CJackson

Below is a list of what cameras, negative and cinematographic processes were used on the various Star Wars movies. Is all the info accurate? Why does ANH and ESB have identical info? This comes from IMDB.

Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)

Camera

Arriflex 35-III, Panavision C-Series Lenses
Panavision PSR R-200, Panavision C-Series Lenses
Panavision Panaflex X, Panavision C-Series Lenses
Panavision Panaflex, Panavision C-Series Lenses

Negative Format

35 mm (Eastman 100T 5247)

Cinematographic Process

Panavision (anamorphic)
VistaVision (special effects)

Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Camera

Arriflex 35-III, Panavision C-Series Lenses
Panavision PSR R-200, Panavision C-Series Lenses
Panavision Panaflex X, Panavision C-Series Lenses
Panavision Panaflex, Panavision C-Series Lenses

Negative Format

35 mm (Eastman 100T 5247)

Cinematographic Process

Panavision (anamorphic)
VistaVision (special effects)

Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983)

Camera

Arriflex 35 BL3, Cooke Xtal Express and Varotal Lenses
Arriflex 35-IIC, Cooke Xtal Express and Varotal Lenses

Negative Format

35 mm (also horizontal) (Eastman 250T 5293)

Cinematographic Process

J-D-C Scope (anamorphic)
VistaVision (special effects)

Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)

Camera

Arriflex 435 ES, Hawk C-Series Lenses
Arriflex 535B, Hawk C-Series Lenses
Sony HDC-750

Negative Format

35 mm (also horizontal) (Eastman EXR 50D 5245, Kodak Vision 320T 5277)
HDCAM

Cinematographic Process

Digital Intermediate (2K) (Master Format)
HDCAM (some scenes)
Hawk Scope (anamorphic)
Powerscope (anamorphic) (underwater scenes)
VistaVision (some scenes)

Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002)

Camera

Sony CineAlta HDW-F900, Panavision Primo Lenses

Negative Format

HDCAM

Cinematographic Process

Digital Intermediate (2K) (master format)
HDCAM (1080p/24) (source format) (matted to 2.39: 1)

Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005)

Camera

Sony CineAlta HDC-F950, Fujinon Cine Super C and E Series Lenses

Negative Format

HDCAM

Cinematographic Process

Digital Intermediate (2K) (master format)
HDCAM SR (1080p/24) (source format)

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)

Camera

Arri Alexa (aerial plates)
IMAX MKIII, Hasselblad Lenses
IMAX MSM 9802, Hasselblad Lenses
Panavision Panaflex Millennium XL2, Panavision Primo, Retro C-, E-Series, ATZ and AWZ2 Lenses

Negative Format

35 mm (Kodak Vision3 50D 5203, Vision3 250D 5207, Vision3 200T 5213, Vision3 500T 5219)
65 mm (horizontal) (Kodak Vision3 50D 5203, Vision3 250D 5207, Vision3 500T 5219)

Cinematographic Process

Digital Intermediate (4k) (master format)
Dolby Vision
IMAX (source format) (Escape from Jakku scene)
Panavision (anamorphic) (source format)

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)

Camera

ARRI ALEXA 65, Panavision APO Panatar, Primo 70, and Hawk65 Lenses

Negative Format

Codex ARRIRAW (6.5K)

Cinematographic Process

Digital Intermediate (4K) (master format)
Dolby Vision
Hawk Scope (anamorphic) (source format)
Ultra Panavision 70 (anamorphic) (source format)

Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)

Camera

Arri Alexa 65
Arri Alexa XT Plus, Panavision C-, E-, G-Series, ATZ and AWZ2 Lenses
Arri Alexa XT, Panavision C-, E-, G-Series, ATZ and AWZ2 Lenses
Panavision Panaflex Millennium XL2, Panavision C-, E-, G-Series, ATZ and AWZ2 Lenses

Negative Format

35 mm (Kodak Vision3 50D 5203, Vision3 250D 5207, Vision3 500T 5219)
65 mm (horizontal) (Kodak Vision3 50D 5203, Vision3 250D 5207, Vision3 500T 5219)
Codex

Cinematographic Process

ARRIRAW (2.8K) (3.4K) (6.5K) (source format) (some shots)
Digital Intermediate (4K) (master format)
Panavision (anamorphic) (source format)

Now obviously we shouldn’t expect this too soon, or expect the original originals, but with Disney acquiring 20th Century Fox how long until they release an ultra hi def boxset?

For Star Wars and the Empire Strikes Back, PanaVision cameras were used, but for Return of the Jedi they switched to Arriflex cameras. Why was this?

On an unrelated note, Return of the Jedi just didn’t look as good as it’s predecessors, in my personal opinion. I don’t if it’s the DP they used, or the director, or the cameras, but Return of the Jedi just didn’t look as good as Star Wars or the Empire Strikes Back.

How prone is the 1993 box set to developing laser rot? How can you tell if there is laser rot?

How much do the Japanese special collections run for on eBay?

captainsolo said:

Technically speaking, the GOUT will always win due to the image being at a better encode and from the video master used for the LDs. And the original 77 crawl was spliced in from a print.

But they just aren't that exciting. Especially when it comes to the canned standard Dolby 2.0 audio. I like the LDs much better. For the OT it's either the 93 or 95 Faces discs. The 95s are really just more convenient with less sides and some will argue that the CLV is slightly inferior to the CAV format.

Without the changes and Mos Eisley pink shift, the 97 LDs are stunning for the format.

And if you really want to get down and dirty, the Japanese Special Collections don't have the awful motion smearing on the 93, 95 and GOUT.

So it all depends on what you like the films to seem like, and how much you really like LD.

How much do the Japanese special collections run for on eBay?

Official release.

What do you consider to be the best official home video release of the trilogy so far?

I would have to say the Definitive Edition laserdiscs are the best because they contain the theatrical versions and don't have the weird colour issues of the DVDs.

I seem to have gotten that scene confused with the rendezvous scene then.

I find that I can't watch RotJ without fast forwarding. I watch the opening crawl, then fast forward to the beginning of the sail barge scene. From here I let it play out until Yoda's death and then skip to the Emperor arriving on the Death Star. After this, I view until the end of the speeder bike chase, and then it's on to more fast forwarding until Luke meets Vader on the forest moon. I completely skip all planet scenes from here on -- except the shield generator explosion. After the death star explodes, I skip to the funeral scene and end the movie just as the camera pans up to the sky.

I don't fast forward through any of Star Wars or TESB.

What are your fast forwarding routines?

In some reviews for the 1977 film, I've seen it noted that this picture is poorly directed. How is Star Wars a poorly directed film?

I'm having trouble unpacking the .rar file. I don't plan on burning this to DVD, so how do I watch on my computer? I've ddownloaded several torrents before and hnever had trouble unpacking them. Is there a specific program I need for this, or can it only be burnt to disc?

Is ANH available on Usenet? I saw it on Demoid, but it's not available to non-registered users.