Six weeks (or so) until this officially streets. I wonder when we'll start seeing screenshots. I'm curious how the new TPM transfer looks.
Back when Avatar came out, 11.00 was the standard price at my theater and real-d was 14.00. The fake-MAX screen there opened several months later (March of 2010 for Alice in Wonderland). By the time Tron: Legacy hit (exactly 1 year after Avatar), the standard price had creeped up to 11.50 and if I remember correctly real-d was 15.50, IMAX 16.50 and IMAX-3D was 17.50.
skyjedi2005 said:
Lucas cannot be bothered with having a branching feature, or you could watch Phantom Menace in its theatrical version and they would include the theatrical audio as heard on the laserdisc.
Not my favorite film of all time however the theatrical cut is so much better than the DVD version which lags.
The only way i can watch the theater version is on laserdisc with burnt in subtitles and dubious picture quality for a late in the formats life Laserdisc release.
I want a blu-ray of the theatrical cut of TPM almost as much as I want blu-rays of the OOT!
It's especially ridiculous when you consider the fact that just about every important film from that era except the OOT has been nicely restored or at the very least faithfully remastered in hi-def.
Well said, ESHBG!
What was annoying to me about the GOUT was how Lucas basically exploited the hell out of people's nostalgia. I can't think of any other movie (or series of movies) that a company could get away with shoveling laserdisc-era transfers of onto dvd in 2006 when we had hd-on-disc formats (for crying out loud) and still sell as many copies. Star Wars defies comparison in many ways, and this is just one of them.
Since no one's brought it up yet....
Maybe part of the reason they chose AOTC Yoda as the "big face" on the PT blu-ray is because they've now replaced the TPM puppet with the (ironically much closer-looking to the TESB/ROTJ puppet) digital model?
Also, while I'm on the subject:
If LFL ever put out some sort of "ultimate edition" blu-ray of TPM that included the theatrical cut (perhaps late next year for the blu-ray 3D, hint-hint if you're reading this, LFL) I would seriously consider paying good money for it. Regardless of our opinions on the movie, it had one of the highest U.S. box office grosses of the 90's (second only to Titanic for that entire decade, if I'm not mistaken) and the original version deserves to be preserved if for no other reason than history.
By the way, I'll take this opportunity to reiterate my desire for ultimate sets of the OT that include not only the OOT but the '97 OT as well. Doesn't ANH SE still have the highest U.S. January gross of all time? Talk about box office!
Can someone please just copy/paste the text here for all of us to see? I've been curious for a while now about what exactly will be in the set, but I'm not curious enough to "share" just so I can find out.
Jesus, LFL. I know everyone basically lives on facebook now, but just tell us already. We've known for a while that this won't include the OOT. Now that would be share-worthy.
The problem in our society is that it's difficult to argue the quality of something that made a shit-ton of money. The masses, by and large, simply do not care as long as they're entertained on some level. It's the culture, whatya gonna do.
I should just start another thread about this (how did we even get this far off topic in the first place????), but most of us can agree that George shouldn't have directed the prequels, yes? Can we agree that George could've hired a better director and still made just as much money at the box office on Episode I so that (gasp) more people would've come back to see Episode II????
That's my biggest problem with the prequels. They would've made a ton of money either way, so why couldn't George have just hired three good directors?
Yes, I realize that opens up a whole new can of worms. Let's face it, even if George had done so, he still would've been a control freak about it.
I still think we would've gotten significantly better movies, though.
I'm sorry, but originator of the franchise or not, it's a conflict of interest when the guy who is paying the $100 million for the movie is also its director.
The Empire Strikes Back would not be regarded the way it is today if it hadn't been for the efforts of Lawrence Kasdan, Leigh Brackett, Irvin Kershner and Peter Suschitzky. Yes, it's commendable that George paid for the whole thing himself in order to avoid Hollywood looking over his shoulder, but aside from writing the story he should've left it at that for the other four movies.
It's awkward to me that the "saga" in chronological order is three movies made by a billionaire followed by a movie made by a previously low-budget director, followed by a really amazing sequel, followed by an okay but nevertheless satisfactory ending.
Hmmmm, okay, to wrap up my ramblings, I guess the question I ask is whether the prequels could've been just as profitable for LFL but still had new writers, directors and cinematographers.
Patrick R. said:
I've said it a thousand times before, but I will say it again. They only need to restore the parts that were altered and reinsert those back into the films. So the whole argument about it being too expensive to restore the original versions is ridiculous.
It would be nice to have some good news on May 4th, but I am not holding my breath.
Nah, I remember reading several months ago that the OT and PT blu-ray sets would be 4 discs each, with a bonus ninth disc in the "saga" set. Besides, even if Lucas actually intends to properly restore the original versions, he was never going to include it in this initial release. The guy from Wired magazine put it best back in September of '06, "they're not gonna make the fans happy because the happy fan has everything he or she needs."
At this rate, all I'm really curious about is how the double/triple/quadruple dips are gonna pan out. The 3D conversion of TPM hits theaters in february and I can only assume the business people at LFL have prescience and know this thing is gonna be a box office success, because it would be pretty embarrassing for them if it flopped after they said "we're going to convert all six movies and release them one per year."
By the way, when was the last time anyone heard anything about the live-action tv series???
Obviously, all I really care about is how all of this affects the original versions getting properly restored.
That's my thoughts exactly, SilverWook. I'll never forget when the TPM teaser came out and it was all over the news and they were interviewing people who were watching it at a public video village tent type thing on the sidewalk somewhere and this one kid was like "They showed Yoda, and he looked young!" Even back then, as a 13 year old, I realized how idiotic that statement was, because how much is 32 years supposed to make when you're pushing 900?
If this first blu-ray release (which I won't be buying, no matter what) only includes the SE version of the OT, then I have no problem with that horrendously botched puppet in TPM being replaced with the digital model that, ironically, looks much closer to how the puppet in Empire and Jedi looked.
The most frustrating thing about the PT is how it was ruined by George's midlife crisis. The man hadn't directed anything in two decades (with the possible exception of some Young Indy episodes) and then, all of a sudden, he just jumps right back into the director's chair for the most anticipated movie of all time. He should've realized his own limits. Obviously he stayed a filmmaker following Star Wars, not a director but a producer and an idea man (Indy, Labyrinth, Howard the Duck, Willow, etc) and that's how he should've stayed! The prequels should've been made like Empire was: Lucas writes the story (and writes the checks) but other people write the screenplay and direct.
"Unfortunately we have a creator who accepted help from others to cover up his flaws as a storyteller then forgot that he needed that help."
Couldn't have said it better myself, sexyloser.
It's worth pointing out that some key crew members from Young Indy and Radioland Murders (McCallum, Tattersall, Bocquet) carried over to the Prequels. Bocquet was at least one of the handful of people who'd worked on the OT (Jedi). Aside from Williams and Burtt (and Muren for TPM and AOTC), I can't think of anyone else from the OT who carried over.
The collaborative spirit made the OT. That's the ironic thing about Lucas, he failed to see it. He wanted to cut out everyone and everything that was getting in the way of his "vision." First thing you hear him say on the TPM documentary is how he thinks the auteur theory really is true. Well, okay George, but you didn't direct Empire and you only sorta directed Jedi. As for Star Wars '77, well, he certainly deserves all the credit in the world for powering through that literal heart attack of an experience, but that's what made him say "y'know what, I'm done being a director" and that's how it should've stayed.
Lucas fought so hard for control that once he gained that control he didn't want to give it up. Why go through the trouble and inconvenience of dealing with screenwriters and directors when he could afford to just do it all himself?
Universal just announced American Graffiti for a blu-ray release in May and, unsurprisingly, it's gonna be the Special Edition (if not an extra-special one with even more changes). I'm not the least bit surprised by this, but it once again raises some questions in my mind.
We all know what the situation is with Star Wars, but what kind of control does Lucas have over THX-1138 and Graffiti? If Universal wanted to include the original version of Graffiti, would there be anything Lucas could do to stop them?
Universal just announced American Graffiti for a blu-ray release in May. The words SPECIAL EDITION are in big bold letters on the temp art and there's going to be a picture-in-picture commentary by Lucas, so that leaves little doubt as to which version of the movie will be included and which ones won't.
Oh, don't get me wrong, I'm not surprised in the least. Since WB already put out the 2004-only blu-ray of THX-1138 and the "complete saga" of Star Wars is hitting in September from Lucas and Fox, Universal would make them look pretty awkward if they'd gone all Close Encounters with this release.
Who knows, maybe in 2013 there will be yet another domino effect and we'll get the original versions of THX, Graffiti and the OT (hey, one can dream).
Random stuff my friend and I were talking about yesterday:
-Who built the training lightsabers those younglings are using in the temple?
-What's the deal with the blast-shield helmet Luke was using to practice with the training remote? Was it just laying around the Falcon?
I feel like we should give that link its own new thread. The more votes the better.
Whoops, I was reading it without clicking the article first. Post corrected.
Yeah, it's depressing to read that the writer didn't know about the alterations to the binary sunset, but let's not forget there was a screening of a pristine Technicolor print just this past summer in Baltimore.
Optimism!
Where's that from, xhonzi?
Oh, the box set will do gangbusters this September, there's no denying that. Still, I can't help but think there's a good amount of people out there who won't be buying it because it doesn't have the originals.
These are people who Lucasfilm would, y'know, stand to make a good deal of money off of if they'd release the originals.
The major selling points (so far) of the box are the SE and PT in high-def and deleted scenes. Yes, there's a legion of TF.Ners who will eat this up, but for everyone else I just can't see it being worth the money when there's plenty of other blu-rays competing for their hard-earned dollar.
Here's something to remember, though:
That set probably wouldn't have had as high an msrp as it did if they hadn't included that third blu-ray disc in the package (the workprint disc).
I think that's the logic LFL hasn't grasped yet. If LFL is that unsure of a restored/remastered OOT being worth their investment, they should charge a little more money to make it worth their while. I mean, isn't that basic business sense? If you need to spend more money to make your product, you tell people what's so great about the product and why you're charging a little higher of a price point.
All of that is beside the point anyway. Star Wars leaves every other film behind when it comes to popular demand of its original version. You remember that scene in Pulp Fiction when Vince and Mia are at the diner? Mia says she knows a funny joke and Vince wants to hear it, but Mia keeps refusing? Finally, after he asks for the third or fourth time she just says "No! It's been built up too much, I can't say it now!"
LFL is Mia and we are Vince.
We just keep building it up and building it up, asking again and again "Will the originals be remastered???" It just seems like the more we ask, the more LFL digs their heels into the ground, the "no comment" incident being the most recent example.
When the Well finally dries up, and hopefully it will some day, then we will see the originals nicely restored and remastered.
It will be the last thing LFL has left to make any money off of.
The cruel irony is that we got a 5-disc release of Blade Runner because WB actually needed to put some effort into it in order to have all these selling points to get people to go out and buy it.
What does LFL need as a selling point? "It's Star Wars, now give us your money!"
TheBoost said:
see you auntie said:
I think Lucas may have forgotten where he came from. He wouldn't be anything if it wasn't for Francis Ford Coppola mentoring him in his formative years but I hardly see George taking on such a role.
I doubt Lucas wouldn't have been anything without Coppola. He'd already made "THX 1138" which was seen as visionary, and earned his internship at Warner.
To clarify, Lucas had made his student short-film Electronic Labyrinth: THX-1138 4EB, which got the attention of Coppola who wanted to produce it as a feature.
Just wanted to clarify that you were referring to the short film Electronic Labyrinth and not the feature length THX-1138.
Back on topic:
I'm curious how Lucas is going to re-package the movies further down the line. TPM in 3D should be hitting theaters this time next year. Will he release a bd3d of it later on in 2012? Meanwhile, will the PT, OT and Saga boxes still be the only way of getting those movies or will he do individual releases sooner rather than later? It would be great if they made the bd3d of TPM an all-out multi-disc ultimate edition, complete with the theatrical cut.
Here's the big picture to consider: LFL can only re-package these movies so many times before they run out of new shit to sell us. This initial blu-ray release will give us the deleted scenes, plus the novelty of watching the PT and the messed-up version of the OT in hi-def video and audio (....woohoo). Then, as the movies are converted into 3D, we'll get those on video as well. Just what the hell do they have left to sell us after that besides the holy grail that is the OOT?
Ghostbusters said:
I don't understand why LFL wants such a hefty price for these blu-rays when they don't even include the OT, something millions of fans want, but they include a crappy version we already have in higher resolution. Maybe if LFL would give us want we want, they wouldn't have such a problem with tracking down bootlegs/illegal file sharing.
Yeah, but then they wouldn't be able to quadruple-dip the spending masses. "OMG, Star Wars on blu-ray! What? It's not the original versions? Oh well, it'll do." Why give everyone what they want when you can bait and switch?
That said, I really will be surprised if LFL doesn't eventually do a proper restoration of the original versions at some point, even if it's not until 2017. I dunno, it just seems like it keeps getting built up and built up and after this recent "no comment" from LFL after they got asked for the umpteenmillionth time about the original versions, you'd think they would, I dunno, TAKE A FUCKING HINT.
I just really don't see what Lucas would be accomplishing by never getting around to it. I mean, is he hoping that after he says "no" for the umpteenbillionth time we'll just give up and stop asking? Maybe then he'll convince himself that people really don't want the OOT and it's not even worth the time and effort to restore it and press out the discs because no one will buy them (okay, that sounds a little too Howard Hughes).
Waiting to release it for the sake of double-dipping and making money is annoying, but that's business, I get it. These are some of the only movies LFL owns the rights to and they happen to be the most successful movies of all time. Not to sound jaded and cynical, but if you were LFL wouldn't you be milking these movies for all they're worth?
I'd be willing to wait for a proper blu-ray of the OOT, even if they are the last three movies released on the format.
Refusing to ever release it at all, on the other hand, is just pure lunacy.
Baronlando said:
This situation with the original versions is more of a dick move.
Agreed.
SE or no SE, good prequels or bad prequels, burying the originals is Lucas' biggest sin.