@BananaSundae@neodb.social
4mo 1 BananaSundae @BananaSundae
created a collection

Star Wars

6 movies  

A personal preference ranking for the original Star Wars films. You know, the real ones. Check the notes for more context.

cover
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999) [Movie] TMDB Douban Min reol Eggplant.place Bangumi Skybridge IMDb WikiData
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
7.7 (688 ratings) director: 乔治·卢卡斯 actor: 连姆·尼森 / 伊万·麦克格雷格 …
other title: 星球大战前传1：幽灵的威胁 / 星球大战第一集：幽灵的威胁 …
Anakin Skywalker, a young slave strong with the Force, is discovered on Tatooine. Meanwhile, the evil Sith have returned, enacting their plot for revenge against the Jedi.
BananaSundae: Tied with The Empire Strikes Back. Both are strong at different things and strike very different moods.

Out of this entire Star Wars revisit, The Phantom Menace is the only film I'd already like to rewatch again. It's sometimes oddly structured (i.e. brief scenes lasting 10-12 seconds where one character says like two sentences to somebody else before cutting away) and emotionally neutral at times, but still carries an optimistic happiness and wonder to it that offsets the underlying darkness in its story. Very strong family/kids movie energy in a good way. I think it's underrated by a lot of fans and critics alike.
cover
Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980) [Movie] Douban IMDb TMDB Min reol Eggplant.place WikiData Skybridge
Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back
8.2 (686 ratings) director: 厄文·克什纳 actor: 马克·哈米尔 / 哈里森·福特 …
other title: 星球大战5：帝国反击战 / 星球大战第五集：帝国反击战 …
The epic saga continues as Luke Skywalker, in hopes of defeating the evil Galactic Empire, learns the ways of the Jedi from aging master Yoda. But Darth Vader is more determined than ever to capture Luke. Meanwhile, rebel leader Princess Leia, cocky Han Solo, Chewbacca, and droids C-3PO and R2-D2 are thrown into various stages of capture, betrayal and despair.
BananaSundae: Tied with The Phantom Menace. Both are strong at different things and strike very different moods.

Everybody likes The Empire Strikes Back, so having it in contention for #1 isn't surprising. It's well paced and balances a lot of different emotions, even though it has a darker emphasis. Everything with Yoda on Dagobah is some best of all time content for Star Wars.
cover
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005) [Movie] TMDB Douban Min reol Eggplant.place IMDb WikiData Skybridge
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
8.1 (603 ratings) director: 乔治·卢卡斯 actor: 伊万·麦克格雷格 / 娜塔莉·波特曼 …
other title: 星球大战前传3：西斯的复仇 / 星球大战第三集：西斯的复仇 …
The evil Darth Sidious enacts his final plan for unlimited power -- and the heroic Jedi Anakin Skywalker must choose a side.
BananaSundae: Tied with Return of the Jedi. I like these two a bit less than The Phantom Menace and The Empire Strikes Back.

Sith has a little too much runtime dedicated to pure action after a while, but it helps that there's also a Shakespearean level drama playing out with Anakin's character scenes to balance that out.
cover
Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983) [Movie] IMDb Douban TMDB Min reol Eggplant.place Bangumi Skybridge WikiData
Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi
8.2 (628 ratings) director: 理查德·马昆德 actor: 马克·哈米尔 / 哈里森·福特 …
other title: 星球大战6：绝地归来 / 星球大战3：绝地归来 …
Luke Skywalker leads a mission to rescue his friend Han Solo from the clutches of Jabba the Hutt, while the Emperor seeks to destroy the Rebellion once and for all with a second dreaded Death Star.
BananaSundae: Tied with Revenge of the Sith. I like these two a bit less than The Phantom Menace and The Empire Strikes Back.

Jedi's first half or so is strong, then it loses momentum, but gets carried enough to the end by wrapping up Luke, Vader, and Palpatine's stories well. Plus, the space battle over Endor is cool and I like the idea of the Ewoks even if I think their scenes are overlong.
cover
Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977) [Movie] Douban IMDb TMDB Min reol Skybridge WikiData
Star Wars
8.3 (863 ratings) director: 乔治·卢卡斯 actor: 哈里森·福特 / 马克·哈米尔 …
other title: 星球大战 / Star Wars …
Princess Leia is captured and held hostage by the evil Imperial forces in their effort to take over the galactic Empire. Venturesome Luke Skywalker and dashing captain Han Solo team together with the loveable robot duo R2-D2 and C-3PO to rescue the beautiful princess and restore peace and justice in the Empire.
BananaSundae: Almost tied with Revenge of the Sith and Return of the Jedi, but it wasn't as interesting or entertaining to me as they are.

A New Hope's simplicity is a strength and the pacing is generally good, but in some ways the simplicity also works against it for me. It doesn't often feel as thematically rich or engaging on a character drama level as the others are. Very happy and adventurous movie, though, which is enjoyable. Maybe I'll bump it up to being tied for 3rd place in the future.
cover
Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002) [Movie] Douban IMDb TMDB Min reol Eggplant.place Skybridge Bangumi WikiData
Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones
7.4 (588 ratings) director: 乔治·卢卡斯 actor: 伊万·麦克格雷格 / 娜塔莉·波特曼 …
other title: 星球大战前传2：克隆人的进攻 / 星球大战第二集：克隆人的进攻 …
Following an assassination attempt on Senator Padmé Amidala, Jedi Knights Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi investigate a mysterious plot that could change the galaxy forever.
BananaSundae: Boring and dull for long stretches in a way the others aren't. It's still a well made movie, but lacks appeal for me.

Only Anakin's stuff is truly interesting, as Obi-Wan's portion loses energy after the fight with Jango in the rain on Kamino. Everything on Geonosis that isn't the confrontation with Dooku is too slow and drawn out.

At the same time, this is a very interesting Star Wars movie because of how gloomy it feels the longer it goes. I'd go as far as saying that this feels the most unlike the other films, even lacking the familiar spirit of Star Wars. Where is the sense of wonder? Maybe its lack of presence is the point of this one.
Reply Quote March 9, 2026