This is topic Star Wars Original Trilogy on dvd??? in forum The Afterlife at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.


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Posted by Miguel Angel Martorell (Member # 1110) on 01-29-2004, 02:28 PM:
 
In Dvdsoon.com you can order a giftset of the original trilogy which hit the streets on october the 19th. Does anyone know something about this release???????.

Un saludo
 

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Posted by Evans A Criswell (Member # 381) on 01-29-2004, 04:06 PM:
 
I don't know if these are legit. I have the Star Wars Trilogy on DVD. I got them on EBay a couple of years back and they're actually good transfers of the laserdiscs (which I also own). They're not anamorphic, though, and are from a composite source, but they're sure convenient, and will do until legitimate versions come out that are anamorphic and from original film elements.
 

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Posted by Miguel Angel Martorell (Member # 1110) on 01-29-2004, 04:31 PM:
 
Yes, I know those dvd´s and I was tempted to own them but I don´t think the guys of dvdsoon dare to sell bootleg dvd´s. Besides a few months ago was rumored that Lord Lucas gave a party at El Presidio and there was announced the upcomming release of the Origian Trilogy dvd´s.

We´ll have to wait

Un saludo
 

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Posted by Michael Gonzalez (Member # 593) on 01-29-2004, 06:49 PM:
 
You know a couple of years ago I would have probably have been excited about the origional trilogy coming to DVD. However, the two prequels have all but spoiled them for me. I have seen the Special Editions when they were released at the theaters. I now own the VHS versons. I have seen them many times over. Unless there is someting really "special" about these DVDs and unless I can find them really cheap (somewhere in the neighborhood of $30.00 for the set), I am probably going pass. I am tired of giving my money to Mr. Lucus.
 

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Posted by Miguel Angel Martorell (Member # 1110) on 01-29-2004, 07:37 PM:
 
I´m with you. Mr Lucas has lived of the rents for a many long time and now he´s back directing, better he stayed at his Skywalker ranch but all my interest and love for the cinema is because of Star Wars. Besides, I love the movie but what I really found interesting of it when I was a kid was that I really wanted to know how those guys could do a spaceship fly or a laser sabre glowed this way.
If I buy the 3 dvd´s is for the extra material not for the film itself. In fact, it seems the 3 films will be the special edition cut so I keep as a treasure my old VHS with no friking CGI.

The price is about $50.
Un saludo and please Lord Lucas don´t fool with an entire generation. Don´t you have enough money???.

By the way, where can I find the "Making of Star Wars" which aired in 1977 on TV????
 

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Posted by Claude S. Ayakawa (Member # 1401) on 01-29-2004, 09:59 PM:
 
George Lucas had originally planned to issue the original "STAR WARS" trilogy in 2006 on DVD after the release of Episode #3 but will most likely put them out later this year in October from reports gathered at the various DVD sites. There was a time when all people talked about was "STAR WARS" and George Lucas, but with Episode #1 and #2 not living up to expectations and the attention shifting to Peter Jackson and his "LORD OF THE RING" trilogy , George Lucas now realize he must act fast and get the original trilogy out before his once loyal fan loses interest and get more involved in the "LORD" trilogy and Jackson's next movie "KING KONG" at Universal. Although I do not personally care very much for Mr. Lucas, I love the original "STAR WARS" trilogy and cannot wait for the DVDs and I think they will be awesome.

I wonder how far he will get with his original demand to theatres owners to set up for digital projection if they expect to get and play Episode #3 on opening day in 2006? If I was a theatre owner, I would show him my middle finger and play something else.

-Claude
 

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Posted by Ron Keillor (Member # 1790) on 01-30-2004, 02:12 AM:
 
I'm satisfied with my ßeta copies, although special effect elements inserts show up surrounded by black squares of a shade different from the backkground.
 

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Posted by Michael Gonzalez (Member # 593) on 01-30-2004, 05:38 PM:
 
You know if they are going to charge $50.00 for these, than they better do the Alien Quadriligy treatment and have BOTH versions of the films on the disks (Han Solo shooting first and all).
 

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Posted by Ron Lacheur (Member # 1126) on 01-30-2004, 07:16 PM:
 
That is the real deal.

The Digital Bits reported toward the end of November or early December last year that indeed Lucas was releasing the films on DVD in September 2004.

It's going to be the special edition only and rumored to be the same type of layout as the Indiana Jones Trilogy.

EDIT:

As in Special Edition, I mean the 1997 version of the films.

[ 01-30-2004, 11:35 PM: Message edited by: Ron Lacheur ]
 

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Posted by Christian Appelt (Member # 1067) on 02-02-2004, 06:11 PM:
 
Didn't Mr. Lucas proclaim in 1997 that the original versions would never be released again because only through the Special Editions his "vision" was put to perfection?

I have heard rumours that Lucasfilm intends to change the original versions again by inserting and recreating sets/actors/effect shots. Does anybody know more about this?
 

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Posted by Ron Lacheur (Member # 1126) on 02-02-2004, 07:21 PM:
 
Nothing is in cement right now has it hasn't been offically stated by LucasFilm. But I'm pretty sure to expect it Q4 of this year.

The Digital Bits reported on the 30th of January that Lucas is " Fixing shots " and basically CG'ing to match the new movies.

If that's the case, it's a pity.
 

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Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 02-03-2004, 06:39 PM:
 
Ron, those "black squares" are matte lines and I believe they are even in some shots of the Special Edition (I'd have to re-check). I've never been able to NOT notice them. They are amazingly distracting.

I have heard that Georgy-poo wants John Williams to put the Empirial March theme somewhere in the original Star Wars. Once he does that, all 6 movies will have that theme. But George won't stop there! Just wait until 2007 for the 30th anniversary super extended special editions! It will contain 1 second of brand new footage!
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 02-03-2004, 07:19 PM:
 
If Lucas keeps upping the bullshit CG-ing in the original trilogy he is going to CG me from the buyers list.

My life doesn't depend on owning a copy of "Star Wars" on DVD. As it stands, I may not buy the "Special Edition" version as is. The only one I'm interested in purchasing is the REAL VERSION that came out in 1977, 1980 and 1983.

If Lucas neglects to offer both cuts on DVD he will be screwing himself out of a lot of money. Most other filmmakers who have explored altering an original cut with an "SE" version have included the original intact. "The Abyss," "E.T.," "The Lion King," "The Lord of the Rings" and "T2" are just a few of the DVDs that come to mind offering original/SE versions.

I can understand Lucas' position of "it's my movie and I'll change it if I want." Well, legally speaking, it may be his movie. But the overall image of "Star Wars" or any other movie belongs to the public once it hits the movie screens, regardless of whether he liked the theatrical cut or not.

For any great movie any of us have enjoyed in the past, we grow attached to keeping the movie exactly as it was, flaws and all. Lucas' continued changes pisses on that memory.

To eliminate the original version is akin to a great rock band erasing their master tapes of a classic album and replacing it with some different glitzed up version with new technology. Regardless of how shiny and new the changed version may be, it still is not the same thing.

I won't mind all of Lucas' CG alterations of "Star Wars" so long as he offers the pure, original, classic version as an alternative. He will be doing a horrible disservice to fans, film historians and the general public as a whole if he doesn't follow through on that point.
 

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Posted by Ron Lacheur (Member # 1126) on 02-03-2004, 08:39 PM:
 
I would like to see Lucas release the Original Trilogy like the Aliens' set that was just recently released.

But then again there are the reports that say that there isn't any behind the scenes footage from back in 1976/1977 when the first Star Wars is being shot. That's a kind of a ridiculous statement though, because Alien came only 2 years after Star Wars and it had quite a bit of supplements for the dvd.
 

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Posted by Dennis Benjamin (Member # 1137) on 02-04-2004, 05:48 PM:
 
I will take STAR WARS in any form on DVD....
 

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Posted by Michael Schaffer (Member # 1204) on 02-04-2004, 10:45 PM:
 
Bobby - well said.
I can sort of believe there isn`t much behind the scenes footage anymore, given the chaotic and hectic circumstances under which the movie was made. But there should be other interesting stuff, outtakes, cutroom floor footage. But reading the articles about the restoration of the print during the mid-90s makes me wonder if that footage isn`t in a very bad state and might be too expensive or difficult to restore to a viewable state. Then again, money shouldn`t be that big a problem for this edition. There should also be some TV stuff like interviews archived somewhere. It would be hilarious to see the filmmakers in their 70s outfit and hairdo. Or if Gilbert Taylor is still alive, they might interview him about how he hated the movie and made the production an even bigger nightmare for Lucas.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 02-05-2004, 08:00 PM:
 
I, for one, am not really all that worried about making-of footage and other supplemental stuff for "Star Wars." My point? I don't want that being an issue that prevents the original, unaltered "Star Wars" Trilogy from hitting DVD. Even if the trilogy were sold as a bare-bones, movie-only item I would buy it. The main thing I want is for the audio and video quality to be well presented.

I also have no problem if a bare bones version of the SW trilogy is sold with another "super duper" version unveiled a year or so later. Lots of DVDs are repackaged and redone numerous times. For example, "Terminator 2" has been sold in three different versions. This is one reason why the original "Star Wars" trilogy should have made it to DVD years ago. There was no point at all in delaying it.

If anything, the delay has cost Lucas lots of money. Consider the possibility of Lucas having released the original "Star Wars" trilogy on DVD back in 1998? He could have gotten away with a non-anamophic laser-disc dub (as so many studios did in the early days of DVD). And then the trilogy could have been resold in separate "original" and "SE" versions with new anamorphic transfers. Then there could have been "Five Star Collection" versions with 2-discs. Finally, there's the new marketing window approaching with the final prequel's theatrical release. Everything could be sold yet again.

Probably the most unfortunate thing about all these "Star Wars" DVD delays is the raised expectations on the product when it is actually released. Elaborate DVD releases like the LOTR 4-disc sets or the new 9-disc Alien Quadrilogy set have raised the standards bar to very high levels. Lucasfilm will be lucky if the eventual release of "Star Wars" on DVD does not feel a bit anti-climatic. This is probably all the more reason for him to release the original, unaltered trilogy with just a few extras and the main focus being great video and audio quality. He can say, "this release is meant to satisfy film purists and we'll have a much more elaborate feature-packed box set with all six films in a future release."

Anyone who reads DVDFile or The Digital Bits on a regular basis knows about the latest "Star Wars" release rumors. Supposedly there may be an announcement from Fox and Lucasfilm regarding the original "Star Wars" Trilogy next Tuesday or possibly sooner. Again, it is all rumor. There's no way to tell if the announcement is made whether the release will be the CG-altered "SE" versions or the "pure" versions.
 

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Posted by Michael Gonzalez (Member # 593) on 02-05-2004, 08:43 PM:
 
They need to include the Star Wars Christmas special as one of the featurettes. I would actually be really interested in seeing it if only to confirm whether or not I have seen it before. I vaguely remember seeing something or another but I would have been two at the time (I heard that it has never been rebroadcast) and I know I have never seen the copy that is available over the internet. It would be kind of neat to remember something that I might have watched when I was that age.
 

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Posted by Michael Coate (Member # 757) on 02-10-2004, 11:43 AM:
 
It's official! The "Original" Trilogy due September 21, 2004.

http://www.starwars.com/episode-iv/news/2004/02/news20040210.html

The Star Wars Trilogy on DVD
February 10, 2004

The most requested films for the DVD format will finally become a reality this September as Lucasfilm Ltd. and Twentieth Century Fox present the eagerly-awaited Star Wars Trilogy for the ultimate home entertainment format. The four-disc collection will be released on September 21 in the U.S. and Canada, with international release dates following closely.

"We know how long fans have waited for this release and how much they have been looking forward to it, so everyone has been working overtime to make sure that the Star Wars Trilogy on DVD is an awesome experience," said Jim Ward, Vice President of Marketing and Distribution for Lucasfilm Ltd. and the DVD collection's Executive Producer.

Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back and Episode VI: Return of the Jedi will be available in a four-disc set that includes a bonus disc filled with all-new special features -- including the most comprehensive feature-length documentary ever produced about the Star Wars saga and never-before-seen footage from the making of all three films. Each of the three films in the Star Wars Trilogy has been digitally restored and re-mastered by THX for superior sound and picture quality.

"First and foremost, the DVDs will deliver the very best possible sound and picture and take advantage of everything the medium can offer. On top of that, we are creating added-value material that gets inside the creation of the Star Wars films in a fresh and fun way," Ward said. "We want watching this DVD collection to be as memorable as seeing the movies for the first time."

The films of the Star Wars Trilogy will be available exclusively as a collection and will feature Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround EX. All three films are closed-captioned and subtitled in English, French and Spanish in the U.S. Internationally, sound and subtitling specifications will vary by territory.

Keep checking starwars.com over the coming months for more specific details about the content of this must-own DVD set.

[ 02-10-2004, 04:27 PM: Message edited by: Michael Coate ]
 

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Posted by Michael Gonzalez (Member # 593) on 02-10-2004, 03:10 PM:
 
From today's USAToday:

http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20040210/5911884s.htm

'Star Wars' on DVD: Special editions only Many extras, but no original versions
By Mike Snider
USA TODAY

The movies that DVD fans have longed for more than any other, the original Star Wars trilogy, finally arrive Sept. 21.

With added scenes and a fourth disc that includes a full-length documentary on the making of the movies, the trilogy is expected to be one of the top-selling DVD titles ever.

But some die-hard followers are certain to blast Lucas and 20th Century Fox for not including the original theatrical versions of the movies in the collection.

In 1997, Lucas rereleased special editions of all three Star Wars films -- Episode IV: A New Hope (1977), Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (1983) -- in theaters. Each film had technological tweaking and added footage.

Those are the versions that will appear on the DVDs.

''The original versions technically don't exist,'' says Lucasfilm's Jim Ward, who is the project's executive producer. ''(Lucas) wanted to represent the films as they exist in his mind, and that's the special-editions versions.''

That will distress a small but vocal minority of fans who have held out hope -- expressed in online petitions and Star Wars Internet chat forums -- that Lucas might include the originals on DVD.

''The general public won't mind, but anybody who is a real fan of the films will,'' says Doug Pratt, who publishes DVDLaser.com and the DVD Laser Disc Newsletter.

Sure to be especially galling to Star Wars stalwarts is that Fox, in last year's Alien Quadrilogy DVD set, included multiple versions of Alien films. ''It would be a shame if they didn't take advantage of that technology,'' Pratt says.

In addition to the fourth disc's full-length documentary, each movie disc will include commentaries from Lucas and members of the cast.

Fox and Lucasfilm are discussing whether to release a collector's edition and a full-frame version, says Fox's Steven Feldstein.
_______________________________________________________________

''The original versions technically don't exist,'' says Lucasfilm's Jim Ward

I wonder if this mean that George plans on buying up all the old VHS versions of the original versions"? That would be putting his money where his mouth is.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 02-10-2004, 05:15 PM:
 
I think this sums it up about those SE versions:
HAN SHOT FIRST!
 

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Posted by Chris Hipp (Member # 1788) on 02-10-2004, 06:17 PM:
 
Who cares about the DVD? Someone should get some 70mm prints and lets meet at Brad's
 

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Posted by Dave Williams (Member # 299) on 02-10-2004, 07:47 PM:
 
I would love to find the LaserDisk THX master set. I had them once, but they were stolen. If I still had them I would master them to DVD. It wouldn't even be a licensing issue since I would have still had the original laserdisk set, and making a copy backup is actually still legal as long as you maintain the original set.

Ciao

dave
 

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Posted by Claude S. Ayakawa (Member # 1401) on 02-10-2004, 09:45 PM:
 
Dave, I feel for you very much and as a victim of a burglary, I know exactly how you feel after losing your precious THX laserdiscs of the original "STAR WARS" trilogy. I still have both the THX boxset of the original and the revised one with 5.1 Dolby Digital sound. These discs were with my my DVD collection and the burglar was more interested in them than my lasers and walked away with a good segment of my collection over a year ago. My laserdiscs were not touched and I still have my "STAR WARS". While many are already complaining the DVD release of the trilogy will not include the original versions, I could care less because I have them on laserdiscs and will make DVD copies as soon as I buy a player that can burn DVDs.

-Claude
 

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Posted by Tao Yue (Member # 836) on 02-11-2004, 06:05 AM:
 
Ron Keillor wrote:

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I'm satisfied with my ßeta copies, although special effect elements inserts show up surrounded by black squares of a shade different from the backkground.

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Ron, those "black squares" are matte lines and I believe they are even in some shots of the Special Edition (I'd have to re-check).

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Surely Ron was talking about garbage mattes, not matte lines?

Matte lines are outlines (usually black) tightly surrounding each individual element -- they're caused in photography (lighting effects near edges), the hi-con printing to get a matte (more edge effects), and compositing (even more edge effects, especially when bipacked).

Garbage mattes are big polygons loosely fitted around an element, and allow longer motion-control moves to be made. These are necessary because in such a long tracking shot, it is impossible to keep the entire background blue, so they only keep the immediate area around the ship blue and garbage-matte out the rest (lights, people, equipment, etc.).

An example is in Star Trek II -- in many scenes where the Enterprise goes from a speck in the distance to filling the screen, you can even see the garbage matte jumping every half second or so as they expand the matte to not cut off the ship.

Garbage mattes also help prevent black density from degrading. Contrast ILM's work on Trek II and EEG/BOSS and Apogee's work on Trek I. You're not going to see any garbage mattes in Trek I, but the deep black of space is often the reddish-gray of space.

Pre-digital-era Cinefex back issues are really interesting, I highly recommend them for people trying to figure out why a certain shot in an old effects film looks phony.
 

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Posted by Thomas Procyk (Member # 1170) on 02-11-2004, 04:19 PM:
 
Oh god, so he's messing with them AGAIN?!? Someone should slap him on the hands every time he reaches for the mouse on the CGI computer.

As a writer myself, I feel that once you say your work is done, and you release it to the huge appreciation of the public as has happened with Star Wars, then that means they love your work for what it is: Your completedwork. The whole story. Now, if you go back and mess with it adding this and removing that and changing this, then that tells all those people that your work really wasn't done but you released it anyway. Maybe to make a fast buck, maybe to gain instant fame, who knows. Or maybe you revisited them later to "jazz them up" as Lucas did, but not releasing the original work is like turning your back on all those people who loved it the first time around.

The special edition grosses should NEVER have been counted with the originals... ITS NOT THE SAME MOVIE!!! Technically, if Lucas said the original versions "Don't exist" then we will never see "Star Wars" on DVD. Only "Star Wars Episode IV A New Hope Special I Need More Money Edition."

Whats more, how does someone explain this to a new generation of kids? "Daddy? I didn't know they had all those digital effects back in 1977!" -- "No. You see son, there's this thing called Greed..."

=TMP=
 

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Posted by Ron Lacheur (Member # 1126) on 02-11-2004, 08:22 PM:
 
I don't know why he's saying the original versions " technically don't exist ". They do exist, I have the THX 1995 restoration boxset in my video cabinet.

Until George releases the ORIGINAL films on dvd, he'll not be getting my sale.

People have been petitioning this for a long time and still he chooses to ignore the fans.
 

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Posted by Hillary Charles (Member # 769) on 02-12-2004, 09:03 AM:
 
For those who believe there's not much behind-the-scenes footage of the production of "Star Wars," I'd like to point out the 1977 television special, "The Making of Star Wars."

I just showed my 16mm print of it yesterday to two friends, and it was like a time capsule. God, I miss Meco and their disco version of the theme!

That special contains a great many behind-the-scenes sequences, of the Tunisia shoot, as well as the studio and special effects work. It would be nice if the tv special could be included on the DVD. At least, there's probably much more raw footage of the making somewhere in the Lucas vaults.

And I agree with those who feel the original versions should be available, because THAT'S the one that everyone in this special saw and motivated them to buy the t-shirts and disco records...
 

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Posted by Darryl Spicer (Member # 711) on 02-12-2004, 11:35 AM:
 

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I would love to find the LaserDisk THX master set. I had them once, but they were stolen. If I still had them I would master them to DVD. It wouldn't even be a licensing issue since I would have still had the original laserdisk set, and making a copy backup is actually still legal as long as you maintain the original set.

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For those who believe there's not much behind-the-scenes footage of the production of "Star Wars," I'd like to point out the 1977 television special, "The Making of Star Wars."

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Wasn't that included on the Star Wars special edition video tape. It seems I remember seeing that again somewhere, or maybe it's just memories returning from the 70's.
 

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Posted by Michael Coate (Member # 757) on 02-12-2004, 12:22 PM:
 

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I'd like to point out the 1977 television special, "The Making of Star Wars."

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Wasn't that included on the Star Wars special edition video tape.

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For those who believe there's not much behind-the-scenes footage of the production of "Star Wars," I'd like to point out the 1977 television special, "The Making of Star Wars." [It] contains a great many behind-the-scenes sequences, of the Tunisia shoot, as well as the studio and special effects work.

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God, I miss Meco and their disco version of the theme!

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Are you thinking of From Star Wars To Jedi: The Making Of A Saga, originally shown on PBS in 1983 and subsequently released on video?

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That very well could be the one I am thinking about. Did C3P0 and R2D2 host that one.
 

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Posted by David Stambaugh (Member # 1102) on 02-12-2004, 12:38 PM:
 
For Episode 1, a certain theater here quietly ditched their usual MovieTunes for non-sync between shows and played the Meco Star Wars Theme! The long version! How cool is that?
 

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Posted by Michael Coate (Member # 757) on 02-12-2004, 12:45 PM:
 

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That very well could be the one I am thinking about. Did C3P0 and R2D2 host that one.

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I don't know why he's saying the original versions " technically don't exist ". They do exist, I have the THX 1995 restoration boxset in my video cabinet.

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• He's playing around with words. George Lucas expressly desires that the original cut not be put on DVD, maybe fans will stop asking for it once they're told it doesn't exist.
• He's telling the truth. During the 1997 making of the special edition, employees of Lucasfilm and Fox were instructed to throw out as many original elements as they could find.

• If it's the first, then the problem is legal, not technical. You won't ever see the original version on DVD (legitimately) during the lifetime of George Lucas, and perhaps not even after that if it's written into his will.
• If it's the second, then in addition to the problems with George Lucas and his will, you'll also have to mount a major restoration effort a la Harris/Katz to piece together good transfer elements for DVD from whatever's left. Yes, complete prints do exist, some in private hands -- but release prints are suboptimal for telecine transfer. The laserdisc transfer could even be reused, but that would not use the full resolution of DVD.

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If Lucas does not release the three original films with the revised versions, he would be making a tremendous mistake

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Before Jackson came along, Lucas was the king of the hill and he considered himself a god.

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Based on what I had just written, the answer to your question is FINANCIAL.

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Doubtful. I'm sure the trilogy DVD set will be among the top-selling DVD releases of all-time, despite the many fan claims of "No Original Version, No Sale."
 

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Posted by Darryl Spicer (Member # 711) on 02-13-2004, 06:25 PM:
 
when it comes to the original Star Wars, that being the one without the Episode 4 A New Hope added to it, there isn't one available on any video form as far as I know.

In my opinion Lucas can do whatever he wants to the film. They are his to do with as he pleases.
 

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Posted by Bill Gabel (Member # 1105) on 02-13-2004, 06:47 PM:
 
Remember in this DVD video age what the companies have done before. When they release a big release like the "Star Wars Trilogy". They sell record numbers of the disc. And a few years or so later they release a even better SPECIAL EDITION of the title. Fox, Warner, Disney and the rest have all done it in the past. Just get ready to buy another set of discs, again.
 

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Posted by Hillary Charles (Member # 769) on 02-13-2004, 09:11 PM:
 
Yes, George Lucas can do anything he wants to his movies, but as the kids on South Park said, that just because they can, doesn't mean they should.

The problem is that "Star Wars" became much more than a movie. It is a cultural touchstone of it's era. It was a phenomenon. Despite Mr. Lucas' dissatisfaction with the special effects, they were groundbreaking, and the entire movie was full of the kind of adventure and fun that had been missing from the cinema for years.

I don't care if the movie is updated with the next generation of holographic special effects whenever they are developed. BUT, the movie that sparked the excitement in 1977 was the move that was actually released in 1977. Film scholars and sociologists who may someday want to examine the film that started it all just won't have that chance.

Let's redo all the effects sequences from "Jason and the Argonauts" with CGI and then use it as an example of Ray Harryhausen's genius.
 

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Posted by Darryl Spicer (Member # 711) on 02-14-2004, 12:13 AM:
 
I agree with what you are saying. WHat I am saying is that he can do what ever he wants to those films because they are his and he has the right to do it. I am not saying that it is the right thing to do. Especially if it is true about the original negatives being destroyed. You can repaint a picture and make it more colorful but you don't throw the original away.
 

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Posted by Michael Schaffer (Member # 1204) on 02-14-2004, 03:36 AM:
 
Another point is that movies are made for people and it is those people who finance the movies by buying tickets and videos (and in the case of Star Wars and some other movies, books, coffee mugs, towels etc). People spend their money on those things because they relate to these movies. In the case of Star Wars more than in any other case, countless millions of people have grown up with these images and it is a vital part of their personal history.
It`s not that all these people ask for something out of line, like having nude footage of Leia added, they just want to have the option to watch the movies as they did when they were kids. Yes, George can do with his intellectual property what he likes, but it is a shame that he simply ignores what a lot of people who have been his fans for decades ask for. Especially as with DVD, you have the option of having both versions on one disc.
 

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Posted by Mike Bianchi (Member # 271) on 02-16-2004, 07:26 PM:
 
Dave W: several THX laserdiscs are listed on ebay right now. They may be of dubious origin, but at least they did/do exist on LD. The DVD's listed are conspicuously shipped from Asia and are certainly dubious, but LD's at least exist legitimately. If it ships from the US and lists some wear on the packaging, it's probably legit. I'd be wary of the "brand new" ones, though.
 

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Posted by Mark J. Marshall (Member # 1409) on 02-16-2004, 10:05 PM:
 
Maybe the negatives don't exist anymore, but there are IB prints in private hands - including in George's hands, and I'd be willing to bet Spielberg has one too. And they're not the only ones that exist. One can easily be scanned into the digital realm, cleaned up a bit, and then dumped to DVD. That's all the fans want. Nothing fancy. And don't change a thing. Just a THX supervised transfer of George's personal IB print would be wonderful. And it would be cheap to do. And he'd make another mint.

Come to think of it, the original versions of the films probably already exists in the form of digital files. Does anyone think George would NOT want to scan them in and preserve them digitally... especially when he was preparing to do the special editions anyway?

He has to have them. I think he's just holding out for a while.
 

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Posted by Mike Olpin (Member # 1115) on 02-16-2004, 10:58 PM:
 

 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 02-16-2004, 11:16 PM:
 
Here's another point of view in all this CG-revisionism in films these days. A film can only be so old before a CG "update" of its visuals will just seem out of place. I think the SE versions of "Star Wars" suffer from that. Sure, a lot of the newer visuals look great. But you know they're not quite at home in those movies over two decades old.

The point made about Ray Harryhausen and stop motion animation was a good one. Most any good film fan would be rightfully outraged if someone came along and decided to replace the swordfighting skeletons with new GGI versions.

Lucas may think he is keeping his films "current" with respect to technology, but he really isn't winning over the newest generation of film fans. They think "The Matrix" and "Lord of the Rings" are the movies that define state-of-the-art now. They're new movies, not something ported over from the 1970's and 1980's. The core fan base of "Star Wars" is NOT the kids of today. People who were kids back in the 1970's & 1980's make up the core fan base of "Star Wars". It only makes sense to have the versions we grew up with available. The news of the release being SE-only rings just a bit hollow.

I don't care how dated the old 1977 "analog" effects look. They're still pretty damned impressive. By comparison, my reaction was not nearly as enthusiastic regarding the newer CGI visuals in the SE versions. You figure, "so what, it's CGI, they can do anything with that stuff." The original visuals defined a new leap forward in motion picture special effects development, and many of the shots were horribly difficult to put together. I think it is a pretty sad thing that film fans and historians are now kept off limits from seeing those visuals. It is a shame that all the hard work in many of those shots is now left on the cutting room floor.
 

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Posted by Darryl Spicer (Member # 711) on 02-16-2004, 11:57 PM:
 
The one scene I found most annoying in the SE of Star Wars A new Hope other than the Han scene being changed around was the whole inclusion of the Jobba the hut sequence. To me it was one big joke and took away from the whole feel of the movie at that point. All fake looking and that rediculous stepping on the tail sequence so he could look like he was walking around.
 

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Posted by Michael Gonzalez (Member # 593) on 02-17-2004, 03:01 PM:
 
You know I had always thought that it would have been better if instead of using a "physical" Jabba the Hut, they should have used a hologram instead (especially considering how much they were used in the films anyway). That way when Han walked around Jabba, he would have just passed through the hologram (maybe causing the hologram to fizzle or something) instead of the stupid stepping on the tail thing.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 02-17-2004, 06:18 PM:
 
The whole Jabba scene in "Episode IV" sucked. The main reason why it sucked was piss poor characterization. The writing was terrible. Jabba the Hut is supposed to be a scary mobster with a reputation worthy of Attila the Hun. Yet, this little addition just paints the villian as some sort of stupid goofball. It's no wonder why the scene remained "unfinished" and cut out of the original 1977 release.

Oh yeah, and it really did look fake when Han stepped over Jabba's tail. Han just looked like he pogo-ed up through the air.
 

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Posted by Paul Linfesty (Member # 214) on 02-17-2004, 10:27 PM:
 
Not only was it bad, it was also redundant. Everything we needed to know was included in the bar scene when Hans fired FIRST!
 

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Posted by Michael Schaffer (Member # 1204) on 02-18-2004, 12:51 AM:
 

quote:

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when Hans fired FIRST!

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quote:

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"We want watching this DVD collection to be as memorable as seeing the movies for the first time."

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I guess they only want our kids, neices and nephews to have that experience coz these ain't what I saw the first time...Or, are they hoping that we'll all be having memory lapses at our age?

If they "technically don't exist" then perhaps there's technically nothing they can do about the inevitable bootleg versions?
 

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Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 02-19-2004, 06:21 PM:
 
I can't believe you guys haven't picked up on the Lucasfilm line of BS.

The 'original versions' of Star Wars "technically don't exist" NOW.

But in a year, when everyone has shelled out for the SE DVDs, the originals will magically surface in a vault and then Lucasfilm will bring out a "by popular demand" Star Wars CLASSICS edition, the original versions NOT SEEN IN 20 YEARS!

And Lucas will laugh all the way to the bank....again.
 

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Posted by Ron Lacheur (Member # 1126) on 02-19-2004, 07:08 PM:
 
I was reading on the HomeTheaterForum about a year ago, a thread that a guy that posted there had in his posession a dvd trilogy set of Star Wars, original versions given to him by Lucas. He said he did some work for Lucas and he gave them to him as a token of his apprication.

He even had photos to prove it. They looked like the early Fox discs ( like True Lies and Strange Days ).
 

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Posted by Mark J. Marshall (Member # 1409) on 09-15-2004, 11:24 AM:
 
Looks like Uncle George tweaked a LOT of little things especially in A New Hope.

There is a list of changes and a ton of screen shots here if anyone is interested.
 

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Posted by Jesse Skeen (Member # 586) on 09-15-2004, 01:33 PM:
 
Since I work for a video and music retailer right now, I've been telling customers not to buy the Star Wars set
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 09-15-2004, 05:39 PM:
 
George Lucas may just stubbornly stick to his guns about this revisionism thing and "Star Wars." I think the original versions will surface, but only after a couple possible developments.

They may surface once visual effects technology and the current paradigms of movie watching change dramatically -thus making things like the "Star Wars" movies very old-hat. They also may surface whenever the copyright runs out and the movies fall into public domain. I'm not sure how many times a movie studio can renew a copyright on a film. But it will eventually fall into public domain. Aw, who am I kidding? I'll probably be dead by the time that happens.
 

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Posted by Mark J. Marshall (Member # 1409) on 09-15-2004, 11:10 PM:
 

quote: Jesse Skeen

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I've been telling customers not to buy the Star Wars set

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quote: Jesse Skeen

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Since I work for a video and music retailer right now, I've been telling customers not to buy the Star Wars set

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quote: Mike Heenan

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Yes it is on VHS. Maybe it's not current in print but it's available. Same goes with the laserdiscs as well (and yes I realize laserdisc is a dead format but VHS is still pretty viable, somewhat).

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