The acting and the direction in the second spate of trilogies come across as WE ARE ACTING IN A MAJOR PIECE OF FICTION THAT WILL LAST THROUGH HISTORY (cue God like voice with plenty of reverb).
The acting and directing in the first, especially the first two movies, was more about "Let's tell a good story with good characters." And it helped that they cast Ford and Guiness, who are great actors, and Hamill, who was able to convey Luke's wide-eyed naivete very well.
