In my experience, there is no such thing as a bad Star Wars movie. No matter what you think of the prequels or the sequels, there is something to appreciate in every single entry in this franchise, even the animated entry that only the sickos talk about.
If you’ve been keeping up with our current season of Retro//Ranked, you’ll know that I love Star Wars. There is a magic to this franchise that transcends all media. It’s a franchise directly responsible for so many people’s love of film and entertainment, including my own. That being said, I’m willing to admit that it’s not perfect.
If you’re new to Star Wars, its universe can be quite overwhelming. I find it’s best to focus on where it all began: the movies! There are several ways to watch the films, including release order, chronological order, or the legendary Machete order. If you don’t know where to begin, let this list (and this season of Retro//Ranked) serve as a guiding hand to steer you from the worst of the worst and propel you to some of the greatest viewing experiences you can have in a galaxy far, far away.
So if you are visiting this galaxy this summer, here’s a list of all 12 Star Wars films released before The Mandalorian and Grogu, arranged from most to least worth your time.
Most Worth Your Time: Star Wars Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Not only is The Empire Strikes Back the best Star Wars movie, but it’s also simply one of the greatest films ever made, point blank period. (This is a diehard fan’s opinion, of course.) It’s thrillingly fast-paced and keeps you on the edge of your seat with some of the most intricately crafted sci-fi set pieces ever to grace the silver screen.
It introduces higher, more personal stakes into the original trilogy and leaves you wanting more in the best way possible, with a twist that has lived in infamy for over 40 years. It’s also the first Star Wars movie to feature Yoda, wonderfully brought to life by the legendary puppet master, Frank Oz. When you think Star Wars, you think Episode V.
Extremely Worth Your Time: Star Wars Episode IV – A New Hope (1977)
There is nothing quite like A New Hope. It’s a transportive work of art that has been frequently imitated but never matched in its grand scale and scope. The vision George Lucas brings to this film is a testament to humanity’s creativity. It’s a movie that sounds, looks, and feels better than nearly any other modern movie. If you’re looking for a gateway into a world that is truly larger than life, it doesn’t get better than this movie, especially how it opens with the franchise’s iconic opening crawl and immediately places you into the action by showing something you’ve never seen before. It’s a literary translation of the classic hero’s journey made accessible for people of all ages. Suffice it to say, it’s a true blast.
Highly Worth Your Time: Star Wars Episode VII – The Force Awakens (2015)
The Force Awakens is what made me obsessed with the franchise. If you want an entryway that’s more contemporary and accessible, you can’t go wrong with this certified crowd-pleaser. The sequel trilogy is far from perfect, but this film launches it masterfully, leaving the door open for so many exciting possibilities.
Although that potential is never realized, the movie stands on its own merits, binding every generation of fans together and reminding them why they love Star Wars. Its relatable characters, exciting action sequences, and layered sense of nostalgia remind you of the past in all the right ways while making you look forward to what the future can be.
Very Much Worth Your Time: Rogue One – A Star Wars Story (2016)
Rogue One is a different kind of adventure. For one thing, it places a larger emphasis on the “Wars” half of the title than any movie that has come before or after. Gereth Edwards’ film, at times, evokes war films like Apocalypse Now (1979) and Saving Private Ryan (1998) more than it does any aspects of fantasy or sci-fi.
Unlike other film entries, Rogue One is almost entirely separate from the mainline saga, as it follows the crew of rebels and misfits who secure the Death Star plans that Princess Leia receives in A New Hope. Rogue One showcases a different side of the resistance, adding a layer of realism that was lacking in past entries. It’s an institution that’s as flawed as the damaged heroes fighting for a cause they may not live to see come to pass. While it can be a struggle at first to match its wavelength, the movie gets going and becomes an epic grounded in grit, sacrifice, and redemption. While juggling these adult themes, it still manages to bring some of the magic that fans know and love through appearances of iconic characters like Darth Vader and wish-fulfilling set pieces.
Pretty Worth Your Time: Star Wars Episode VIII – The Last Jedi (2017)
A certain segment of Star Wars fans will see The Last Jedi featured this high on this list and immediately close out the tab they’re reading it on. That’s part of the problem, and what makes this entry worth viewing. The Last Jedi is one of the most controversial blockbusters ever made. The discourse it generated, after it presented bold decisions for the next era of characters, put the franchise in a creatively bankrupt situation, from which it’s still reeling. Fans were eager to write this story off without fully appreciating the swings and creative endeavors it pursues.
Nuanced character arcs, intricately choreographed setpieces, and surprisingly imaginative moments like the Holdo maneuver set this film apart from nearly every other entry in the Disney era. Where The Force Awakens welcomed fans back to Star Wars with a warm, nostalgic hug, The Last Jedi challenged them to engage with deeper, more rewarding ideas that treat them like adults and push them out of their comfort zones. A loud contingent of fans declined, but that doesn’t make the effort this movie put in any less respectable or worth a watch.
Worth Your Time: Star Wars Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983)
Return of the Jedi is a more-than-satisfying finale to one of the most iconic movie trilogies of all time. It does nearly everything right — adversity, hope, and redemption. The film’s fatal flaw is that it leans too heavily into the zany aspects of its story, backing away from the darker themes of The Empire Strikes Back.
It’s jarring to go from a fun, wacky first act rescuing Han from the clutches of Jabba the Hutt on Tatooine to engaging in childlike shenanigans with C-3PO and the Care Bear-resembling Ewoks on Endor to a final battle between good and evil that is just as intense and epic as anyone could hope for. Return of the Jedi often feels like two films mashed into one, and that doesn’t always provide for the most engaging and enjoyable viewing experience. However, it’s nowhere near as offensively bad as some of the later entries on this list and still manages to pull off feats of greatness.
Sort of Worth Your Time: Star Wars Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005)
George Lucas’ intentions with the prequels are finally realized with Revenge of the Sith, the strongest entry in the prequel trilogy. Revenge of the Sith in no way redeems the prequels, but it does give fans what they were promised by finally showing how Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader. It’s a messy story told compellingly.
Wooden dialogue and stilted performances are trademarks of the prequel trilogy, and there’s still plenty of both in Revenge of the Sith. However, it manages to tell a story with all the complexities fans could want while sprinkling in visually stunning set pieces that accomplish everything Lucas was trying to do with CGI at the time. This is a monumental Greek tragedy through and through, making viewers feel something no matter how much they may hate the two prior movies. Especially during its epic final act, it almost Jedi mind-tricks you into thinking the prequels were actually successful as a whole.
Not Quite Worth Your Time: Solo – A Star Wars Story (2018)
I’ve always believed Solo gets a bad wrap. It was released in theaters hot on the heels of The Last Jedi, a time when animosity among Star Wars fans was at its highest since the prequels. When all of those feelings were piled on top of the very public production drama this film went through, with directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller fired and replaced by Ron Howard, the court of public opinion was never going to be high.
Solo is neither a great nor a bad Star Wars movie; it is a fine one. Inoffensive and delightfully forgettable, you’ll have a really good time watching it, but after a few hours, you’ll be fighting for your life to remember a shred of detail. Howard’s film plays it safe, and he delivered the best work he could with the cards Disney dealt.
Not Worth Your Time: Star Wars Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002)
For a long time, Attack of the Clones was considered the worst of the worst in Star Wars. An overabundance of CGI, a poorly paced narrative, and some of the worst performances ever put to screen in a blockbuster of this scale are all staples of this entry. Lucas continues setting the dominoes for Anakin’s fall to the dark side in a most peculiar fashion, including plotlines that not a single person wanted to see in the prequel trilogy, such as the origins of Boba Fett.
Attack of the Clones certainly has a few exciting moments, like a scene that lets fans see a large group of Jedi fighting together at the height of their powers. But there’s so much tedious plotting and politicking to get through in between those moments. It’s best to avoid this one unless you’re truly looking to get the full Star Wars experience. If you happen to be someone who doesn’t like sand, there’s a chance you’ll also feel extremely vindicated by giving this movie a watch.
Avoid It: Star Wars Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999)
The best thing about The Phantom Menace is John Williams’ magnificent score. The soundtrack is his best work in Star Wars since The Empire Strikes Back, and it features a few tracks, like “Duel of the Fates,” that are among the most invigorating music ever featured in a film. However, you can also experience the best of this film by just listening to the soundtrack on Spotify.
The Phantom Menace is largely known as one of the most disappointing movies for Star Wars fans who were so beyond hyped about it when it was coming out that, when it turned out to be a pile of Bantha crap, they tried to convince themselves it was actually good. In this first entry in the prequel trilogy, Lucas took viewers into regions of the Star Wars galaxy they could only have imagined, such as Naboo, where they met the iconic Jar Jar Binks, and back to Tatooine to meet Anakin Skywalker… again, except this time, he isn’t a menacing all-powerful space wizard, but a whiny little brat taking his first steps into a larger universe. If you’re thinking this sounds a lot like Luke Skywalker in A New Hope, you’d technically be right. The apple certainly didn’t fall far, far away from the tree; only in The Phantom Menace, it’s much worse and a little bit creepy. Above all of that, it’s pretty damn ugly… and a little racist.
Don’t Bother: Star Wars – The Clone Wars (2008)
The only reason to watch The Clone Wars is if you’re interested in watching the phenomenal animated series of the same name. However, the movie, originally intended as four episodes of the show before they decided to mash them together, is a total slog with annoying characters, a boring plot, and unappealing animation. It’s a miracle the show that sprouted from it ended up as fantastic as it was, given this bad first impression.
Act Like It Doesn’t Exist: Star Wars Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker (2019)
Simply put, The Rise of Skywalker is an evil movie that represents everything wrong with modern blockbusters and the studios that make them. It’s a movie made by a committee rather than a filmmaker, which exists only to pacify a fanbase full of children who brought out their torches and pitchforks, all because their favorite character threw his lightsaber over a cliff and had some well-written character development in The Last Jedi. By being so reactionary, Disney, former Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy, and director J.J. Abrams only managed to make fans even angrier by so clearly pandering to them with a movie that does absolutely everything possible to avoid taking a single risk. It’s best not to acknowledge this movie. You’ll be a much happier Star Wars fan if you don’t.
List Courtesy of Evan Miller