Star Wars: The Complete Saga (1977-2005)

[JamesKurtovich]

Originally Posted by radagast

What is this thread about again? I'm lost.

Star Wars

Shaft, the changes are more than what you make them out to be. Entire scenes have been added and changed along with many new additions sprinkled over the trilogy... a lot of fans agree that most of the changes were unnecessary, do nothing but call attention to themselves (the "Three Stooges" droids, fake stormtroopers, things cluttering up the shot, etc.) and distract the viewer. Not to mention the removal of Lapti Nek and Yup Nub! ... Or whatever those Ewoks were singing at the end of Jedi.

I like some of the changes (Biggs/Luke scene, for example) but the cons far outweigh the pros for me. I prefer the unaltered editions because the big mistakes George made with the SE's worsen the movie watching experience significantly. Empire is the least tampered with and that could be one of the reasons why it's the favorite.

[IndefinentBlu]

Originally Posted by JamesKurtovich

Star Wars

Than that is what we should talk about.
This thread is about the blu-rays.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by Lope de Aguirre

There is difference between action scenes where they hero's don't get shot but are afraid and in danger and the ones in the PT where the Jedi are so unbeatable (and know that) that they have fun and act cool while slicing these toy droids.

If it were the same in the OT than Luke would dodge all the shots with the the Lightsaber and run to them and sly every last one of them in pieces without any problem.

Man that would have been boring...

Pffft. I love seeing the PT Jedi slice and dice with aplomb, and the choreography of the actual saber battles is beautiful. Sure, it's "like a dance" or whatever. But the Jedi have passed along this art of fighting over thousands of years, so why wouldn't it come to a point where the style has become ever more fluid and graceful?

The style then gets reset for the OT, becoming grittier and more to the point, and it's a contrast that I really appreciate because none of these guys are in their prime. Luke has only just started, Ben's been rotting in a shack for 20 years and Vader's a lot less mobile than he used to be. Even when Luke does start deflecting blaster fire and cutting people down in a "boring" prequel-style manner (on Jabba's sail barge) he gets tagged by a shot because he's still not as good as his PT Jedi brethren.

[Bluyoda]

Originally Posted by Jay444

Color is certainly an improvement, but its a little too bright (giving the washed out look). Either way, I am honestly looking forward to seeing TPM in blu ray. I don't think it has ever looked good on home media (or tv broadcast for that matter). Its a very bright and colorful movie (in contrast to the other two prequel films) and I think it is going look great if the transfer is done well (and we all have good reason to have a few doubts). But I am looking forward to it.

I think so too. I firmly believe that it will be the best presentation of TPM ever, along with the few digital screenings it received.

I can't wait to see Naboo in all its breathtaking glory!

Originally Posted by danny_boy

Right on!
There needs to be a distiction made between the 35mm camera negative which has 4k resolution(but which is not projected and nobody ever sees it) and the 35 mm release prints seen in cinemas which have a resolution of approx 700-800 lpph which is roughly the equivalent of digital 720p!

Check out this comparison made as far back as 1999 when the phantom menace was released:

So how is the quality of the digital image? During a press conference held on June 17 at the AMC Burbank 14 multiplex, a short clip was shown in a split screen: Half the image was from a new, high-quality film print, and the other half was from the digital "print." Once the two images were manually synchronized, the difference was remarkably clear: The digital image was much sharper, with much better color fidelity than the film print. For example, the Jedi council room has large windows through which the sky is visible. In the digital image, the sky and clouds were clearly delineated, but they were blurred into a bluish blob on the film side of the screen. Rick McCallum, one of the producers of The Phantom Menace and a press-conference panelist, said the digital version is a much more accurate representation of what they shot than the film version.

http://www.ultimateavmag.com/content...wntown-burbank

Interesting. Most interesting. Thanks for the link. I had read it somewhere but totally forgot.
The BDs are going to blow us away!

Originally Posted by Dynamo of Eternia

I doubt that in a 100 years Star Wars will have any kind of mainstream appeal. If it does, it will be because new content is still being produced (whether it be a continuation of the existing stories or flat out remakes), and it will be the newer stuff that people will be interested in. Average 'mainstream' audiences 100 years from now probably aren't going to be casually watching the original SW films in large numbers.

So, this idea that everyone will only know and care about his 'perfect versions' and not remember the originals is nothing more than a fantasy that will never come true.

I doubt that. I think SW will live on, as the stories are timeless.
Only time will tell.
Perhaps no mainstream appeal, but the masses have always had bad taste mostly. Just look at the boxoffice successes these days.

Originally Posted by kamphausd1

Now you see, that's something I've never been able to understand about the man. I mean, even if some of the effects in the original film didn't fully meet his expectations, it still broke box office records, wowed audiences, garnered critical and commercial acclaim, won seven academy awards and was nominated for an additional 3 (including best picture), inspired countless filmmakers of today from Peter Jackson, Frank Darabont, James Cameron and so on, spawned an entire franchise of tie-in material, and basically changed the movie industry as we know it. And yet none of that was good enough for him apparently. If I made a movie that didn't fully meet my expectations in the end but still managed to do all those things, nothing in the world would please me more. It just seems to me like Lucas has a huge insecurity complex and instead of being proud of his own accomplishments, all he ever seems to do these days is see flaws in his old work. He's fully entitled to, but it's just very unfortunate.

I see what you mean. However, I fully understand his decisions.

Some things couldn't be done back then, and other things like the young Anakin was a mere toddler at best when ROTJ was made, so the timeline in which the movies were made forced him to insert them 21 years later, which I find really neat btw..
The essence of the movies is exactly the same. The story hasn't been changed one bit.
Anyone telling me Greedo shooting first has any effect just makes me crack up, as it happens so quickly I can't even see it unless I play it back in slow motion.

Originally Posted by Kinetic_Blue

I don't, I'm getting the 9-Disk Collector's edition.
I love the Prequels, i like the majority of the changes (Luke screaming in Empire I can do with out.) to the Originals. I hope the films (All 6) have more scenes inserted into them, and more updated effects. Even if they don't i only want one thing to be fixed and thats the White / Green LightSaber Blade in A New Hope to be fixed back to Blue.

I have the DVD's with the UOT, I don't need another of them.

If I am not mistaken, Luke's scream has been taken out again already.

Originally Posted by O_V_N

My God guys I was joking about the weight thing...

You'd better not kid around with these geeks. They take everything dead serious.

[IndefinentBlu]

Naboo isn't the only thing that will be breath taking.

DON'T FORGET:

1)Kamino with it's rain and storms and don't forget the sound of the waves and, the wind will be amplified greatly.

[IndefinentBlu]

And don't forget the clash and hum and flashing of light from the lightsabers.

OR:

The Death Star trench rum and the explosion of the Death Star.

OR:

The Amplified heavy breathing of Vader.

[PeterTHX]

Originally Posted by kamphausd1

Now you see, that's something I've never been able to understand about the man. I mean, even if some of the effects in the original film didn't fully meet his expectations, it

Richard Edlund, visual effects supervisor at ILM at the time, in a 1980 interview with Cinefex, calls the original Star Wars FX 30% of what they wanted to do. THIRTY percent!

From the get go they've always been dissatisfied with what they did. Why can't you understand that?

[PeterTHX]

Originally Posted by kamphausd1

No, really? Wow, I had absolutely no idea. I fail to see how that statement of the obvious discredits my post

Because it adds nothing to a conversation/debate that's been long exhausted here. The BDs will be the Special Editions. They are not ncluding the originals. Period. End of story.

How is that the point you were trying to make? If the special editions had been released in 1977 initially, then that would have been the original version and nobody would have ever seen any other version else, so of course they never would have complained. But they weren't the original versions released. It's just hard to understand what point it is you're trying to make here?

Because he did NOT radically alter the films, the plot and characters (save for a debatable Han not-shooting-first) did not change one iota. Even the Han thing, he still was a cynical bad-ass to me until he was frozen in carbonite.

[Batman1980]

Originally Posted by PeterTHX

Richard Edlund, visual effects supervisor at ILM at the time, in a 1980 interview with Cinefex, calls the original Star Wars FX 30% of what they wanted to do. THIRTY percent!

From the get go they've always been dissatisfied with what they did. Why can't you understand that?

I wish more people would understand that, just because A New Hope was released in theatres in 1977, it doesn't mean they were happy with the finished product, I believe a large number of the people involved with making it were even convinced that the movie would fall flat on its face.

[Bluyoda]

Originally Posted by IndefinentBlu

Naboo isn't the only thing that will be breath taking.

DON'T FORGET:

1)Kamino with it's rain and storms and don't forget the sound of the waves and, the wind will be amplified greatly.

Almost every single shot of the PT is pure poetry!

I can't wait to experience the sights and sounds from a Galaxy far, far away.

Originally Posted by PeterTHX

Richard Edlund, visual effects supervisor at ILM at the time, in a 1980 interview with Cinefex, calls the original Star Wars FX 30% of what they wanted to do. THIRTY percent!

From the get go they've always been dissatisfied with what they did. Why can't you understand that?

Ron Howard said the same in the ILM documentary "Creating the Impossible".
Ron said to George he was blown away, but George told him that he had only gotten 30% of what he originally wanted.

The Cinefex interviews with George Lucas are truly excellent and a must read for any fan. I have the TPM, AOTC, ROTS and issue 65.

[IndyMLVC]

Originally Posted by PeterTHX

Richard Edlund, visual effects supervisor at ILM at the time, in a 1980 interview with Cinefex, calls the original Star Wars FX 30% of what they wanted to do. THIRTY percent!

From the get go they've always been dissatisfied with what they did. Why can't you understand that?

Oh yeah? And Jaws was supposed to have the shark in it a TON more.

It doesn't mean it would be a better movie with those changes.

Perhaps the movie is popular because of what it take to ORIGINALLY make it...and not because of whatever changes were made after the fact.

OT all the way.

[JamesKurtovich]

Originally Posted by PeterTHX

Richard Edlund, visual effects supervisor at ILM at the time, in a 1980 interview with Cinefex, calls the original Star Wars FX 30% of what they wanted to do. THIRTY percent!

From the get go they've always been dissatisfied with what they did. Why can't you understand that?

That's just another example of Star Wars being great because of the technological restrictions of its time. If the SE's are what they originally had in mind, then they can keep that extra 70%.

More is not always better.

A lot of the changes aren't just stuff they couldn't do either. Just stuff that Lucas apparently decided he didn't like years after the movies came out (Han/Greedo, dialogue, music, et cetera).

Originally Posted by PeterTHX

Because it adds nothing to a conversation/debate that's been long exhausted here. The BDs will be the Special Editions. They are not ncluding the originals. Period. End of story.



Because he did NOT radically alter the films, the plot and characters (save for a debatable Han not-shooting-first) did not change one iota. Even the Han thing, he still was a cynical bad-ass to me until he was frozen in carbonite.

This is common for SE/PT fans to say... "PT came out years ago, get over it. Lucas is not releasing the UOT, get over it. Nobody cares if you're not buying SW because of the changes, so get over it. This has been talked about already, get over it." Nonsense! That's not the end of the story for people who will continue to argue for the UOT. From what I have seen on IMDB, Amazon, here, and starwars.com, this is going to chase Lucas around for a long time depending on when he decides to bring back the UOT in what will probably be his biggest release ever.

[Duffy12]

Originally Posted by JamesKurtovich

... a lot of fans agree that most of the changes were unnecessary, do nothing but call attention to themselves ...

And don't forget the one with Boba-Fett winking into the camera for us fanboys.

[Show spoiler]

[Jay444]

Originally Posted by IndyMLVC

Oh yeah? And Jaws was supposed to have the shark in it a TON more.

It doesn't mean it would be a better movie with those changes.

Perhaps the movie is popular because of what it take to ORIGINALLY make it...and not because of whatever changes were made after the fact.

OT all the way.

I have to agree. In some cases, less is more. In Star Wars and Jaws, that is indeed the case. Jaws would not be a masterpiece of Hitchcock style horror if the shark worked as planned. There is a reason Spielberg doesn't like to go back and re-edit his films (God bless him for keeping Indy the way Indy is supposed to be).

70% more in special effects would still add ZERO percent more to the story. A lot of you seem to prefer style over substance I think. Adding things in seems to take away from the movie's experience. For example; Boba Fett in ANH, where the damn actor LOOKS at the camera to almost say "Hello, I am awesome." That addition removes the audience from the experience. Needless addition in a pointless scene (we know everything we need to from Han's interaction with Greedo). There was a reason it was cut 30 years ago...

Anyway, I enjoy the PT just as much as anyone. But it is eye candy overload and if they concentrated a bit more on story over how many cars they can cram in the Coruscant sky, they might have had some amazing movies. Just opinion though.

[Jay444]

Originally Posted by Duffy12

And don't forget the one with Boba-Fett winking into the camera for us fanboys.

[Show spoiler]

HA! You beat me to it! Nice!

[Rinzler]

So... Anyone dying to hear John Williams score in lossless audio? Also, as much as everyone hates AOTC, the scenes in the Geonisian factory to the end credits will be demo material for me, along with the Darth Maul fight at the end of TPM, god forbid more convincing be done, I shall default to

[Show spoiler]the deaths of the Jedi

in ROTS. Those scenes will be fantastic. I am also looking forward to the bike chase in ROTJ, heck I am looking forward to all six, and BRING ON THE BONUS MATERIAL! I think I am getting too excited...

[Duffy12]

Originally Posted by Jay444

HA! You beat me to it! Nice!

Yea, when I saw the SE in the theater when it was re-released I let out one big groan when he did that.

BTW, that whole scene luckily is easy to bypass just by hitting the 'Next Chapter' button on the remote thankfully.

[Duffy12]

Originally Posted by KennedyZL

So... Anyone dying to hear John Williams score in lossless audio? Also, as much as everyone hates AOTC, the scenes in the Geonisian factory to the end credits will be demo material for me, along with the Darth Maul fight at the end of TPM, god forbid more convincing be done, I shall default to

[Show spoiler]the deaths of the Jedi

in ROTS. Those scenes will be fantastic. I am also looking forward to the bike chase in ROTJ, heck I am looking forward to all six, and BRING ON THE BONUS MATERIAL! I think I am getting too excited...

YES!

My biggest hope for a 'Special Feature' is an isolated soundtrack without title cards!

If they included that, I would probably wear out my 'New Hope' and 'Empire' BDs from overuse.


.

[Bluyoda]

Originally Posted by KennedyZL

So... Anyone dying to hear John Williams score in lossless audio? Also, as much as everyone hates AOTC, the scenes in the Geonisian factory to the end credits will be demo material for me, along with the Darth Maul fight at the end of TPM, god forbid more convincing be done, I shall default to

[Show spoiler]the deaths of the Jedi

in ROTS. Those scenes will be fantastic. I am also looking forward to the bike chase in ROTJ, heck I am looking forward to all six, and BRING ON THE BONUS MATERIAL! I think I am getting too excited...

Boy, you betcha!

I love AOTC!

I am excited about pretty much everything, at least in the PT.

Score wise these are going to be awesome!

[OG Pooh]

Originally Posted by Duffy12

Yea, when I saw the SE in the theater when it was re-released I let out one big groan when he did that.

BTW, that whole scene luckily is easy to bypass just by hitting the 'Next Chapter' button on the remote thankfully.

Say what you will about Greedo shooting first, Jabba's tail, The Sarlacc, etc, etc...

[Show spoiler]Boba's wink

was the cheesiest addition to the SEs, bar none.