ST Get In Line - A Social Countdown to Episode VII... v. 2.0

Also, I've gotten my hands (finally!) on the those Making of books by Rinzler. Still reading about ANH but damn, those are some great insights in there.
Very thorough, very detailed, love how you get to follow the whole creative process.

I must say, it has given me a new sort of respect for Mr. Lucas.

 

On VHS I have multiple full screen and widescreen versions of the OOT as well as full screen and widescreen versions of the '97 SEs. On DVD, the 2004 box set as well as the individual releases containing the OOT laserdisc ports. And then of course there's the Blu-rays. All told, discounting novelizations and radio dramas, I have 11 different copies of the OT in all its different forms on various formats. I rarely watch the OOT because it looks terrible on my 60" HDTV, but if they released official HD versions, I'd probably mix it up a lot more often.

 

I pretty much never ever watch the '97 SEs, and I think they're by far the worst versions of the movies, but I like having them for completion's sake and to be able to trace the evolution if I want.

Oh, and I don't have the first release of the SEs, but the one I have contains a nifty Episode II preview at the beginning, so I do occasionally watch that when I'm feeling nostalgic for the time leading up to that movie or when I want to grab a quote from Lucas.

 

Well now I'm getting waaaay too excited for Christmas!

 

I still have one! I still use from time-to-time to watch old Cheers tapes.



My Star Wars VHS collection:

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(yeah, I may need to do some cleaning in my room ).


As for the DVD side of things, I've the '04 OT release, and I'm quite happy with that. I will not be buying the Blu-ray due to the changes made in ROTJ, specifically having Vader say "NOOOO" as The Emperor is unleashing his fury on Luke... the scene was powerful as is. Vader's silence, knowing the mental quarry he's going through at that moment spoke volumes enough. And, this may sound sacrilege to many of you, but I don't have much of a desire to ever own any copy of the O-OT on DVD/Blu-ray. As I've mentioned before in the previous GIL, my introduction to Star Wars was the '97 Special Editions, so I'm always going to hold to dear to my heart/will defend its merits when it's necessary to do so.

 

I've got the OOT on VHS and the Complete Saga on Blu-Ray. I have a functioning VCR, but it's hooked up to a smaller TV that we keep on a cart in the closet. It's a lot of trouble to get out and set up, so I usually just watch the Blu-rays.

 

As much of a saga fan as I am (and most people here know I've traditionally been 100% supportive of anything Mr. Lucas has wanted to do with his film series), I still have moments when I get nostalgic for the time when I was growing up before there were any such things as Special Editions or prequels, and loving Star Wars was a totally uncomplicated matter because as far as I knew there wasn't anybody who didn't simply love every bit of it. It's a good feeling to recall, and it makes me somewhat sympathetic to those who are still resentful for having to let go of that feeling and move out of the past into new territory, but it's a rare indulgence for me and I don't really feel like I've lost anything in the process as long as those VHS tapes are still on my shelf. If they were good enough back then, they should be good enough now. Heck, I never even had widescreen versions back in those days.

 

Despite the obvious fact that it was that particular version of the OT that made Star Wars what it is today, all the bad effects shots in the O-OT would be too distracting for me to watch again. That, and I just enjoy the ending in ROTJ in the Special Editions a hell of lot more (that particular piece of music from Williams is among my favorites throughout the whole saga). The only upside in the O-OT would concern ANH... Han shot first, damn it.

 

Of all the movies, the one I enjoy the original version of most is ROTJ, just because of how different it is. Although there are far more alterations to ANH, most of them are smaller and more in the line of effects touch-ups whereas the alterations to ROTJ are much more in your face. I like all the versions just fine, and I love the new ending music, but there are times when I just want to hear Lapti Nek and Yub Nub and see the Sarlacc as a hole in the ground with tentacles and teeth. In fact, although I grew to love it, I thought the SE totally ruined ROTJ the first few times I saw it. As for ANH, I didn't like the first version of the Jabba scene which has since thankfully been redone, but I never cared one iota for who shot first.

 

Yes, the change in Jabba from the '97 release to how he looks in the '04 (DVD) release was a welcomed one. My least favorite change since '97 was the addition of Hayden at the end of ROTJ in the '04 DVD... should have stuck with Sebastian Shaw.

 

I never minded Hayden either. It's easy enough to justify with a bit of applied logic, and the emotional resonance of that moment when watching the saga chronologically is greatly increased for me. I love how much ROTJ feels like it picks up where the prequels left off and merges Anakin's story with Luke's anyway, so all the things they've added to tie the saga together just make it work even better for me.

 

Aside from the unnecessary changes, the coloration of the O-OT is much better than in the SE, imo. All the washed out colours give a western vibe, something that is missing in quite a few scenes in the SE (especially when the X-Wings are flying towards the DS).

The whole western feel is also lost when you see Jabba yelling like a fool or funny droids in the background. Original ANH Tatooine is a more serious location than after the changes which made it seem far more goofy.

 

I can agree to some of that argument, but Mos Eisley still comes off as an iffy place in the SE versions of ANH in my eyes. And in my humble opinion, the improvements made on many of the X-Wing shots in ANH were some of the best SE improvements that were made... better sense of the machines, better grasp of the scene in being able to see a more detailed X-Wing.

 

Looks like in a video game, imo.

 

Yeah my only problem with the newer versions of the OT stem from the transfers on which all the work has been built upon since the 2004 DVDs, including color problems, black crush and excessive DNR covered up by artificial grain. My greatest hope is that with Disney's money they can not only restore the OOT, but the newest versions as well, which will be much more difficult since there have been so many visual effects piled on top of those subpar transfers now. If they ever do restore the OOT, it will probably end up looking miles better than the current blu-rays.

 

Darth_Pevra That's very much the product of CGI in the mid-90's. Say Lucas had waited to '07 to do the OT SE's, I'd imagine that those particular X-Wing shots would look better.

 

That video there, a segment from ABC's Nightline circa 1983, is worth a viewing. No matter the disagreements we have over the SE changes to the OT, or which versions of the OT one prefers, those films still maintain magical/entertaining/fascinating elements that have made the films endlessly enjoyable on repeat viewings... it's why they'll forever live on in our culture.