Back in the days following TPM's release, copies of the film surfaced on the net. First there were tripod-mounted camera recordings from the audience, usually in very poor quality, one of which I acquired and still have. Then, shortly after that, an amazing actual transfer from celluloid appeared, with Thai subtitles. I still have the second half of this version saved. Unfortunately, I was only ever able to get the first few minutes of the first half. Being on dial-up at the time, it literally took a week or two of constant downloading just to get what I do have. But what a fantastic artifact! And what I wouldn't do to get hold of the first half of that film transfer... but of course, there's zero demand for it now. So how do you find something nobody wants?
I snapped up the VHS version the moment it was released. And I guarantee, or at least I should say I am 99.99% certain, that there were changes made to TPM when it hit VHS. Some extra bit during the pod races seems to stick out in my mind. And then when the DVD came out, I grabbed that too, and of course there were even further changes there.
Versions of TPM: 3
- Original theatrical version
- VHS version
- DVD version
I have no idea which version of TPM the laserdisc corresponds to, but I always assumed it matched the VHS version.
Then AOTC came out. I saw the theatrical version, and wound up afterwards with a fuzzy copy made from a tripod camera. Unfortunately, I never managed to find better. No celluloid transfers. But at least I can verify what was and wasn't there. Next, there was the digital version... subtle differences there. I drove the 4 hours from Houston to Dallas to see it in a digital theater. I would love to have a copy of this particular version, but no dice to this day. Then, the IMAX version. Different, but only because it was cropped and chopped to fit IMAX format. Having a copy of this would be nice, but is of negligible importance to me. Finally, the DVD version, which I again bought immediately.
Versions of AOTC: 4
- Original theatrical version
- Digital theatrical version
- IMAX version
- DVD version
PM me if you have any info on the unreleased-on-DVD versions that might interest me.
--SKot