CT STAR WARS LEGACY EDITION - RESTORATION OF THE 1977 ORIGINAL STAR WARS

Mike Verta is doing an AMAZING job with this restoration. I can only hope to watch it, one of these days. Disney/Lucasfilm would be foolish not to officially release it as the Restored 1977 Star Wars. I've frequented the Vimeo videos and love all of the insight. I'm a HUGE fan of Harmy's Despecialized Edition. It's certainly THE BEST version of the Original Trilogy widely available right now.

I grew up with the 1995 VHS releases. I also grew up with the 1998 Special Edition, and have seen the 2004 and 2011 editions, as well. There are special edition changes that I prefer over the originals, and some that I absolutely hate. But more than anything, I HATE the way the coloring was altered on these later releases. There are things that I've just never understood, as far as "upgrading" these films.

As much as I would love to see a restoration project for the original original trilogy, I would also like to see a definitive upgrade of the Star Wars Special Editions. I wish there was someone to lay down the LAW, of what changes are acceptable, and what changes need to be reverted back to the original form, in order to make the "Absolute" edition of Star Wars. It's highly unlikely this will ever happen in an official capacity, however, I hope that a stellar fan edit mashing up a RESTORED original original trilogy with a color corrected Special Edition will one day surface, in the future. Obviously, to make that happen, we first need the original original trilogy to be released in Blu-Ray quality.

And I hope that before I leave this Earth, I'll be able to watch Mike's Star Wars Legacy edition. I want to see it as much as I want to see The Force Awakens in December. Simply amazing work.

 

Why make any changes at all? What does it really add to the story?

There have been multiple attempts at 'updating' the OT and all failed so I don't see any more changes happening ever again. The versions they released on BD will most likely remain the official 'canon' versions forever. Which is fine if you like them but I think they're garbage.

Still hoping for my OOT.

 

The only change that was necessary was the addition of the Bigg scene at the end of the ANH. I'll throw in the CGI replacements for the ships in the battle of the Death Star, however the editing is a bit off considering the scene was no originally shot with fast paced ships.

The Biggs scene actually enhances the story. It enhances the relationship between Luke and Biggs, who is only a throw away line at the beginning of the film, and a blown up pilot at the end. Luke still shows no reaction to his death either way, but it at least makes their friendship more solid for that part of the story.

To bad the unedited version of that scenes was not included in the release. In the original Red Leader reveals that he fought with Lukes father in the Clone wars. It adds so much, because shortly after Red Leader is shot down by the very man he fought with.

 

It wasn't about adding to the story. Back when he started making the first film, the technology wasn't really there. His imagination was at a ten and the technology was at a three. He had to make compromises on what he wanted to do, while pushing what could be done. While he was satisfied with some of the film, there was still plenty that bothered him. Enough so that when Fox wanted to re-release the film for an anniversary re-release, Lucas said that he would allow them to be released, but that he was going to go in and make some changes. So the stuff that he put in was stuff that he wanted to do that he couldn't do before. He was also testing out the technology to see if some things could be done on the PT or not. That is why he changed them.

They failed? All three re-releases in 1997 were very successful. Lucas made changes in 04 for the DVD release because he wanted some things to match up to the other films. The Blu-Ray changes were just minor modifications. But each DVD and Blu-Ray set did well for Lucasfilm and Fox. And they're doing well for Disney now. So, they are successful.

 

Because when they looked at the movies on large HDTV screens back 20 years ago they realized that there were a lot more "problems" with them than maybe even they realized. Star Wars is known for cutting edge VFX and the movies especially ANH weren't that anymore. They looked like the old movies they were.

Optical compositing had come a long way because of the movies themselves.

By making it look as visually stunning as people remembered as opposed to what it actually looked like. Which was not terrible of course but not near as good as people would expect it to be due to their memories.

All have been amazing successes as far as box office, DVD, BD and digital sales go so all objective measures have been reached.

Rumors are that there are some.

Well until otherwise re the above then that is most likely.

I think they are excellent. Same story, same characters, same artistic vision guiding them.

 

all true but people should be able to own the version they like in hd.

 

What's the situation with Mike's restoration currently? I mean, did he manage to have his meeting with Disney and/or LFL?? Thanks.

 

He last gave an update on the status of the project a few weeks back. He said he's finishing up some work-work, and then he's going to put together a presentation for whoever it is that has a say in this matter. However, whether or not he's actually talked to anyone about giving the presentation, I don't know, but he's done work for Lucasfilm and I think has connections that can get him in a room in front of the people that matter.

I mean, even if it's just the original film that gets released this way, that would be a huge victory, and would likely lead to TESB and RotJ getting similar treatment. Interest in the Despecialied Editions skyrocketed in the weeks prior to the release of The Force Awakens, and the Silver Screen 35mm restoration of the original film made huge waves this week and was featured on all manner of websites, so Disney/Luacsfilm/Fox have to be aware that there's an audience for these versions. I mean, SW/ANH is currently rocking a 3/5 on iTunes, the lowest rating any of the films in the series have on there, solely because it's the SE.

 

Can't edit my post, but speak of the devil, Verta goes a bit more in depth as to what he's planning to do over the next few months, how he plans to pitch the project, and whether or not he'd do TESB and RotJ. I'd rather not speak for him when he's already addressed the topic, so his updates are on this page and the next if anyone wants to read them.

http://originaltrilogy.com/topic/StarWarsLegacycom-The-Official-Thread/id/1418/page/77#910108

 

Special editions: It's like an old oil painting in a public gallery, where you can see the brushstrokes. Years later the artist goes over the 'imperfections' with spraypaint.

(tho I did theink the ESB Bespin additions were cool on 1st sight)

Release a double disc version with the SE & the restore Theatrical versn & everybody's happy.

 

Thank you very much for this, my friend. Funnily enough, I follow an artist called Brandon Bird on Facebook who shared some of Mike's clips, and only last night did Mike chip in to say he has a meeting planned later this year, so fingers crossed.

There's definite interest in this. Old-school Star Wars is at a popularity fever pitch right now, thanks to TFA. Heck, even Rebels has gone back in style and tone to that original 77 classic.

It seems the folks at Disney are treating Star Wars with respect and dignity, and understand the adoration for the Original trilogy. Now that Lucas has stepped to one side, what could be the possible danger in allowing everyone to see the original cuts?

There's obvious demand for them. An official release means Verta, and guys like Harmy can step down, and we put an end to file sharing and torrenting of the Despecialized films, and the powers that be make profit. Win win.

With the 40th anniversary out next year, plus Episode 8, it would be a real missed opportunity.

 

A few months back I would have been a bit unsure about them coinciding with the 40th anniversary release, since VIII was coming at at that time and you don't want one release overshadowing the other.

But now? Now it's wide open. Now that I think of it, that might be a fun time for a theatrical re-release of the whole trilogy, in its original unaltered glory. It would make a nice parallel with the SE theatrical release for the 20th.

 

The only issue that may persist is that Lucasfilm views the special editions as the canonical versions, so why released another version theatrically? If they were to re-release the older movies in theaters they would most likely just go ahead and release all seven movies, with the OT being presented in their SE forms.

At most, I think we will only being seeing the theatrical versions of the OT on Blu-ray. Even then, I still doubt that will happen in time for the 40th anniversary. I'm certainly not opposed to it though. I want to see some new and improved transfers over the current Blu-ray releases.

 

Black Leader wrote

(tho I did think the ESB Bespin additions were cool on 1st sight)

...until I realized on 2nd sight these were not consistent. On their walk to the dining room we see the "new" background window which is gone the moment Han shoots at Vader and the stormtroopers arrive to cut off their retreat route: http://starwarsscreencaps.com/star-wars-episode-v-the-empire-strikes-back-1980/58/

I wish Lucas would have listened to Yoda: "Do...or do not. There is not try."

 

The above is not an accurate description of the scene. When Han fires at Vader, the camera is at an angle; the background is the wall and doorway of the "dining" chamber itself. We can't see the corridor windows there because they are to our left, out in the hallway. In the frames where the blaster is yanked from Han's hand, you can see Leia and Chewie in the hallway proper behind Han, at the edge of the screen. When the Imperial troops enter the hallway, the windows are still clearly visible behind the Stormtroopers and Lando. It's all right there on the linked page.

 

DavidSword79

I do not understand, frames # 80-97 show the new transparent "window" which "suddenly" shuts down to its original version appearance (frame # 120 etc.): http://starwarsscreencaps.com/star-wars-episode-v-the-empire-strikes-back-1980/58/

 

Since the frames aren't numbered, could you help a brother out and describe what is happening in those frames?

 

Actually there is popularity and a fever pitch for Star Wars period. Hence why since TFA came out the PT and OT BD sets in particular have been top sellers. They always sell well but have been really hot for the last 2 months. The saga set as well but not quite to that extent since it's more expensive then getting the individual sets and it's all the same save for the extras which are of less interest to the more general viewers.

As for the rest of the canon from comics to TV it's all again very much like TFA drawing from all of Star Wars.

Of course. They love Star Wars because it makes BIG money.They know the reality that the prequels are still big business and that much like the practical effects marketing they did for TFA (regardless of the reality of TFA's production) that they can easily appeal to that niche market of fans upset at this or that and keep them happy enough by saying what they want to hear. The vast majority of the audience pays no attention to this whatsoever it's a win for them all around. So they can talk about BB-8 being practical BEFORE TFA comes out while ignoring the reality is that it's done a third of the time in CGI (which they only talk about AFTER TFA has come) then everything is covered.

I think there is a very niche demand for them. Obviously if you put them out then it will sell very well. The fact is that the 2004 DVD versions sold incredibly as have the BD versions. Those same versions are also out digitally. So obviously the demand is for the movies themselves as opposed to a particular version.

For the vast majority of the audience I don't think they really care which one was out. If they originals had been put out in 2004 then they would have sold the same.

For them it's simply Star Wars on DVD, BD and digital.

The actual version is irrelevant to them. It's only relevance is for the storyteller which is Lucas himself. He decided that he only wanted the versions out that tell his story.

For the relative actual demand for these particular versions I don't know if they really move the needle besides a large opening sales number in the initial weeks. As I said for the vast majority they are simply getting Star Wars so as hard as it is for us to believe many people simply don't pay the level of attention to everything in Star Wars. I very much doubt that most of them would even notice the differences and even if they do only in the broadest ways.

IF Disney can release them (which they might not be able to do) then they should at some point because if nothing else it will be like the other marketing and make a number of fans feel like they being listened to.

 

DavidSword79

Once you click on a particular screencap frame in the link I provided, the actual frame numbers will show up below the screencap on the right side.

 

I see what you're saying, comparing frame 120 to frames 80 - 97. But looking at frame 140, which is a closer look at the window seen in 120, the cubed blue shapes in the window at least approximate the location and color of the steel structures shown in the earlier window. There's a slight discrepancy, but it's almost completely unnoticeable. This kind of stuff happens in movies all the time, in even the best, most highly regarded films. This one doesn't create any problems for me, especially since I had to create a floor plan just to detect it.

 

There's a lot of other fun stuff like that. Jabba's amazing shape changing door, for instance. It's smaller on the inside, like a reverse Tardis. The magical rocks R2 somehow squeezes behind.

 

Has anyone seen the Star Wars silver screen edition? It's apparently sourced from a original 35mm print.

 

I've seen it. Good stuff. Though it looks nothing like Legacy. I'm not sure about all the technical details, but my understanding is that the Silver Screen edition is from an LPP print whereas Legacy is from multiple Technicolor prints. Because of this, their colors are slightly different and the Silver Screen edition is much grainier too.

I'm still not sure how Mike Verta got the Legacy edition to look so clean. I don't think he used DNR but my hunch is that he utilized multiple prints in order to get as much of the picture without grain as possible. But hopefully someone with more technical knowledge than me can chime in on that.

 

I've read parts of this thread and I'm trying to get up to speed. So is this Legacy edition basically completely ready to be released in HD and Mike Verta is going to make a pitch to Disney/Fox later this year to see if they'll release his version on blu-ray? Has he also been working on ESB and ROTJ? If he hasn't been working on the other movies yet, is it still possible to get ESB and ROTJ ready in time for a 2017 blu-ray release? Thanks for any info!

 

Legacy is based on 4k scans of several different tech IB prints. But here's the thing that makes his project so impressive.
He actually spent several years developing custom software that allows him to stack references on top of each other and then combine image detail together from each print, thus resolving the image back to the original negative. This is possible because every print has it's own unique grain structure, so by stacking different prints he can take the best available data and replace grain with image detail.