Star Wars: The Original Trilogy (1977-1983)

[bandit29]

Originally Posted by Ernest Rister

Hey, fellow Star Wars vets...question...

I'm staying out of The Last Jedi spoiler threads from here on out. I was nine years old, didn't see The Empire Strikes Back until very late in its original run, by which time, all my friends had seen it and spoiled it rotten. I even read the novelization before I saw the actual film. The conversation turned to "was Vader lying or not?" debates.

When you first saw The Empire Strikes Back, did you know "the twist" before hand? How did you react?

I was 6 in 1980 when I saw the Empire Strikes Back. Twice in two days. I thought Vader was lying to trick Luke lol. Even my Dad didn't want to believe it lol.

[Rodney-2187]

I prefer the Final Cut, but there is no such thing as a bad version of Blade Runner. All of them are infinitely rewatchable.

The Special Editions of Star Wars however are hard for me to watch. Campy humor added to make them similar to the prequels, Greedo shooting, horrible musical number in RotJ, and Hayden Christensen inserted as a Force ghost. I know some like those versions, and I am glad they are available for those who enjoy them, but just release the originals that won Oscars and changed the entire movie industry. Restore the work for posterity. It's part of our cultural history.

[Det. Bullock]

Originally Posted by bobbyh64

You think it’s worse that Scott released all the versions of Blade Runner while Lucas didn’t release the original versions of Star Wars? And the ending of the Final Cut can be interpreted exactly the same as the director’s cut (assuming you were talking about those two versions).

Yep, I'm referring to the ending of both DC and FC.
And regarding the release of the other cuts it was impossible to get them here in Europe for people with a region locked blu ray player until a some years ago and even then it was tied to a gift edition currently out of print.
At least the gift edition wasn't too expensive when I got it (thirty Euros more or less) but it was supremely irritating for me as I hate spending extra money for gadgets, still better than the Lucas situation but not by much.

[dgoswald]

I had Empire Strikes Back spoiled for me when I was a child. I must've been around 7 or 8. My local newspaper would run a poll every few years on the best films of all time, and underneath the entry for ESB it read something like, "The twist to end all twists. We gasped when Darth Vader revealed he was Luke's long lost father...". I hadn't watched any of the SW films at that point (even though I was aware of the significant cultural impact of the films), and it killed any enthusiasm I had to watch them until 2004. I'm still quite disappointed I never got to feel those raw emotions upon the reveal of Luke's parentage that millions of others experienced.

[Cremildo]

I, too, watched ESB knowing the twist. Back when I rented the trilogy on VHS for the first time, as a kid, I wasn't a cinephile, obviously wasn't a SW fan, and didn't care about spoilers.

[Vandal Savage]

I had had the "No, I am your father," twist spoiled by the Marvel Comics adaption, which I probably read fifty times before I actually saw the movie.

[SarahS]

Originally Posted by Vandal Savage

I had had the "No, I am your father," twist spoiled by the Marvel Comics adaption, which I probably read fifty times before I actually saw the movie.

Yep this came out like 5 days before the film. I bought it as well....and knew the twist before opening day.

[mar3o]

Originally Posted by Hardback247

Technically, Anakin rebuilt C-3PO from spare parts. He didn't build him from scratch.

Which doesn't make any sense because we see other 3po units. Heck, we see another 3po unit in the opening scene of A New Hope. Not to mention Cloud City. What, do they come as kits? He wasn't a one-of-a-kind hobby robot. I mean, he was programmed with 6 million forms of communication. Did Annakin teach him all those? Obviously the 3po units are a line of robots, just like the r2 droids are.

[drush9999]

Originally Posted by mar3o

Which doesn't make any sense because we see other 3po units. Heck, we see another 3po unit in the opening scene of A New Hope. Not to mention Cloud City. What, do they come as kits? He wasn't a one-of-a-kind hobby robot. I mean, he was programmed with 6 million forms of communication. Did Annakin teach him all those? Obviously the 3po units are a line of robots, just like the r2 droids are.

There's a protocol droid serving the Jedi espressos at the beginning of The Phantom Menace.

[matirocker]

Originally Posted by mar3o

Which doesn't make any sense because we see other 3po units. Heck, we see another 3po unit in the opening scene of A New Hope. Not to mention Cloud City. What, do they come as kits? He wasn't a one-of-a-kind hobby robot. I mean, he was programmed with 6 million forms of communication. Did Annakin teach him all those? Obviously the 3po units are a line of robots, just like the r2 droids are.

Well yeah, but Anakin building him from spare parts doesn't mean anything... he just used a typical 3PO unit schematic or plan or whatever and just built him with whatever he had. And remember, Anakin didn't get to put the covers on him. Anakin teach the 6 million languages? Are you serious? Its probably just a chip or whatever that they put into droids or whatever containing the languages.

[Rodney-2187]

Pablo Hidalgo this morning via Twitter:

Good morning! What's kept the original theatrical editions off of home video is the same thing that's always been doing that. It's not a studio thing.

[imsounoriginal]

Welp

[IndyMLVC]

Originally Posted by rodneyfaile

Pablo Hidalgo this morning via Twitter:

*sigh*

how old is George again?

[imsounoriginal]

Are we doing that morbid countdown thing now?

And there's no guarantee that would change anything anyway.

[IndyMLVC]

Originally Posted by imsounoriginal

Are we doing that morbid countdown thing now?

And there's no guarantee that would change anything anyway.

Really? You think they won't after he's gone? There's a good amount of change in it for them...if there are enough of us left to buy it, at that point.

[imsounoriginal]

Originally Posted by IndyMLVC

Really? You think they won't after he's gone? There's a good amount of change in it for them...if there are enough of us left to buy it, at that point.

I mean that if Lucas was really that adamant about the UOT never seeing the light of day, he may have written into the sale of Lucasfilm itself. And honestly I wonder how much money they stand to make from releasing the UOT anyway. The really rabid fans like us care, but most of the general public? I dunno. I hope we get em, but if it doesn't happen by 2020 as part of some epic Episodes I-IX 4K mega boxset, I don't think it ever will.

[aiman04]

Originally Posted by rodneyfaile

Pablo Hidalgo this morning via Twitter:

Just as I thought. If that’s true then it’s most certainly not just a simple verbal understanding, he must have put a clause in the acqusition agreement. Which could mean a very, very long wait.

[Rodney-2187]

Originally Posted by aiman04

Just as I thought. If that’s true then it’s most certainly not just a simple verbal understanding, he must have put a clause in the acqusition agreement. Which could mean a very, very long wait.

I always thought that sounded like a crazy conspiracy theory level idea, but now I am starting to think it might be true.

[Croweyes1121]

Whatever. I have all the latest and greatest Despecialized Editions anyway. George Lucas can pound sand.

[ambient_indie]

I really don’t understand why the original and special edition cuts can’t coexist in high quality. The only reason why I’m not thrilled about the special editions is because they’re the only legally available edition on blu-ray. Would I love to send money to Lucasfilm for the original cuts? absolutely! But I have the Despecialized Editions which is better than I’d ever thought was possible unofficially. It’s a shame Lucasfilm treats those original cuts like some estranged ugly step child.