ST POLL: Rate/Rank/Compare The ST Films

And Disney laughed all the way to the bank.

 

Companies love them completist types.

 

You’re not alone. I have the ST in 4K, 3D and steelbook… and I’ve not even watched them in full since seeing them at the cinema, but it seems self defeating to pretend they don’t exist.

 

I wasn't gonna buy Solo or TROS on BD, but lately, I've been itching to complete my ST/ASWS collection after all.

 

Right now I am giving the ST trilogy a break, so when I revisit them I will be able to analyse them in a more fair and balanced way.

All ratings I gave on this site were done at the time each individual movie was released. The PT which I was "meh" initially, aged very well for me, so let's wait a few years and check the ST again.

All in all, they are good movies, but I need to review how they will age against the very best of what Star Wars films and series have given us.

 

Although I disliked all three films, I disliked "The Force Awakens" the least.

 

1. The Last Jedi: I actually dug some of the bold choices. I think Mark possibly gave his best performance as Luke yet.
2. The Force Awakens: A more pleasant watch than VIII, but pretty safe in a lot of ways.
3. The Rise of Skywalker: I like this one too, but it's probably the sloppiest of the three.

 

1. TLJ. I think the film is beautifully made, as Lucas said. It's visually impressive and it has a gloomier, epic tragic feel to it. It took what was seeming like a very safe and retreading trilogy to unexpected directions. I find the film almost depressing because of its darkness, but in a good way because it moves me, similarly to RotS. I don't agree with everything in it, but I like the broad strokes and what Johnson was going for. Luke and Leia are my favorite characters in it and my favorite moments have to do with them. Downsides include the beginning which is hard to get through with the prank call that feels out of place. But once you get past that, there are things to like here.

2. TRoS. In some ways it's my favorite of the sequel trilogy. I think Abrams was bold with this film, and completely redid his ethos in making a Star Wars film. With TFA he said his "key mandate" was "less is more", which I think resulted in a barren imitation of the OT. This film, on the other hand, is jam-packed with new story and action, which is fitting for the finale of a trilogy, because so are RotS and RotJ. It does feel a bit like a rollercoaster ride like a lot of Abrams' films, but this time around with new types of planets and environments and visuals. Some of Abrams' signature "Yelling over each other" acting is hard to get through, but it's not as bad as with TFA.

3. TFA. It's essentially a soft remake of ANH with little bits of TESB and RotJ thrown in for good measure packaged in Abrams' usually lame stylings. If I were to critique it much further, I would just be critiquing ANH. Again, the beginning antics like excessive WHOOPING and weird lines plague the film.

 

It subverted your expectations = good cinema
It's the only SW movie that doesn't have anyone saying "I've got a bad feeling about this" too.
Because RJ focused on those super important changes in this new millenium pioneer and progressive storytelling.
Whatever would we have done with yet another episode with screen wipes and lines that characters use in SW movies?
And no, noone tell me that BB-8 is saying "I've got a bad feeling about this" in droid language. That's a load of BS.

When I say I don't consider them canon, I say it because I truly believe it. Not only did I not buy anything related to these movies ever, other than my movie theater tickets, but I sincerely do not consider them part of the story, the saga, the franchise. This way the story is cohesive and consistent. And TLJ and TROS are the only two Star Wars movies since 1997 that I went to watch to the theater only once. That is the same amount I watched "The Clone Wars" movie in the theater, and that one was not that great either. But I would watch it 5 times more easily.

 

TROS is my favorite of the three. It is the movie that brings new elements to the Saga in a way that works for me. I like that Poe is fun again and has a dodgy past. I like that Finn finds his fellow Stormtrooper deserters, and that Rey is part of the story and in-world conflict as a Palpatine.

TFA was good in that it set up new characters that I liked, found interesting, and was invested in their stories.

TLJ was a mixed bag for me. Minus Canto Bight and Poe vs. Holdo, the movie has its moments that I can enjoy.

 

I think my favorite part of the ST was the relationship between Han and Kylo. That all plays out in TFA and TROS, right? I’m starting a rewatch of the trilogy now.

 

After watching through the ST recently, definitely TROS. It's by far the most enjoyable, the most fun. Even the humor is the best. The performances are the best in the trilogy as well. JJ gave them some time to act this time around.

It might have been decent if it hadn't been a Star Wars movie, or if you ignore TFA and TLJ, which would be odd because the movie spends so much time trying to fix those movies. Yet it feels entirely disconnected from them due to the scavenger hunt Mcguffin plots that don't seem to have anything to do with the previous movies, nor do they feel like they belong in a Star Wars movie. It feels much more like an Indiana Jones movie, which isn't the worst idea, but like so much about TROS, it's a poor choice for this movie.

Despite how weird it is that anything in this movie is happening, I kept reminding myself not to complain about stuff that's actually fun and even cool. I'd rather watch fun randomness than what we got in TLJ and TFA.

 

never mind

 

Well said, it’s my favourite of the three also.

It’s more interesting than TFA. The climax with Ben resurrecting Rey was touching I admit. And it has better humour and feel-good moments compared to the cynical TLJ. I know it is a pretty lacklustre ending as a nine parter but for just this trilogy alone it rounded things off semi-satisfyingly.

 

TROS is probably the most accessible film of the ST, not that the plot makes any sense whatsoever, but the pace of it is so fast that one has little time to think about the plot holes, contrivances, inconstancies and general gaps in internal logic... It never really drags or is boring (although there's very little sense of drama or peril). It's worth noting as well (Carrie's posthumous appearance aside), that it's the ST film that is the least reliant on one of the OT3 to hold it up... and it feels a bit more free for that (and indicates what a ST without the OT3 would have been like). It's still a poor film though IMO... and probably the worst conclusion to a 9 part saga that anyone could possibly imagine.

 

TFA is entertaining on its own. It's a watchable 2.25 hours, if you don't really care or think about anything else outside of it. Once you do, you'll only realize it's a sub-grade homage, and never sets up any proper narrative within the ST.

TLJ is probably the worst SW movie, the worst ST movie, and just unenjoyable on any level. It's a total slog to sit through, which I've only done twice.

TROS is just almost an actual movie. It's slightly more enjoyable than TLJ, but it's also dumber. Makes no sense. And ruins what should have been an amazing ending to the saga.

 

oh def. that's why i mean, if you just look at it as its own movie and nothing else.

 

I don't know, I can imagine quite a bit.

 

I changed my vote from TFA to all three. Ultimately, even though I did imagine stronger and more imaginative follow-ups to TFA, I think they're all fairly equal to me. TFA is less problematic than the other two in a real-life sense, but it has other fundamental issues that makes it... not really great (but still enjoyable). These issues are carried over to TLJ and TROS and the whole trilogy is quite bland as a result. Still, on the whole, it's an acceptable story. Redundant, but acceptable.

 

It's a toss up for me. I have great memories of TFA. The trailers and the whole anticipation of new Star Wars was fun to experience with my son. TFA was the first Star Wars film I took him too and he loved it. TLJ took a lot of chances and went in directions that a lot of fans didn't care for but it took cojones to make. I loved Star Wars being on shaky grounds opening it up to new territory. Unfortunately the follow up was handed back to JJ who is anything but daring.

 

Unfortunately I think Star Wars is still suffering as a consequence of TFA/TLJ...

 

I voted for The Rise of Skywalker. It's a mess, but it's a fast-paced rollercoaster of a mess, so even when it's busy doing something I'm not hugely fond of, it doesn't keep me waiting long until it careens off in another direction, towards something I actually do enjoy. It has heart, and there's a celebratory vibe to the whole thing. It's also "an ending" and feels relatively self-contained (for better or worse). The Last Jedi is probably a better movie from a technical / artistic viewpoint, but it's left coming across a little soulless as a result, irrespective of my various opinions regarding its plot and characters.

The Force Awakens continues to age like milk in sunlight, its brief scraps of potential long since wasted, and its damage long since done.