Saga Favorite Film of the Saga and Why?

The Phantom Menace. AFAIAC it is equal to A New Hope in it’s risk factor. But the difference was the chance the great man George Lucas to show his Story (History) how Star Wars was manifesting in his mind. The Beginning of the Saga.

Everything else in TPM was icing on the cake to this 50 year old refusing to grow up child.

Cheers!

MJ

 

Revenge of the Sith.

The opening battle sequence with Anakin and Obi Wan all the way through to Anakin's landing of half of Grievous' command ship on Coruscant is one of my favorites in the entire saga. The banter between the two and Anakin's refusal to leave Obi Wan behind at Palps prompting was the comraderie I felt hinted at by Guiness in ANH when he tells Luke that Anakin was a great pilot and a good friend. Obi Wan force jumping, R2 and his never ending bag of tricks, the number of lightsaber duels, and the sheer amount of emotion the story evokes despite knowing exactly what's coming.

Anakin leaving Shmi was hard to watch, Anakin finding his mother minutes from death was harder to watch, and the latter half of ROTS is heartbreaking for me. The soundtrack makes it even more gut wrenching. No matter how many times I watch it, I can't help wishing things didn't end the way they did.

 

Return of the Jedi.

Jabbas palace, the battle over the sarlacc, the space battle over endor, all the Vader and Luke scenes, the ending with the ghosts and the celebration..

It's got so much memorable stuff in it. The music is great. I honestly like Yub Nub and Victory Celebration about the same. I do not like Jedi Rocks though lol. Lapti Nek is so much better.

 

ah, what a nice idea for a thread! so positive!

i'll have to go with the original, 1977's Star Wars. contrasting with RotS this film gets even better, going from conflicts of a galactic scale to the tale of a farm boy caught up in a conflict larger than anything he could ever imagine.

the chemistry between the characters is probably the best in the franchise, the classic trio is just... perfect. everything about this film makes me so happy. definitely the simplest of all of them, but the one that gets me hooked the most. Ben is just fantastic all throughout, impressing the audience as much as he impresses Luke with all of his force powers and mind tricks... the look he gives to Luke right before Vader slays him still gives me chills. and nothing, absolutely nothing in the Star Wars franchise (and very few things in the real world too, actually) get me as excited and happy as watching the attack on the Death Star. when the music kicks back in, i'm in for the ride of my life, no matter how many times i've watched it. i still get shivers down my spine in "use the force, Luke" and in "you're all clear kid now let's blow this thing and go home!" every single time.

just a fantastic film all throughout. one of the best made in the franchise too. i love them all though, very very much.

once again, great thread. reading everyone's takes so full of happiness talking about movies they love just fills me with happiness too.

 

I voted for Empire, But I find It more of a tie between A New Hope, Empire, and Revenge of the Sith. ALL Fantastic for different reasons.

 

I actually think Star Wars: The Last Jedi might be my favorite. It has all my favorite characters (Luke, Finn, Rey, Poe, Rose, Kylo, Leia, Yoda), my favorite character development, and I watch it more than any other Star Wars film these days.

I do also love TFA and Empire (obviously the best SW film overall), but I've come to notice the flaws in TFA more and more, while Empire just doesn't have my favorite cast in it. ROTJ has my favorite lightsaber battle, ANH is a masterpiece, and I have a soft spot for ROTS even though I have many, many issues with it.

 

I think all of the six movies are genius--occasionally for different reasons--but ultimately ROTS was and still is the most satisfying for me. Best drama, best action, best plot, best balance between "classical" themes and pulp space opera.

 

There are ten movies in the saga btw. I agree on everything you said about ROTS!!

 

That business with Disney doesn't, doesn't count

I kid, I kid! I like a lot of it well enough, but the Disney movies have, for me, mostly failed to capture the old magic so far.

 

AOTC for me.

The way the movie segues and morphs from scene to scene in a dreamlike state, whilst showcasing a plethora of symbols, whilst being the first big budget piece of art presented on a digital canvas, whilst honouring it's b-movie roots, whilst mirroring it's older brother, whilst expanding the SW's universe to a higher level (of consciousness), it's dense, it's almost impenetrable, there's no movie like it.

 

The Empire Strikes Back.

The film is an improvement on the masterpiece that is A New Hope.

 

yuppers

 

A New Hope. Not only is it my favorite Star Wars film, it's my favorite movie, period. The thing is, there are other films in the saga that have "more _____" compared to ANH. Return of the Jedi has more emotional resonance. Revenge of the Sith has more melodrama and tragedy. Both The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones have more world building. The Force Awakens is more fun and exciting, and The Last Jedi has more thematic depth and more complex characters. And putting them all side by side, The Empire Strikes Back stands above the rest as the overall best piece of filmmaking in the series, with the best writing, direction, and cinematography out of them all.

But A New Hope is the greatest. It's the only one that stands alone as a unique, singular piece of Americana, as pure a slice of American cinema as you can possibly find, filled with both the genuine hopes and fears of a filmmaker looking at the state of his country in the years following and shaped by the Vietnam War. Looking at the original, theatrically released versions of the film, you have a movie that is defined by its limitations, and which inexplicably thrives because of them rather than being held back. It is a miracle of a movie that, on paper, should not work, but everything came together in a perfect alchemy to create one of the most iconic and influential films of all time.

It tells as simple and archetypal a story as possible, juxtaposed against the backdrop of a used and dirty sci-fi world that no doubt felt like the endpoint of the trajectory the US and the world was on at the time, but filtered through a lens of fairytale story logic, and populated by characters who by all rights should be nothing more than bland, one-note archetypes, but who come to life on screen with vibrant energy. The film hits every one of its notes with near perfection, and clips along at such a breathless pace that it recovers from its rare stumbles before you've even had a chance to register them.

And yet, despite the movie's quick pace, it doesn't forget to give us moments to get to know the characters as people, to watch them interact with each other, to let the audience drink in the glimpses we receive of this alien yet recognizable world. Some of the film's best scenes don't involve action, they're as simple as Luke hanging out with the droids in his garage, or everyone catching a breather in the Millennium Falcon's common area. Those quiet moments of human simplicity are something the ensuing sequels and prequels and spin-offs have often forgotten in their pursuit of upping the scale of the story and action and world building. It's those moments that make the film feel distinctly human, and ignoring how spectacular all the action sequences and special effects were in 1977 (which somehow feel both somewhat quaint and no less thrilling 42 years later), I think peppering those moments throughout the film are a large part of why it resonated so strongly upon its release, and why it and the series it spawned continue to resonate to this day.

 

Empire Strikes Back... a stereotypical choice, but seriously, it's still that one SW movie that really defined the series for me. It gave the main cast much more development and character, gave Han Solo some great time to shine, and showed how dangerous the empire can be. I wasn't really a fan of how the empire were getting their ass beat by teddy bears and how Han was more goofy in ROTJ. On top of that, the battle of Hoth is just a complete joy to watch and is one of the most unique battles in the series. ESB had a perfect mixture of everything imo, a perfect balance of action, story, atmosphere, character development, even some minor romance. It's just excellent. There's a reason it's the cliche choice for most people's favourite.

 

The 1977 Star Wars film because it is pure magic.

 

I feel strange for even saying this, because I'm an older fan, and without the OT and especially ANH it would not even exist, but... these days I think it's Rogue One. That movie was such a blend of Star Wars concepts and situations that I love, and it checked so many boxes in just the right ways that, I absolutely adore it. There are only a few small things that I don't like in it. Also, if it weren't for RO, my interest in the Disney era SW would have probably died after the awful TFA.

 

B_S, now that's a name I've not heard in a long time...a long time...

 

It's always nice to run into one of the old hands.

 

ESB

Certainly not a uncommon pick, but I can't help it. Its too damn good and my favorite film of all time.

 

The Empire Strikes Back is not just a great Star Wars movie but an amazing movie on its own.

Revenge of the Sith is a close second for me because its one of the most fun to watch.

 

I agree. The de-specialized version is the closest to the original that I've seen and it sure is magic.

 

When I was a kid it was The Phantom Menace, but today I would say all of Episode 1-6, but I voted for Revenge of the Sith.
Its the end of the Jedi era, Anakins fall to the dark side and his transformation to Darth Vader.
I also love the duel between Obi Wan and Anakin it is amazing.