50 Greatest Star Wars Movie Moments

By Michael Thompson / October 10, 2013

44. Crashing Half A Ship Into Coruscant - Episode III

The opening of Revenge of the Sith set an entirely different tone than the two prequels before it. While Attack of the Clones literally opened with a bang as Padme's ship is blown-up, Revenge of the Sith begins with an exciting space battle above Coruscant that is reminiscent of the one in Return of the Jedi. There is a great moment when Anakin "saves" Palpatine from the hands of Count Dooku. We see Palpatine with his wrists bolted down to a large chair that overlooks the battle outside. He goads Anakin to kill Dooku gaining that all too familiar tone in his voice. It is the audience's first prequel glimpse of him as the Emperor. After saving both Palpatine and Obi-Wan, Anakin is forced to crash half of a giant ship into the planet's surface. What an awesome beginning - easily my favorite of all the prequels.

43. Binary Sunset - Episode IV

There's something magical about this moment that has nothing to do with the way its shot, what is going on, or what is being seen. It might have something to do with John William's swelling score, but it's the subtext that drives the scene and gives it emotional resonance with all of us.

We know exactly what Luke is thinking about as he gazes into those suns. He is pondering the worlds beyond them and what it would mean if his life took him there. He is essentially a young person gazing into the vast expanse of the future, a moment everyone can relate to.

42. The Rancor - Episode VI

What planet does a Rancor actually come? Remind me never to stop by. This thing is horrifying. It's like a cross breed between a teenage mutant ninja turtle and a T-Rex. Seriously - running into one of these things would ruin your day.

It makes me wonder if someone in the Star Wars galaxy actually breeds Rancors? Why do that? I dunno - the same reason you would breed velociraptors in Jurassic Park, perhaps? It might be cruel, but every time I watch Jurassic Park and see Dr. Grant holding the baby raptor, all I can think is: "Kill it!" What would you do if someone handed you a baby Rancor? Speaking of ugly, last time I watched Return of the Jedi and the Rancor comes out of its cage for Luke, it reminded me of a scene from yet another classic movie. What if the camera paned over, revealing a third man in the pit with Luke and is attacker. It's Arnold Schwarzenegger, covered in mud and camo. He spits a cigar out of his mouth, squares off against the Rancor and says: "You one ugly motherf*cker."

41. The Speeder-Bike Chase - Episode VI

Anyone who has ever played a Star Wars video game that includes a level with speeder-bike racing knows exactly what they are in for. Crashing into buildings and trees, blowing up on mounds of dirt, and having junk shot at you while attempting to maneuver may not seem like that much fun, but many of us sure spent hours accomplishing it.

While I was leaving my early childhood years and becoming a teenager, my family took a trip to California's Redwood Forest where they filmed the speeder-bike chase from Return of the Jedi. When I got there, stomping through those huge trees was like deja vu. And those dark scorch marks on the tree trunks? I knew exactly what had caused those. Don't tell me lightning did it - some of us know better.

40. The Droids Deploy - Episode I

Like the Federation invasion scene mentioned above, the part when the battle droids are released to fight the gungans is sweet. What an awesome idea for an army. You could fit hundreds (if not thousands) of soldiers inside a troop carrier where they don't have to be fed, let out, or entertained. When you need them they just fold out and go to work.

I honestly think the US military has been trying to make this a reality since the release of Episode I. It's the perfect army, and nobody dies. At the very least, this movie probably opened a few eyes to the possibilities of using robotics in warfare. Not to mention that there is something extremely menacing about millions of emotionless, replaceable robots marching towards you.