CT SE Trilogy 35mm scans

The 1997 SE is now 20 years old. It has now been available longer than the pre-special edition versions were, especially true for ROTJ. The good man poita has decided to begin preserving these versions so they don't also disappear in the future. He is currently having ANH transferred from two 35mm prints, it is my understanding that TPM will then be scanned next sometime early in the new year, and then if there is enough interest and some funding the other films in the trilogy can be transferred as well. The total cost to transfer all three films will total about $10,000.

If you're interested in the project please check out the OT.com thread, and consider donating even a small amount. Poita said he appreciates any amount as it gives him encouragement to continue as much as anything else (see this post). Technical information about the process for those who are interested is here.

Here are some trailers that Laserschwert and TK-949 had transferred a while ago:

 

Excellent, the 1997 theatrical version looked so much better colorwise than the later releases.

 

I must say I love the trailers, but then again I would say that wouldn't I?

 

I would never have seen Star Wars had it not been for the re-release 1997 edition. I was not even born during any of the originals or the hype of the time so it all passed me by so i am very happy it was shown.

 

not a lot of votes on here yet, so it's hard to gauge right now. But my favorite version is the blu-rays. Definitely the best of the SE versions, not only for the vastly improved picture and sound quality, but the improvements in color grading and effects issues that occurred as a result of the digital xfer from the DVD versions. I know there's still room for improvement (mainly surrounding the lightsaber effects) but everything else is great-at least improved as much as it could be at this point.

I'm quite interested in what a possible future 4K release would look like though-I don't (yet) have an ultra-HD tv but it would still look better, even on my current system. Who knows-perhaps by the time they release it, a new TV for us wouldn't be too far around the corner then either!

 

I voted for the originals. Those are the versions I grew up with.

For those who love the originals and love the HD quality of the Blu-rays, you have the best of both worlds in Harmy's Despecialized.

 

Original for sure

 

So far, originals has twice as many votes as everything else put together.

 

While I can see the appeal in improved effects, and the better image quality offered by the bluray release, I certainly don't see the improvements in the color grading:







I can tell you, the color artifacts (purple soldier in the first, blue and purple staining in the second frame, and the pink lights in the third frame in these two frames weren't in any of the theatrical releases (1977 & 1997), and these are just two examples of many other issues with the color grading, particulary for ANH.

 

It has to be the originals. The S.E. versions will always be available, Lucasfilm will ensure that because it’s what the “Creator” has decreed. But the VHS and Beta OTR’s are quickly disappearing. I just had my Beta’s transferred to DVD. Just in time too. There was some very minor degradation of the tapes. Not very noticeable, but it has begun. This will probably be the first and last pulls from these tapes. I’m totally onboard to bring the Originals back, in any form.

 

Well the 1997 SE isn't available any more. I don't even think it can be booked theatrically, if the reports of last year's screenings are correct they would only let cinemas book a DCP that was Frankensteined from the 2002 DVD transfer and the unreleased Reliance restoration.

Anyway I can't wait to be able to do some comparisons between it and the 4K scans of the originals!

 

Mainly what I was referring to there was the more pure white seen in ANH and the fact that ESB has less of that bluish hue on Hoth. Whites are whiter and blacks are blacker sort of thing...

And I know we're talking about OT here, but TPM has benefitted from this as well, getting rid of that pinkish hue and receiving a more natural color. I would post screenshots, but I'm at work and I can't really do that on this computer...

 

I think some digital CC to make a more homogeneous experience is justified, from the previews poita shared of the pre-SE Empire reels it looks like colour and tone was not consistent across different parts of the film.

That said, these scans will answer the question of how the SE looked in 1997, and how it differs from the pre-SE versions.

Same thing with TPM, once the print is scanned we'll know exactly how it looked in 1999.

 

There are some screenshots posted from the scan now over at the OT thread, so be sure to check it out:



Also, poita is still in need of donations of course, so please consider contributing if this interests you.

 

Totally irrelevant. Closed captions are a relic of the past. Any future releases will use subtitles, not CC. Period.

 

Poor 3PO!

 

That shot of the Dalek looks properly colour corrected. (although it has the paint job used so they would show up on B&W TV properly)

 

There have been a bunch more samples posted over on OT including video samples, there's a video sample of Reel 6 here and I cut out the same part from the two TN1 versions (the SSE and from the preview I have for 4K77) to compare to. It's not really a direct comparison because the TN1 scans were cleaned and colour corrected, and of course the special edition is a triple-flash scan whereas even 4K-77 is to my knowledge anyway isn't, but it gives a good idea of the detail in the special edition scan compared to those ones anyway.

 

The 2011 but with the natural color timing of the Special Edition would be perfect. It is nitpicking, but Lucasfilm should have left 2004's color timing to Lowry instead of doing it in-house. Not sure what happened, but it was clearly rushed, causing some problems. Thankfully a lot were dealt with in 2011. However, I clearly prefer the blue explosion particles of the Special Edition ANH Death Star explosion over the desaturated one in 2004 / 2011.

Those Special Edition trailers scanned from celluloid copies have the most natural look to me, wear and tear aside. That's how I remember the films looking in 97 (as well as TPM looking in 99).

 

I'd love to have the '97 SE OT in the highest possible quality, personally. The highest quality officially available was the LaserDisc release, I believe, though I've seen some shady-looking (and overpriced) DVD copies on eBay before.

 

I have the DVDs. I bought the trilogy together and got them at a reasonable price. The quality is actually better than the quality you’ll find on the much maligned 2006 theatrical bonus DVDs.

 

If anyone is interested in donating please head to the OT thread and make a donation. These films can't be seen any other way - they can't even be booked theatrically! In just the last week I went to the cinema twice to see two classic films on 35mm, it's incredible to think that the original trilogy as well as the 1997 SE cannot be seen at all.

Well if you didn't mind spending a few bucks on a pirate DVD set can I suggest you might like to donate to a fresh scan? That way you know your money is actually going towards a good cause.

 

Yep no worries, I won't be posting anything other that screenshots or short samples. Scanning isn't illegal, although it can make people nervous. I agree that Encuentro's comment went a bit far, I wouldn't encourage anyone to buy a pirate DVD set! I have the films on bluray, dvd, and vhs. And I have a beatamax of Empire as well.