The best Star Wars movies on Disney+

Given how ubiquitous Star Wars has become, it’s easy to forget just how groundbreaking A New Hope was when it was first released. A New Hope is one of the earliest examples of the modern Hollywood blockbuster, but its first hour is paced more like an art film — and there’s seemingly no end to the concepts and lore it throws at you. We know all about the Clone Wars, Kessel Run, and Jabba the Hutt now, but imagine a time when they were all unknowns, and all you had was your imagination to figure out how they all connect. A New Hope is fun, exciting, mysterious, and just a little dangerous. And it’s no surprise it launched one of the biggest franchises of all time. What also sets A New Hope apart from other Star Wars movies is that it’s the only one completely unburdened by a larger mythology — so it tells a complete, self-contained story. Unlike everything that came after it, it’s satisfying all on its own.

After A New Hope laid the foundation, The Empire Strikes Back established the template for the Star Wars saga. It’s the movie that introduces the Jedi’s pacifist philosophy, many of the most iconic Force powers, and features Luke Skywalker’s first lightsaber duel. The Empire Strikes Back saw Luke evolve from a random farm boy to a pawn of destiny and the Rebel Alliance’s one and only hope for peace. The Empire Strikes Back turned a pulp adventure into a grand mythological saga, and the franchise has never looked back. It also delivered one of the best plot twists in movie history. If you’ve enjoyed any of the Star Wars sequels, prequels, comic books, novels, video games, or television shows that have appeared since 1980, you have The Empire Strikes Back to thank.