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Author Topic: The mighty General Grievous has arrived (SW:EP3) William Hooper Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1879 From: Mobile, AL USA Registered: Jun 99 posted 02-27-2004 01:01 AM                        In the 1940s, MOMA in NYC had a retrospective of D. W. Griffith's work, to which Griffith was invited. They walked in one day & caught Griffith, scissors in hand, re-editing Intolerance before the show.  |  IP: Logged Manny Knowles "What are these things and WHY are they BLUE???" Posts: 4247 From: Bloomington, IN, USA Registered: Feb 2002 posted 02-27-2004 03:27 PM                     A "director's cut" is one thing but the total loss of the original release of any movie is a sad thing. Certainly, there are laserdiscs of the original "Star Wars" movies but it would be great to know that there could still be projected film presentations that would approximate the first viewing of the film. It's never quite the same when you're no longer in the time period of the release but it certainly becomes that much harder (if not impossible) to sample the impact of the work that moved so many people if that version suddenly becomes unavailable. I can remember the thrill of assembling at the campus movie theatre to see the entire "Indiana Jones" trilogy. It was great to see them in a theatre again. I learned that the school was known to run these movies every few years, alternating "Indiana Jones" with "Star Wars." It's a little bit frustrating to know that the next time the SW movies are run, it will probably be the SE versions. I also wonder whether they will be forced to run the SE in film history courses. That would just be wrong. One glimmer of hope is that the movies were released several times on tape and laserdisc. The downside is those formats are dying out. The tapes could only be so good to begin with and they will only last so long before totally giving out. I have the laserdiscs but my LD player died a few years back and I've never bothered to replace it. Besides, I would rather have a higher-quality DVD transfer to enjoy. And then there's HD on the horizon. Over time -- as new formats replace older ones, and as we become spoiled by improved transfers and higher image resolution -- it will become increasingly difficult to experience these films in their original forms. Fans, historians and academics are all in agreement that the originals should remain accessible. Lucas appears to be the only one in disagreement. I can't say that I agree with his decision but I don't see where there's much that can be done about it. Unless... ..."by popular demand" (and the desire to sell it all over again) ?  |  IP: Logged Thomas Procyk Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1842 From: Royal Palm Beach, FL, USA Registered: Feb 2002 posted 02-29-2004 01:35 AM                     Perhaps because Lucas was so pissed at having to "go through the channels" back then (notice that Episode 4 had the most "additional footage" and "enhanced effects"?) that, for his own mental stability he never wants those versions to see the light of day again. Those were not HIS movies, the SE ones were. The first time I saw Star Wars, ever, was the Special Editions in theaters. I never knew what all the big whoop was about. I fell asleep during Empire Strikes Back, and learned that the stormtrooper hover-thingy chase scene through the forest in Return of the Jedi was in the originals. It was too hard to keep up with all the stupid planet, city, and character names. And when Luke blew up the Death Star and those two torpedo thingies were headed in a straight line, (at the SAME TIME) then all of the sudden "hopped" into that hole (at DIFFERENT times)... that just plain irritated me. Just like generations will look back and wonder why the hell Spiderman took in $114M in a weekend, I look back and wonder what was so special about these movies. Other than that they had that "movie feel" about them like so few do. Are the originals available in 70mm? I heard there were no 70mm prints of the Special Editions struck. If that's true, then Lucas didn't only kill the chance to see the original versions, he killed the chance to see anything Star Wars in 70. =TMP=  |  IP: Logged Aaron Sisemore Flaming Ribs beat Reeses Peanut Butter Cups any day! Posts: 3061 From: Rockwall TX USA Registered: Sep 1999 posted 02-29-2004 04:09 AM                     All three of the originals (Episodes 4-5-6) had 70mm prints struck in their original releases. And many (possibly all?) of the [original '77 release] UK 35mm prints of Episode 4 were dye-transfer. -Aaron  |  IP: Logged Manny Knowles "What are these things and WHY are they BLUE???" Posts: 4247 From: Bloomington, IN, USA Registered: Feb 2002 posted 02-29-2004 10:12 AM                     Thomas, if you had seen those movies in their original forms you would have had an opportunity to witness and appreciate how technically advanced those movies were in their day. In the course of "fixing" them, Lucas made his movies look like something that might have been made just a few years ago -- particularly true in the case of "A New Hope," which was subjected to heavy degree of alteration. Now it's impossible for a newcomer to look at these movies as being special. They're not old and they're not new -- These are not the movies you heard so much about from your parents. I can only understand these SE's in the context of the originals. On its own, "A New Hope (SE)" is little more than "just another sci-fi movie" with cheesy dialogue and a lot of run-of-the-mill visual effects (as compared with truly contemporary movies). For many people back in the day, the visual effects made up for the cheesy dialogue and threadbare plot. So did the music and sound effects. But, let's face it -- today's audiences have heard the "Star Wars" theme even if they haven't seen the movies. We've also heard many kick-ass sound mixes. Dolby Stereo isn't new anymore, it's standard. The best way to honor and preserve "Star Wars" would be to restore it to its original form and love it for what it was.  |  IP: Logged

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