I didn’t like movies directed by J.J. Abrams to begin with, and TFA left such a bad taste in my mouth it’s the reason I will never watch TROS or any other Abrams-directed movie for that matter. It’s why TROS will never be included in my ranking of SW films.
- Star Wars
- Empire Strikes Back
- Return Of The Jedi
- Rogue One
- The Last Jedi
- Solo
- The Force Awakens
- The Phantom Menace
- The Rise Of Skywalker
- Attack Of The Clones
- Revenge Of The Sith
I’ve only ever seen a couple people rank RotS at the bottom, and I’ve always wondered about that. I’m curious to hear your take on the movie.
Yeah that is strange, especially coming from a Force Unleashed fan. Interested in your thoughts.
I would have guessed at there being more fans having ROTS placed there, or near there? Huh. Mainly it is because it is the film that was meant to bridge the PT and OT, and instead it introduced discrepancies and contradictions with what had been firmly established in the Original Trilogy. Needlessly so, too.
It also marks low for me as there is not much in the way of a friendship or brotherhood shown between Ben and Anakin. Yes, that should have occurred more in the previous films, or accomplished it better in them, but this was the ‘final shot’ at portraying that. The same also applies for Padme and Anakin’s relationship, and crucially, “Vader being seduced by the dark side of the force”, instead of what we got as his reason for “the turn”.
Before it was released those were the four things I wanted to see done well in ROTS, and thought that we would get, despite the shortcomings in TPM and AOTC. Yet, for me it failed across the board.
I remember sitting in the cinema at the time and thinking “at least that is over”, something I’ve not felt after watching any of the other films, even AOTC. Repeat viewings since haven’t changed that feeling unfortunately. With the usual pluses of John Williams’ music, Ewan and Ian doing well with what they were given, there isn’t much for me to place it higher.
That’s all just my opinion. For anyone who loves or enjoys ROTS then best wishes to them.
What placed as the lowest ranked film for you, and why? (Or pls point me to where you’ve previously explained this)
The Force Unleashed had the interesting concept of the Emperor being the person who actually birthed the Rebellion. A ploy to out and put all his enemies in one place. And when destroyed would be a deterrent for others thinking of going against him. And a secret Apprentice for Vader too. Now that was impressive! Yes, the game was way overpowered, over the top, and “of its time” with the “boss baddies”, but was an enjoyable story, and fun video game. Lucas considered TFU canon, or “an actual chapter in the overall story line”. So for me, that became my Prequel for a time. The less said about the TFU2 the better!
The TFU book is still a good read. It does start out a little simplistic and “gamey”, but after the initial chapters it expands upon what we see in the game in some detail and does it very well.
I didn’t like movies directed by J.J. Abrams to begin with, and TFA left such a bad taste in my mouth it’s the reason I will never watch TROS or any other Abrams-directed movie for that matter. It’s why TROS will never be included in my ranking of SW films.
Wow. That is hardcore, good for you. Out of interest, have you read the DOTF fan comic, or have been tempted to watch any of the more heavily modified TROS fan edits?
Wow. That is hardcore, good for you. Out of interest, have you read the DOTF fan comic, or have been tempted to watch any of the more heavily modified TROS fan edits?
No, I haven’t, but I am aware of the outline of DOTF which I believe with some adjustments would have made a better finale than whatever Abrams directs.
In case you’d like to know my ranking of the Star Wars movies here it is:
What placed as the lowest ranked film for you, and why? (Or pls point me to where you’ve previously explained this)
Of the 11 live action movies, if I’m ranking based on personal preference, then The Force Awakens is at the bottom. Rise of Skywalker is definitely the worse movie, but there’s something about TFA in particular that I just really dislike. It’s a more frustrating movie because I could see a lot of promise in it for the first half hour, but then the movie completely lost my interest by the end. The plot is shallow, the directing style is hyperactive, and it was trying to be a fan service movie while blatantly ignoring substantial things that fans would actually want to see.
Of course, this was all made worse by the fact that I had actual hopes for the movie going into it, while with TRoS, I had 0 expectations.
But we can’t turn back. Fear is their greatest defense. I doubt if the actual security there is any greater than it was on Aquilae or Sullust. And what there is is most likely directed towards a large-scale assault.
It also marks low for me as there is not much in the way of a friendship or brotherhood shown between Ben and Anakin. Yes, that should have occurred more in the previous films, or accomplished it better in them, but this was the ‘final shot’ at portraying that. The same also applies for Padme and Anakin’s relationship, and crucially, “Vader being seduced by the dark side of the force”, instead of what we got as his reason for “the turn”.
Before it was released those were the four things I wanted to see done well in ROTS, and thought that we would get, despite the shortcomings in TPM and AOTC. Yet, for me it failed across the board.
Regarding Anakin and Obi-Wan’s friendship, there isn’t as much as we should’ve gotten in the trilogy, but it was there in ROTS, unlike the other two. You see it in the opening mission and when Obi-Wan says goodbye when leaving for Utapau.
The romance is bad but not as bad as AOTC.
Anakin’s final seduction is also bad, though again, it’s a trilogy wide issue. It’s frankly impossible to pull the Walter White-esque turn we really should’ve gotten by this point because the other two movies didn’t do enough. We don’t see Anakin get gradually seduced by the dark side’s power. So Lucas came up with a half-assed, rushed turn.
ROTS isn’t very good, but I still give it the highest ranking of the Prequels (still far below the OT) because at least it feels alive. TPM, while arguably the most functional, is boring. AOTC is a cringe-inducing clusterfuck. ROTS is stupid, but fun.
ROTS from the moment Anakin turns is better then the other two Prequels combined.
I respect your opinion though, I’m just giving mine.
Wow. That is hardcore, good for you. Out of interest, have you read the DOTF fan comic, or have been tempted to watch any of the more heavily modified TROS fan edits?
No, I haven’t, but I am aware of the outline of DOTF which I believe with some adjustments would have made a better finale than whatever Abrams directs.
In case you’d like to know my ranking of the Star Wars movies here it is:
- The Last Jedi
- The Empire Strikes Back
- Star Wars 1977
- Return of the Jedi
- Revenge of the Sith
- Rogue One
- Solo
- The Phantom Menace
- Attack of the Clones
- The Force Awakens (seriously, fuck this movie)
That contrast with TLJ being the at 1., with TFA at 10. is quite unusual: I love it! TFA is a weird film for me, the opening 30 minutes is great, but then descends quickly and continues on to spiral downwards. The substance expected around the galaxy setting just isn’t there either, which is a major mistake. But it still places well for me, only due to other films being considerably worse, and that enjoyable opening 30 minutes.
What placed as the lowest ranked film for you, and why? (Or pls point me to where you’ve previously explained this)
Of the 11 live action movies, if I’m ranking based on personal preference, then The Force Awakens is at the bottom. Rise of Skywalker is definitely the worse movie, but there’s something about TFA in particular that I just really dislike. It’s a more frustrating movie because I could see a lot of promise in it for the first half hour, but then the movie completely lost my interest by the end. The plot is shallow, the directing style is hyperactive, and it was trying to be a fan service movie while blatantly ignoring substantial things that fans would actually want to see.
Of course, this was all made worse by the fact that I had actual hopes for the movie going into it, while with TRoS, I had 0 expectations.
I naively still had hope going into seeing ROTS, even after TPM and AOTC, but ROTS gutted me as a fan. Interesting the contrast for you with TROS after TFA, and maybe with TLJ too? Or it being directed by JJ again, or something else?
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I naively still had hope going into seeing ROTS, even after TPM and AOTC, but ROTS gutted me as a fan. Interesting the contrast for you with TROS after TFA, and maybe with TLJ too? Or it being directed by JJ again, or something else?
For a while after seeing TFA, I was unsure whether it was actually a bad movie or if it was just me. I wondered whether I might just not be able to enjoy Star Wars anymore. Rogue One proved that wrong, though.
Going into TLJ, I was very doubtful but still had a sliver of hope, and while TLJ was marginally better than TFA, it wasn’t better enough to make me care about the trilogy story. And it firmly cemented to me that the ST didn’t know where it was going and was damaging to the original films. (That’s a big part of why I got into the EU. I wanted some sort of alternative outcome for the OT characters. I didn’t want the ST to be the only possible future for those characters.)
Besides that, my main reason for having no hopes for TRoS was that I’d read the plot leaks and heard early word-of-mouth about the movie, so I knew what I was in for.
But we can’t turn back. Fear is their greatest defense. I doubt if the actual security there is any greater than it was on Aquilae or Sullust. And what there is is most likely directed towards a large-scale assault.
I naively still had hope going into seeing ROTS, even after TPM and AOTC, but ROTS gutted me as a fan. Interesting the contrast for you with TROS after TFA, and maybe with TLJ too? Or it being directed by JJ again, or something else?
For a while after seeing TFA, I was unsure whether it was actually a bad movie or if it was just me. I wondered whether I might just not be able to enjoy Star Wars anymore. Rogue One proved that wrong, though.
Going into TLJ, I was very doubtful but still had a sliver of hope, and while TLJ was marginally better than TFA, it wasn’t better enough to make me care about the trilogy story. And it firmly cemented to me that the ST didn’t know where it was going and was damaging to the original films. (That’s a big part of why I got into the EU. I wanted some sort of alternative outcome for the OT characters. I didn’t want the ST to be the only possible future for those characters.)
Besides that, my main reason for having no hopes for TRoS was that I’d read the plot leaks and heard early word-of-mouth about the movie, so I knew what I was in for.
TFA and TROS being such creatively bankrupt messes is why I believe TLJ works best as a standalone coda to the saga.
Well, it’s been more than a year since my last ranking, and there’s a lot of new Star Wars stuff out. Most of it’s bad, but whatever, I’m gonna update my list anyways:
In case you couldn’t tell, I really don’t like Kenobi.
My preferred Skywalker Saga experience:
I II III IV V VI VII VIII IX
I’m taking the previous one as permission to include supplemental material, so…
But don’t ask me to rate EU material. There’s too much – too much I love, too much I loathe, too much in between.
“The Anarchists are right in everything; in the negation of the existing order and in the assertion that, without Authority there could not be worse violence than that of Authority under existing conditions. They are mistaken only in thinking that anarchy can be instituted by a violent revolution… There can be only one permanent revolution — a moral one: the regeneration of the inner man. How is this revolution to take place? Nobody knows how it will take place in humanity, but every man feels it clearly in himself. And yet in our world everybody thinks of changing humanity, and nobody thinks of changing himself.”
― Leo Tolstoy
All his life has he looked away… to the future, to the horizon. Never his mind on where he was. Hmm? What he was doing. Hmph!
My ranking is pretty simple:
Sometimes I try to figure out which I find worse: the Prequels or Sequels. They’re both inexplicably bad in completely unique and interesting ways.
I think the Prequels are probably more damaging overall, because they’re more directly connected to the OT as backstory, whereas the Sequels can mostly just be ignored as supplemental material. The Sequels show more obvious signs of “short-term corporate decision-making” in their production, whereas with the Prequels (at least with Phantom Menace) I get the sense that Lucas was genuinely excited about the weird story he wanted to tell.
After I saw AOTC in the theater, I came to accept that ROTS would probably not be very good - but I was still very interested in seeing it when it came out. But after I saw TLJ in the theater, I basically lost interest entirely, and so Rise of Skywalker was the first Star Wars movie that came out in my lifetime that I didn’t go see in the theater.
Star Wars
Empire Strikes Back
Return of the Jedi
Rogue One
The Last Jedi
The Force Awakens
Solo
The Rise of Skywalker
The Phantom Menace
Revenge of the Sith
Attack of the Clones
The Clone Wars (2008 film)
It has been a while since watching the Holiday Special and 2 Ewok films, so it would be a little unfair to rate them.
“In the future it will become even easier for old negatives to become lost and be “replaced” by new altered negatives. This would be a great loss to our society. Our cultural history must not be allowed to be rewritten.” - George Lucas
- Star Wars
- The Empire Strikes Back
- The Last Jedi
- Revenge of the Sith
- Rogue One
- Return of the Jedi
- Attack of the Clones
- Solo
- The Phantom Menace/The Force Awakens
- The Force Awakens/The Phantom Menace
- The Clone Wars
- The Rise of Skywalker
Haven’t done this in a while. My opinion has indeed changed in the meantime.
Rewatched the prequels some time ago and the movies hit all the right notes, everything made sense for some reason, can’t even explain it. Rewatched ROTJ recently and actually half-expected it to get a bump, but sadly it seems I keep getting less and less from that movie every time I see it. Rest remains the same. Every time I consider TFA I want to place it higher for how much I like those first 30 minutes, but on another hand the hope they always give me just makes the subsequent 1h30m really, really hard to stomach. But I can’t make it any lower than that because those are really good 30 minutes.
I have to make some of them tie:
If I had to put the shows in there, then
Star Wars
Empire
Jedi
Rogue One
Solo
The Last Jedi
The Force Awakens
The Rise Of Skywalker
The Phantom Menace
Revenge of the Sith
Attack of the Clones (although this often changes with ROTS)
The Clone Wars (2008 film)
“Don’t tell anyone… but when ‘Star Wars’ first came out, I didn’t know where it was going either. The trick is to pretend you’ve planned the whole thing out in advance. Throw in some father issues and references to other stories - let’s call them homages - and you’ve got a series.” - George Lucas
- Rebels, Book of Boba Fett, Obi Wan Kenobi
Seeing Rebels equated with these 2 hurts my soul.
“Remember, the Force will be with you. Always.”
- Rebels, Book of Boba Fett, Obi Wan Kenobi
Seeing Rebels equated with these 2 hurts my soul.
They must be some dire dogshit if Rebels looks good by comparison.
“The Anarchists are right in everything; in the negation of the existing order and in the assertion that, without Authority there could not be worse violence than that of Authority under existing conditions. They are mistaken only in thinking that anarchy can be instituted by a violent revolution… There can be only one permanent revolution — a moral one: the regeneration of the inner man. How is this revolution to take place? Nobody knows how it will take place in humanity, but every man feels it clearly in himself. And yet in our world everybody thinks of changing humanity, and nobody thinks of changing himself.”
― Leo Tolstoy
It’s refreshing to see some opinions here that line up with my own (TLJ being underrated, TPM being the best prequels, the PT in general being overrated nowadays, etc.).
http://henrynsilva.blogspot.com/2023/10/full-circle-order-new-way-to-watch-star.html?m=1
Revenge of the Sith
Empire Strikes Back
A New hope
Return of the jedi
Last Jedi
Rogue One
Solo
this 3 changes position
Attack of the Clones
Phantom Menace
Force Awakens
Rise of the worst sw movie
fav shows
tales of the jedi
clone wars 3d
andor
Not exactly a ranking, but I came up with a new preferred “viewing order” of the canon franchise:
http://henrynsilva.blogspot.com/2023/10/full-circle-order-new-way-to-watch-star.html?m=1
http://henrynsilva.blogspot.com/2023/10/full-circle-order-new-way-to-watch-star.html?m=1
OT is fundamental, prequel is supplemental and sequel is live action Expanded Universe.
The only one in my mind that is essential is the OT. I don’t love the sequel but force awakens if goofy fun in places, and i like aspects and not the whole of the last jedi. Rise of Skywalker is an acquired taste and i’ve seen it a few times on cable tv, i mean its watchable. Its a better experience with the novelization and Shadow of the Sith, but supplemental material shouldn’t be necessary.
I’m rating them as whole trilogies as stand alone films Empire would always come out on top. And Last Jedi is easily the best of the sequel movies. The prequel is tough i have real nostalgia and love for the good parts on Phantom Menace and its being the closest to Return of the Jedi in quality. I’d have to pick that as my favorite but Sith is always going to be the top rated just for the last third of the film. Attack of the Clones was the worst in the Saga until Rise of Skywalker. I’d personally probably still rate it dead last.
For whoever may be curious, I have a new ranking of all the canon films and shows of the franchise on my blog, strictly based on first impressions from when I first saw each entry:
http://henrynsilva.blogspot.com/2023/10/ranking-star-wars-based-on-first.html?m=1
Loved it
1.The Clone Wars
2.Solo
Saw it as a little kid, so…
3.Star Wars
4.The Empire Strikes Back
5.The Phantom Menace
6.Attack of the Clones
7.Revenge of the Sith
8.Return of the Jedi
I liked it but didn’t love it
9.Rebels
10.Ahsoka
11.The Force Awakens
12.The Rise of Skywalker
13.The Last Jedi
14.The Mandalorian
15.Rogue One
16.Obi-Wan Kenobi
Wasn’t sure how to feel about it
17.Andor
Found it to be a bit boring at first
18.The Bad Batch
19.Resistance
Didn’t like it
20.The Book of Boba Fett
The blog post goes in-depth into each of my choices.
http://henrynsilva.blogspot.com/2023/10/full-circle-order-new-way-to-watch-star.html?m=1
My ranking changed slightly:
All his life has he looked away… to the future, to the horizon. Never his mind on where he was. Hmm? What he was doing. Hmph!