CT Is it time for the OT to get a digital update

I've watched the OT again during this lockdown on a large 4k TV and some of the effects really don't stand up in this age of high definition viewing. The battle of hoth really does look dated as do a lot of the space battles.
Personally I'd love to see these re-done with today's technology. Not completely changed but re-done similar to how the death star attack was done in ANH special editions which for me was a perfect example of new technology being blended seamlessly with older footage.

 

This was a comment of mine from a post quite some time ago. These triumphs of technology need to be celebrated, regardless of how they look in today's mediums. Maybe they might be considered bad or campy by today's standards, but they need to be left alone. Considering these supposedly dated effects were created 40 years ago, and we're just now getting to the point where technology makes them look dated, I'd say they were pretty outstanding, and they need to be left alone. Lucas and ILM had to invent most of the technology to even make these movies possible, and those effects were worlds ahead of their time. Leave them be. They've stood on their own for 40 years. I think they'll be ok.

 

Please leave the movies alone. Restore them to good condition, but don't fiddle with them anymore.

 

To a point I agree. Sure they were groundbreaking at the time and stood that test of time for decades but technology has not only caught up but it's overtaken (some) of the effects from the OT. Look what they done with the original series of Star Trek when they updated the effects but in a way that was seamless.
Same thing needs to be done with these movies if they are to remain relevant over the coming decades.

 

I vote no. I saw the OT in theaters. If you keep upgrading pretty soon the movies will be unrecognizable. I do admit ANH needed an effects upgrade, but it's already been done. I don't need womp rats running around the background while Luke looks at the setting suns.

 

But those effects, good or bad, standing the test of time or not, are part of their charm. Take any classic black and white movie. Do we use the technology to colorize them just to bring them to today's standards, or do we leave them alone because that is how they were made? Part of the charm and allure of these old movies is being in black and white. Colorizing them just to bring them to today's standards would ruin the movies. The same thing applies with the OT. They need to be left alone. Newer isn't always better.

 

ST all they did was update the planets and the Enterprise flying. The OT has already been updated.

 

That's all I'm talking about is an effects upgrade. No need to add anything or create new scenes.

 

I think the effects in the OT look pretty decent, especially when considering how long ago they were made. Sure some of it looks dated, but it's not enough to take me out of the film. I do support using digital enhancement techniques to fix certain errors however-like matte boxes around TIE fighters in certain shots, or the flickering of certain thruster effects, or especially the inconsistent quality of the lightsaber effects across the films (the one thing that really has always bothered me, although the 4K versions have somewhat improved the color grading on these). But in terms of actual effects in scenes, I agree-there's really nothing that should be changed.

 

I agree and disagree. Cleaning up some of the details is one thing, but where do you draw the line? And at what point does the digital enhancements take over the original effects to the point the movie stops looking like it used to?

 

I guess what I'm saying is, instead of completely reanimating the TIE fighter as a CG ship, just take that set of frames and clean the matte boxes around it. As far as the lightsabers, that's the only thing I'd support actually going in and "re-doing." If only to make the lightsabers look consistent across all nine episodes-I might even recommend doing that in the PT as well; mainly having the blue blades be a bit lighter shade of blue (like in the OT and ST). Like I said, the 4K versions in the OT made them look a lot better color-wise, but it's inconsistent still, and the blades themselves in several shots (mostly ESB) are quite fuzzy. If they left EVERYTHING else alone, and just enhanced the lightsabers to look more consistent all across the saga, I would be a very happy man!

 

I didn't mean you personally, but it's a fine line to walk before the enhancements become too much or go too far.

 

plus you'd have to redo it every decade or so. The movie is of its time. I like the AT AT models and Tauntons. They've tinkered enough with the films. At least the SEs were Lucas.

 

It is a movie of it's time, as are all movies.
Accept it, enjoy it, as the time capsule of 1977 that it is.

The stories of how they achieved what they did in that movie are a big chunk of the joy of Star Wars. The models, the matte paintings, the costumes, John Dykstra. All of it. Legends and Lore. Erasing that would be like throwing away a great painting because you can take a better photograph on your phone now.

 

That’s a good summary. I’m down with fixing obvious errors and whatever but we don’t need everything CGI-ed. Practical effects in many cases still look better than CG due to the textures and the 3D appearance versus the sometimes flatness of CG. That’s not always the case but when something is actually "there" it tends to look better than when it’s "placed" there.

 

Pfff. Let them be. Disney already released some half assed "4K" versions and the picture looks like it's been dipped in vaseline.

Upgrade the vfx of the Prequels if you absolutely have to. Episode 1 and 2 Effects looks like early 2000's video games.

Or just let them all be. But Disney have showed that they can't even be arsed with making some proper 4K releases, unlike Universal who did a kickass job with the Jaws 4K restoration, and they did it without feeling like having to insert CGI sharks into the poor old classic.

 

Star Wars was a movie released in 1977. Let it remain to look like it was made in 1977. The special-special-special Bluray edition looks atrocious with all the CGI tomfoolery going on. You've got dated 70's effects, dated 90's effects... You've got random CGI rocks and bantha's everywhere.

Star Wars looks like John Travolta's face. I know what it looked like in the seventies and I know it shouldn't look like what it does now.

 

ouch lol