As for ranking the titles, for me, it would go:
- Return of the Jedi - For the reasons I said above.
- The Empire Strikes Back - For the reasons Sparky pointed out. It’s a strong, straightforward title.
- Star Wars - Simple title. Memorable. Rolls right off your tongue, and leaves nearly everything to your imagination, which worked well in this case for people’s introduction to the setting.
- The Last Jedi - Has a strong air of finality to it. Conveys a sense of great importance to the story about to be told.
- Revenge of the Sith - Direct and aggressive. Lets you know the story will be hugely eventful. Suggests a turning point in the overarching story.
- The Phantom Menace - Ominous title that piques your curiosity. It does bug me, though, that “phantom” ends with the same letter that “menace” starts with, so the title doesn’t roll off the tongue as well as it should.
- Attack of the Clones - Not a bad title. But not really compelling, either. It accurately describes the climax of the movie, so it fulfills its basic purpose, but that’s pretty much all it does.
- The Force Awakens - Sounds intriguing. It’s an acceptable name for the start of a new story, but has a vaguely corporate sound to it, and as DMC said, doesn’t really make sense with what we know about the Force.
- A New Hope - I like that it sort of mirrors “The Phantom Menace,” but the original Star Wars really deserves a stronger title than that. “A New Hope” just sounds limp. It undersells the movie.
- The Rise of Skywalker - Not memorable. Doesn’t really mean anything. I guess I like that there’s a bit of assonance with “rise” and “sky,” but that’s all it has going for it. Cliche and hollow.