Where Does It Rank?

[BillJ]

Right now (after one viewing), The Force Awakens would probably rank third for me behind Empire... and A New Hope.

While it has its flaws, there is a magic in The Force Awakens that is sorely lacking from the prequels and I think it is simply a better movie than Return of the Jedi.

 

[WarpFactorZ]

I'd say 4th. The OT is still tops (Empire, Jedi, Hope, in that order). It loses points for being too close to a reboot of ANH. I'm happy they basically ignored the PT -- no midichlorians, no Jedi/Sith acrobatics, etc... It was much closer to the tone of the originals.

 

[Tosk]

Fourth for me too.

 

[Greylock Crescent]

Well, TFA is definitely above AOTC (obvious statement is obvious). Is it a more consistent movie than both ROTJ & TPM, though? It certainly doesn't (yet) hold the emotional impact of those two films, much less ANH, ROTS, and ESB.

In terms of favorites (at the moment):

1. ROTS
2. ESB
3. ANH
4. TPM
5. ROTJ
6. TFA

7. AOTC

In terms of filmmaking quality:

1. ESB
2. ANH
3. TFA
4. ROTS
5. TPM
6. ROTJ
7. AOTC

 

[Phily B]

In the middle, Jedi is a pretty weak movie but the Vader/Luke stuff propels it higher. Good start, but it can't be anything but in the middle with it being a predictable rehash with a boring main character. Still miles better than anything the garbage prequels produced.

 

[Kor]

I really enjoyed watching TFA. I would still place it behind ESB and ANH, though.

I'm currently on the fence on whether I would place TFA above or below ROTJ. ROTJ had some powerful stuff in bringing resolution to the Luke/Vader storyline. But it also had teddy bears.

Kor

 

[Evil Twin]

^ Yeah, if nothing else, the Ewoks automatically drag ROTJ below TFA.

1. ESB
2. ANH
3. TFA
4. ROTJ
5. ROTS
6. TPM
.
.
.
.
.
7. ATOC

 

[WarpFactorZ]

But it also had teddy bears.

Teddy Bears that cook and eat people, though (and Droids). That's pretty warped.

 

[davejames]

Despite it's flaws, I think I still have to rate ROTJ higher just because of the iconic final battle between Luke and Vader. But TFA comes in really close behind it I think.

And the prequels are just way, way, way down the list.

 

[Phily B]

You could have all the problems with TFA's storyline in the world, but it's just way better of a film from a technical standpoint and visually exciting.

 

[Sparky]

It's fluctuating between 3rd and 4th for me, with Jedi as the contender. Obviously Star Wars and Empire are number 1 and 2 in no particular order. The prequel films are not even on the map.

I think that Awakens is a better movie overall than Jedi, but I think that Jedi has the more powerful character moments since it is the ultimate showdown between Luke, Vader and Palpatine. It's really a toss up...I've had 2 days to process The Force Awakens. I've had decades to process the original trilogy and let it be part of my entire being growing up. If I'm going to be honest it's not a fair comparison.

 

[2takesfrakes]

I rank it 4th, after the original trilogy, but only because the performances saved a piss-poor script. I really didn't want to see a retread of A New Hope, or how JJ thinks it should've been like ... I've seen A New Hope, already, you know? What's funny is being told that STAR WARS fan's actually wanted that ... what?! Had the screenplay been fresh(er), it would've been tempting for me to rank it 3rd, or possibly higher. Whilst I love Empire Strikes Back, there's not a lot that actually happens in that movie.

 

[Mage]

I'd say Empire is still my fave. But I've always had trouble ranking the others. I really depends on my mood. I've said it often, A New Hope is flawed, but I rank it high for nostalgia reasons and because, despite the flaws, it's an awesome movie. Same goes for The Force Awakens.

I'm going to need two or three viewings on bluray to really give it a good score.

 

[MacLeod]

I'd say about 4th behind the OT.

 

[Mach5]

It's not better than Revenge of the Sith. It may not suffer from any of the ROTS's problems, but it doesn't have it's impact either. Plus Sheev.

Shit, every time I think about ROTS, I'm reminded that in the hands of a capable and enthusiastic director, and with a rewrite or two, that film could and should have been a fucking masterpiece.

 

[{ Emilia }]

1. TFA (Yes, I went there because I'm more excited about it right now and I've seen the OT too many times to still be excited even though I love them. Ultimately it'll be in the Top 3. Better than ANH.)
2. TESB
3. ROTJ
4. ANH

5. TPM
6. ROTS
7. AOTC

 

[Maurice]

...5. APM...

American Public Media?

 

[{ Emilia }]

...5. APM...

American Public Media?

I am sorry I don't always remember the English-language titles well enough to know whether it's A Phantom Menace or The Phantom Menace.

I will try and be less foreign in the future if that annoys you enough to comment on it. I will say I find it kind of unpleasant to point out tiny mistakes that stem from the fact that the other person isn't a native speaker but I guess you'll have to live with that.

 

[DarKush]

Favorites:
1. ROTJ
2. TESB
3. ROTS
4. AOTC
5. ANH
6. TFA
7. TPM

Best:
1. TESB
2. ROTJ
3. ROTS
4. ANH
5. AOTC
6. TFA
7. TPM

I don't think TFA is a bad movie. I would watch it again. It was well made, well acted, paced well, and so on. But in terms of story I wasn't that impressed. I still haven't accepted these new characters as part of this saga. And I thought the prequels-despite the flaws-just wasn't updating or repeating what came before.

 

[Trekker4747]

Saw it last night:

I'd rank:

Empire Strikes Back
A New Hope
The Force Awakens
Return of the Jedi
Revenge of the Sith
Attack of the Clones
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
The Phantom Menace.