reckless driving, DUI and resisting arrest the next year he was transferred from prison to a mental hospital and has been officially diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. Many child actors have either died, been to jail or retired. Jake Lloyd has been the victim of childhood fame before it even began. OH! Let's not forget... JAR JAR BINKS!! He was offensive, obnoxious and so annoying. The movie could've been so much better if he wasn't in the movie at all!!
11. Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Ok, this is probably unfair for some, but “Clone Wars” was struggling to find its feet. Yes, the animation and voice acting were promising. But Ahsoka was originally an unlikeable character. Thankfully in its tv show, she developed more and became a full-on badass. Dave Filoni crafted arguably one of the greatest animated shows ever made with Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Great characters, complex stories, excellent villains and surprising drama. It was truly something special. I’m really sad that it had to end today. The finale was nothing short of breathtaking and it wrapped up quite nicely for its original characters including Captain Rex.
10. Star Wars: Episode II- Attack of the Clones
The second movie of the Star Wars prequel trilogy, Episode II was at the same level as The Phantom Menace. Bad dialogue, so much CGI, bad acting and boring subject matter. At least we had Jango Fett. Anakin discovering that her mother was killed by Sand people was heartbreaking to watch and it was one of the things that triggered his anger and would eventually drive him on the dark side. That, and his feelings for Padme will be his eventual downfall. Anakin and Padme's romance felt so forced and they basically kissed after he said that he didn't like sand! WHO THE HELL CARES?! Christopher Lee as Count Dooku was almost the saving grace of this film. I mean, every that he played were villains. Saruman the White, Dracula and Francisco Scaramanga. All of them were his best characters. Now, let's get back to Anakin. Like, Jake Short he was also a whiny brat. This is the guy who became Darth Vader? Seriously? Hayden Christensen has since regretted playing Anakin Skywalker and has starred in a bunch of movies after Episode III. None of them were big hits. Apparently he tied the knot with Summer from The O.C. Who knew? C-3PO was basically wasted for comedic relief and there was a CGI'ed peach. Yeah, I'm not kidding.
9. Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
While not a bad movie perse, because of its memes, the conclusion to the prequel trilogy had arguably great moments including the heartbreaking “Order 66” scene. Terrible CGI, bad performances and all of the political talks are still there. It delivered on the promise of an emotional climax in which Anakin and Obi-Wan engage in a Jedi duel which leaves Anakin nearly burned to death and becoming Darth Vader. The opening was alright, middle act was boring and the ending was honestly not bad. I just didn’t like the movie as a whole. Darth Vader overdid it with the whole thing of him finding out that Padme died during child-birth leading to the infamous “NOOO!!!” Again, bad movie but with great moments.
8. Solo: A Star Wars Story
Lack of a marketing campaign and troubled production including the firing of Phil Lord & Christopher Miller, replacing actors and an acting coach for Alden Ehrenreich led to the financial failure of this stand-alone Star Wars Film. Following the success of Rogue One, it was announced that a movie about Han Solo was being made. I wouldn’t mind an origin story movie for this great character. But, wouldn’t it be better if he didn’t have an origin? While the movie did have impressive practical effects and excellent action sequences. The plot was not very inspiring to say the least. The only good things that I like about this movie are Donald Glover as Lando Calrissian, Phoebe Waller-Bridge as L3 and the surprise cameo of Darth Maul. It was also great to see Daenerys herself, Emilia Clarke kick ass.
7. Star Wars: Episode IX- The Rise of Skywalker
The final movie of both the Star Wars sequel trilogy and The Skywalker Saga, this was arguably a satisfying conclusion. When Emperor Palpatine has returned, the Resistance joins together for their last stand against The First Order. While, yes, the movie could've been longer and better (#ReleasetheJJcut) it was epic, awe inspiring and so amazing. What more could you ask for? Well... a lot of answers these unanswered questions like... What was Finn going to tell Rey?, Who was Rey's grandmother?, Are Janna and Lando related?, What's Reylo's relationship status?, What has Lando been up to?, How Force-Sensitive is Finn? We may never know. I thought the ending was great. Rey having the name Skywalker was something I didn't know I needed. She stares into the sunset with BB-8 and then... credits roll. Brilliant. Adam Driver as Kylo Red/Ben Solo will forever be my baby boy! He finally got away from the dark side and helped Rey fight Palpatine. This wouldn't be a Star Wars movie without having the one of the original characters, Lando Calrissian to return and help The Resistance. This was better than The Last Jedi. It's not a perfect film, but it was still amazing.
6. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Another Star Wars movie that no one asked for but we got it anyway, Rogue One was a surprisingly dark and thrilling sci-fi movie. It tells the story of how a group of misfits managed to steal the Death Star plans and sent them to the Rebellion. Many soldiers have died trying to get those plans and this was truly such an epic experience and it also led to the events of the first Star Wars movie. While the first half was kinda boring (I almost fell asleep), the climactic battle was such an emotional wreck I didn't even have time to breathe. I'm very excited for the Cassian Andor Disney+ series.
5. Star Wars: Episode VIII- The Last Jedi
Ok Ok Ok. I know that this movie could’ve had a lower ranking. You can hate on this movie all you want, but the fact is that this movie blew me away when I first saw it. It was epic, beautifully filmed and just really amazing. Yes, this movie did ruin Luke Skywalker but Mark Hamill gave a great performance regardless and yeah I thought it was never going to end. Those porgs were so cute tho! Snoke and Captain Phasma may have been unnecessarily disposed of, I get that! But were they really ever going to stick around? The second movie of the sequel trilogy may have received backlash but at least we had these awesome action scenes in any sci-fi movie.
4. Star Wars: Episode. VII-The Force Awakens
It had been 10 years since Revenge of the Sith came out in theaters and fans, including myself, were waiting on the next Star Wars movie. After Disney bought Lucasfilm and the Expanded Universe was declared non-canon, there was a lot of skepticism on whether or not we were excited for its next movie. With the return of Harrison Ford as Han Solo, Chewbacca and Carrie Fisher as Leia but with brand new characters, there was indeed new hope on the horizon. It had 2 decades since the Empire fell and with whatever fragments were left came The First Order, who are basically the Third Reich in space. While it was criticized for being compared to Episode IV, it was a welcome return to form for the franchise. It was epic, awesome and so so very STAR WARS.
3. Star Wars: Episode VI- Return of the Jedi
The final movie of one of the greatest cinematic trilogies of all time, Return of the Jedi was a satisfying conclusion to Darth Vader's story. While the gang consisting of Luke, Han, Leia, 3PO, R2 and Chewbacca are on the planet Endor to help the Ewoks defend their planet from the stormtroopers while Luke faces the Emperor himself. While it didn't reach the height of its predecessors and there. were a lot of moments that are very dated, the movie was still entertaining. Boba Fett didn't really need to die like that! At least we have The Mandalorian. Anyway, there was still nothing better than to see than the rebellion forces destroying the second Death Star and Admiral Ackbar saying "It's a Trap!"
2. Star Wars (1977)
The one that started it all. A long time ago in a galaxy far far away, George Lucas had an idea for a sci-fi movie in 1971. After completing THX 1138, he wanted to adapt the Flash Gordon comics. He was signed to a two-movie deal with United Artists, but was let go because they weren’t impressed with his script but it was picked up at Universal Pictures. His first film at the studio was American Graffiti, a movie about teenagers enjoying their last day of summer during the Kennedy era. Director Francis Ford Coppola helped him get the Flash Gordon rights, when he didn’t get them, he decided to create his own story. He drew a lot of inspiration from the Vietnam War, and the Nixon presidency. A two-page synopsis called Journey of the Whills was made, but many people couldn’t quite understand what he wrote, he then began writing a 13-page treatment called The Star Wars with parallels to Akira Kurosawa’s The Hidden Fortress. The script was denied by many studios including Universal Pictures and Walt Disney Productions. Lucas pursued 20th Century Fox. He and the head of Fox, Alan Ladd, Jr. reached a deal to write and direct the film and the rest is cinematic history.
This is the story of Luke Skywalker, a young man living on a desert planet with his aunt and uncle. He encounters these two droids, who we all know and love, R2-D2 and C-3PO. He finds Obi-Wan Kenobi and confronts him about a transmission made by Princess Leia and must save her. Obi-Wan also trains him to be a Jedi just like his “father.” They get the help from Han Solo and Chewbacca and they eventually save the Princess and get help from The Rebellion to destroy the Death Star.
This is the movie that changed cinema forever! It was so impressively well done with Practical effects and it felt so real and it had a perfect musical score by then unknown John Williams.
1. Star Wars: Episode V- The Empire Strikes Back
Oh, come on. What else did you think was going to be my top pick? Not only is "Empire" the best movie in the entire franchise, but one of the greatest films of all time. It was much darker than its predecessor it was told with two different stories in the same movie, there was a love confession, an epic action sequence in the beginning and one of the biggest plot twists in cinematic history. Imagine seeing this movie in 1980 and Darth Vader says "I am your Father" to Luke. It was such a big deal back then. Homer Simpson even ruined it in its earlier episodes of The Simpsons. And guys, it's "I am your Father" not "Luke, I am your Father".
Thanks for reading! Comment below what your Favorite Star Wars movie is and why. Stay safe, wash your hands and stay 4-6 feet.
May the Force be with you.
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