Burning Question

This confused/bothered me. I think I know the answer to the question, but it still doesn't make any sense.

Lucasfilm has put TONS of time and enery and money into the new DVDs. They've painstakingly touched up several scenes, added new speical effects and cgi, etc... touched up colors, totally remastered the films... for (for now anyway) the ULTIMATE DVD collection of the star wars trilogy.

Why then, would they release a full-screen version of the films? This makes no sense. ESPECIALLY as home televisions are becoming more popular in the widescreen format. The pan/scan versions are missing A LOT of the picture. It just seems...insane.

The number of casual movie buyers that WILL NOT watch a widescreen home video has to be decreasing. Why pander to them?

 

also, obviously, there are a lot of new releases on dvd that only come out in widescreen, and they all seem to sell pretty well.

what could have prompted this SW pan/scan release?

 

You forget the people who cannot aford huge TV's who still watch TV on the 12" screens. Ever tried to watch a wide screen film on a 12" TV screen? There are still households out there with smaller TV screens. They love Star Wars too.

 

but why would you pander to 12" tv people?

it seems odd for a movie as visual as Star Wars. lucas mentality has always been to push technology... just seems...odd is all.

 

You have to remember there are still TONS of folks that believe that those "little black bars" are robbing them of the total experience. Seriously. WE know that letterboxing is as close to the theatrical experience you'll get, but many people believe they're being "cheated" by those little black bars. Sad but true.

 

well, no. i do realize all that. i understand that those people are out there.

but with a movie like star wars, and a techno-dude like lucas it just blows my mind that fullscreen versions of these films are out there.

if anything, only release widescreen and train these people for the future.

i mean, in a few years when all tvs are 6x9s, these people who bought fullscreen dvds will have black bars...on the sides.

 

"but why would you pander to 12" tv people?"

Ummm because Star Wars should be shared by everyone .... Not the fortunate ones that can afford a bigger TV. I have a huge TV but if I was a director, I would want everyone rich or poor to be able to share my creation. And there are still villas in Italy who have small TVs but yet have VCRs and DVD players. Go figure.


Lemme ask you a question....

Have you ever seen a vinyl record? And have you ever seen a record player, or know what it is? People who use these still exist. Granted, no one makes records any longer, but the technology is still being used. Just like the smaller TVs.

 

boy, you took a wrong turn with your analogy.

yes. i own a record player, and hundreds of records. and, yes, they do STILL press and release vinyl. it's still a thriving industry in the independant music circuit.

now, based on your analogy...

why don't major record companies still make vinyl? shouldn't they? i mean, I STILL HAVE A RECORD PLAYER. shouldn't they make records, and for that matter, 8-tracks...

your analogy holds no water. it's sunk. i TOTALLY get lucasfilm's idea for releasing a fullscreen version of the film.

i just think it's rediculous.

if they want to release the movies for everyone, there should also be NEW copies on vhs, and there isn't.

 

Why argue? I don't see what the controversy is and fail to see why it is such an issue...

 

no controversy. none at all.

i'm a huge fan of movies. and I'M SO HAPPY with dvds. it's great that most people are following the criterion edition/laser disc mentallity of including not only high-quality transfers, but also deleted scenes, trailers and much, much more, incluing original theatrical widescreen aspect ratios.

those were SO HARD to get on vhs. i think people just assumed there was no market for it...and the general public always thought the picture was getting cropped.

well, fast forward 15 or so years, and here we are in a golden age of home movies. the general public is getting very tech savy, and many films ONLY come out in widescreen formats.

but then there's star wars. probably (one of) the most technologically advanced films of it's time (then or now, with the PT), released by the director who pushes technology like crazy (digital projectors anyone?)...

and his film comes out in an alternate "dumbed-down" fullscreen version, depriving those who buy it 1/3 or so of all the new and old hard-work put into the films?

it just seems downright silly. that's all. not controversial, just silly.

 

better yet why not just include both formats together like some dvds do ?

 

better yet...

why make it at all??

this is STAR WARS. if anything, this is a VISUAL trilogy. i wouldn't pour millions into a new release to offer a cropped version.

but, that's me. and if you read these boards at all, you'll see lucas and i don't see eye to eye.

 

ferelwookie is right.

Plus, huge chains like Wal-Mart still stock tons of full screen DVDs for the uneducated masses that shop at their stores, and the cash they offer to buy full screen versions makes it a sound business decision for LFL.

It comes down to money and 8th-grade educations

 

ok. yeah. i agree. that's what i figured, but again...odd.

anyway, let's assume that lucasfilm ONLY released widescreen. do you think that would have in ANY WAY affected sales?

i don't.

i think folks worldwide would just be happy to get star wars on dvd.

 

i think folks worldwide would just be happy to get star wars on dvd.

Really? I thought Lucas had given the entire world the collective finger by giving them what they begged for

I think the sales would have still been very good, but not quite as good. I think sales numbers are measured by how many the stores buy, not how many consumers buy (I could be wrong).

Chains would buy a certain quantity of a product as long as x number were widescreen adn y number were fullscreen. Even though anyone with a brain knows widescreen is better, stores still buy fullscreen.

 

Frankly, I could care less what you think of an analogy you say I was trying to make.

I was just trying to explain to you that some people like that version better, and some have TVs too small to get the great effect of the wide screen versions.

But I agree it is a sound investment for Lucasfilm to make both versions. Why not try to please everyone instead of a few

 

Every full screen DVD should open with a short clip explaining why OAR is the shiznet and why full screen = fool screen.

L8r

 

>>Frankly, I could care less what you think of an analogy you say I was trying to make.

I was just trying to explain to you that some people like that version better, and some have TVs too small to get the great effect of the wide screen versions.

But I agree it is a sound investment for Lucasfilm to make both versions. Why not try to please everyone instead of a few<<

well, you make an analogy to prove a point by using a similar example. your example was flawed, making your 'point' invalid.

i KNOW that some people like it better. but this movie could set a collective example of how movies should be viewed at home.

and as to why not please everyone? if he wanted to do that, he'd release the ORIGINAL original trilogy as well. so, there.

 

by the way...

i'm not looking for answers with this thread. i'm not looking for explinations of 'casual dvd buyers' and their prefrence for fullscreen movies.

it just struck me as odd, that fullscreen versions were made available after all the VISUAL glory and painstaking time put into digitally revamping the trilogy.

thought i'd share my confusion with some like-minded fans.

 

Invalid point eh?

I think your entire point is invalid. What you are proposing is to narrow this movie down to a wide screen version. Which agreed is the best way to see it IF you have the TV or viewing screen to enjoy it. But, for some who don't have the capabilities, and love Star Wars as much as us who do, like the full screen because they believe they get "more bang for their buck."

So hence, you are spouting a narrow minded way of thinking.

But no worries, I won't be back in this thread. It is pointless to try and explain this in a simple manner when someone has such a narrow minded point of view on the subject.


Tootles

 

ROLLS EYES!

 

i'm not looking for explinations of 'casual dvd buyers' and their prefrence for fullscreen movies.

You're using casual buyers as a derogatory term for people who don't share your feelings about widescreen vs. fullscreen, so I'll put it this way.

A lot of people are poor. (I'm one! ) We don't have thousand-dollar TVs just because consumerist culture encourages us to throw out our old TVs and buy new ones every year. If you have a small TV, the picture becomes even smaller when you watch a movie in widescreen, so the black bars are effectively robbing you of something. That's why some people with small screens prefer to avoid buying widescreen.

 

i'm not rich. i have a modest 27" tv, with internal speakers.

but, if i had an 11" b&w, i would still buy widescreen. why deprive myself of less of a movie?

i've actually put off buying movies i love, because they're only availble in fullscreen. (i guess that goes both ways.)

but all of this is ok. LET'S ALL IGNORE THIS THREAD.

it seems impossible to have a casual conversation on these boards. i have spent a long time on other message boards where we can all converse casually on a number of topics, and people rarely get upset and leave threads in a huff.

i didn't think this would escelate into someone leaving and slamming the door.

argh.

 

Some people still prefer the full-screen. My mother is amoung them, for reasons I don't quite understand.

Basically, the reason they made the full-screen is because it will sell. Money is what they are after, in the end. The more money, the better.

People who don't want full-screen will buy wide-screen, but people will still buy the former.




The Cleric 007

 

Frankly, I'm going to say this is a business decision. I'm sure there have been all sorts of marketing studies done on consumer purchasing habits that calculate the cost/benefit analysis of producing just widescreen, just fullscreen, or both, and the marketing people have found that if you produce both, you make more money.

I know Lucas is very keen on pushing new technology, and presenting his films in the way that HE intended them to be seen, but lets face it, if we ONLY got to see Star Wars the way Lucas intended it, we'd NEVER get a home video release of any kind because Lucas has said himself that these films are meant to be seen on the big screen, and in 1977, home video was in its very infancy. The choice to release in wide and fullscreen versions is, plain and simple, a business decision, and we all know that Lucas is a very keen businessman - that's how he's become what he is today.