logo Sign In

SW: R.I.P. - 9/12/06

Author
Time
Well, more emails aside, I'm throwing in the towel. Lucas has won. His ego is just too well-fortified to be contended with.

I'm not a big proponent of corporate greed, where the slogan often seems to be "where you see green, that's the place to be", but, at least a corporate studio mentality, free of the need to protect the ego of a filmmaker who has made a film which they own and he doesn't, would probably see the value (in $$) of giving the market what it wants. If it had been up to FOX alone, I'm sure they would've picked up on the fan demand for the OOT and given the three movies the grand DVD treatment that would make the fans happy.

Since this is apparently not the case at Lucasfilm, where CEO Lucas has the ultimate pull, we will most likely be stuck with the OOT as non-anamorphic bonus features sitting back seat to Lucas's precious "original vision", SE versions of the Star Wars films.

I'd fully be behind another petition, but I won't be giving my money to Lucas for a non-anamorphic, "limited-time-only" DVD set that treats these historical movies as bonus features. This treatment screams that he is only begrudgingly putting the originals out. And not only that, but it amounts to scare-tactics as well: "You better be happy that we're giving them to you at all. Now, pre-order them before they're never available again!"

The marketing that his company has done for the SE release has been nothing short of misrepresentation, if not outright lying. Anyone who goes into Best Buy to buy the currently available DVDs will find no indication that the DVDs are anything but the original versions. They are simply labeled as STAR WARS TRILOGY.

It's the attitude that Lucas seems to exude regarding the originals that really has taken a lot of the fun out of being a fan. The illusion of a masterpiece has been shattered, now that the supposed master seems to be only a leader of a team who has produced three movies that he doesn't consider to be his "true vision", aka, not true master works.

Lucas seems to pride himself on being an auteur filmmaker, and, yet, so much of what made his originals so powerful seems to be the creativity of so many others that worked with him. And this creativity, he seems to readily disregard in favor of supplanting it with his own extrremely after-the-fact retooling.

Why won't he graciously accept the fact that the originals are what made him and that people love the versions they grew up with?

As Aldous Huxley, author of the sci-fi and literary classic BRAVE NEW WORLD, said about his most popular work:

"[T]o attempt to patch a faulty work into the perfection it missed at its first execution, to spend one's middle age in trying to mend the artistic sins committed and bequeathed by that different person who was oneself in youth - all this is surely vain and futile."

Sound like anyone we know?

I won't be paying Lucas for SE ammunition to throw right back at him. I'll be more content to tell my kids, "Not too long ago in a reality not too far away, there existed three of the most magical movies ever made..."

That is, unless of course, they end up on Blue-Ray or HD-DVD, which isn't a possibility too far afield.

It will be interesting to hear how all of this pans out, and I will be sending another round or two of emails to the people in charge telling them that I won't be buying the September release. But, for now, this is the straw that broke the bantha's back.

SW: R.I.P. - 9/12/06
Author
Time
Blah blah blah, Star Wars is dead.

Whatever.


Just wait a few years and we'll get our trilogy on Blue-Ray or HD. We may have to wait till Lucas dies, but most of us are young. We can wait him out.
"I am altering the movies. Pray I don't alter them any further." -Darth Lucas
Author
Time
We may have to wait till Lucas dies, but most of us are young. We can wait him out.


Exactly. And in the mean time, I'll stick with the fan edits.
Author
Time
What a pathetic thread. Listen, star wars didn't die with these new dvd's it died the moment lucas announced a sequel to 'star wars' - a classic film, that was then turned into a franchise way back in 1980. and the same thing happened to alien.
Author
Time
I would contend that even if we never get a real release of the OT, Star Wars won't be dead.

Star Wars is freaking STAR. WARS. It changed the film industry more than any other film in history. The universe is one of the most profitable ever created. And even with the SE changes, the core appeal of the movies still shines through all the stupidity laced over top. THe original prints still exist on the internet and on fan-made DVDs. You can't kill Star Wars by not releasing it on DVD. It's grown far beyond that.

So, basically, this thread is stupid.

That's all I have to say.

4

Author
Time
I would agree that Star Wars is dead in the same way that Rock and Roll is dead. Music stopped being about the music a long time ago, and it has only worsened through the years, like a malignancy spreading unchecked. "Music", if you can even call it that today, is all about style not only over substance, but in place of it. All a record company needs to produce an "artist" is a pretty face and the computer technology that can make it seem as though the person is a real singer. So, it all boils down to good looks (real or surgical) and a computer generated illlusion of talent. Sounds kind of familiar...no?

Star Wars is the same way. Star Wars used to have a heart and soul to it, an authenticity. It wasn't designed to appeal to people all around the world. It just did, because it was genuine and heartfelt. Dozens of movies since Star Wars have capitalized, or tried to capitalize on whatever formula it was that they thought Star Wars was made with. Just like record companies when one has a hit, all the others copy it hoping to duplicate the success. Studios began copying and distilling Star Wars' style, but precious little if any of its substance. With the PT, Lucas has become the biggest offender in this respect. He lost interest in making films that say something and connect to people, and morphed into a businessman more interested in making a marketable, lowest common denominator appeal, kind of product. He's the living embodiment of the type of film maker and studio head that he so detested in 1976.

Star Wars died a slow death. It began with ROTJ, where Lucas began to apply his stranglehold. Through the years it was decaying behind the scenes. How bad things were was unkown until the prequels began hitting the sceen.
Author
Time
Originally posted by: Invader Jenny
Blah blah blah, Star Wars is dead.

Whatever.


Just wait a few years and we'll get our trilogy on Blue-Ray or HD. We may have to wait till Lucas dies, but most of us are young. We can wait him out.


As I said, be careful. He could put into his will that OOT can never come out after his death. And, unfortunately, it is not our trilogy, now matter how attached to it we feel. And I am not a patient man.

“What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who wanted to read one.”

Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death

Author
Time
Originally posted by: JediFlyer06
I would agree that Star Wars is dead in the same way that Rock and Roll is dead.

Thanks for putting it so succinctly, JF06. I wouldn't go so far as to say that I dislike ROTJ, but it may well be true that the death of SW was already occurring even back then.



Author
Time
They are simply labeled as STAR WARS TRILOGY.

Remember, the originals "don't exist," so that is what Lucas wants. You talk about the power of money (Have you ever seen Steven Sommers's Deep Rising? "If the cash is there, we don't care."). Well, a remastered OOT=money. George Lucas has become many things. Frustrating? Almost unbearably. Inconsistent? Oh yes. Stubborn? To the point of being ridiculous. But stupid? No. You couldn't convince me for a second that he is. The man made 6 1/2 hours of film into a multi-billion dollar franchise. He's a remarkably shrew businessman. Lucas has not said no with this release. He has said maybe. He has had to be dragged kicking and screaming into this, but we've gone from the original versions "not existing" and being "rough drafts" to "Now we'll find out whether people really wanted the original or whether they wanted the improved versions. It will all come out in the end. Heck, we're getting mentioned in Clerks II, a major mainstream motion picture. Star Wars, in its original form, meant a lot to people. You can fool some of the people some of the time, but you can't fool all of the people all of the time. Even with threat of a mass boycott, I'm betting that the OOT discs will sell well enough. And Lucas will then know. If he and LFL put our a high quailty restored/remastered OOT in crisp anamorphic widescreen with 5.1/2.0/mono sound in an expensive package (like say, the 30th anniversary boxed set that we all pretty much know will come out), that people like me would pay through the nose for it.

The original prints still exist on the internet and on fan-made DVDs. You can't kill Star Wars by not releasing it on DVD. It's grown far beyond that.


Exactly. Lucas is shooting himself in the foot here. "The originals don't exist..." until he needs more money. A substandard release? THX. The best sound. The best picture. He can't have this both ways. The bouns material thing was his loophole, and it hasn't worked. Lucas hasn't said "no" with this release. He's said "maybe." We're gaining ground. Let's not give up now.

“What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who wanted to read one.”

Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death

Author
Time
A filmmaker named George Lucas, who was a pupil of mine before he turned to evil, helped his special effects crew hunt down and destroy the original trilogy. He betrayed and murdered the movies. Now the original prints are all but extinct. Lucas was seduced by cgi....

Why didn't you tell me? You told me Lucas betrayed and murdered the movies?

George Lucas was seduced by the dark side of the force. The official Star Wars films ceased to be the originals and became the special editions. When that happened, the good films that were Star Wars were destroyed. So what I told you was true. From a certain point-of-view.
George Lucas was seduced by the dark side. The OOT ceased to exist in his mind and became the Special Editions...." "They're more maching now than movies. Twisted and evil."
Author
Time
If it's dead why sit around talking about it all day? Or do you belong to a "New Coke and Hammer Pants" message board? If that's the case then carry on.
"Among many things I have to be thankful for are you, the fans. I know that some of you haven't liked every single thing that I've done with the saga, and that you have a strong sense of ownership over all things Star Wars. But take that passion and devotion and channel it into a creative project of your own."
-George Lucas
Author
Time
JediRandy, dont come on here trying to start trouble again. Please.


Author
Time
We can't talk about something that's dead? I guess nobody talks about the Beatles or Elvis either.
Author
Time
It's not your movie, never was, never will be


I never said that it was.

“What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who wanted to read one.”

Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death

Author
Time
Originally posted by: JediRandy
If it's dead why sit around talking about it all day? Or do you belong to a "New Coke and Hammer Pants" message board? If that's the case then carry on.


If we didn't, then what would you do all day? A wise man once said, "Who is the more foolish? The Fool, or the fool who follows him?"
Author
Time
I don't think helmet's saying it's dead for everyone, just dead for him/ (her?) you know, lost hope and all that. i have to agree. Lucas will never have one speck of respect for the original films. Is it because of some legal thing with his wife? I don't know, maybe it is. Whatever the reason, we probably won't be seeing the original unaltered films on dvd blu ray whatever else unless some employee in charge of the masters gets pissed at lucas and decides to release his own dvd for all that's good and green in the world.

Well, I'd sy it's been dead for me since Darth Vader said NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO, as James earl Jones himself, the iconic badass PERFECT voice of darth vader, became Prequelized with some typical prequel dialogue. It was a horrific day that day, I tell you.

He big in nothing important in good elephant.

"Miss you, I will, Original Trilogy..."

"Your midichlorians are weak, Old man." -Darth Vader 2007 super deluxe extra special dipped in chocolate sauce edition.

http://prequelsstink.ytmnd.com/
Author
Time
Perhaps, but that does not take away from the greatness of the original trilogy. I agree with Jenny. This release is a sign of things to come. The winds are changing. Let us not give up now.

“What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who wanted to read one.”

Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death

Author
Time
I take that back. It looks like this release is the final nail in the coffin for OOT fans. Lucas's ego seems to be more powerful than anything which we can throw at it. It looks like we've lost. I intend to fight to the end, of course, but I don't see what else I can do.

“What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who wanted to read one.”

Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death

Author
Time
I think the mainstream media will never, ever be sympathetic to this. But hopefully the home video/electronic industry will make some noise. That's the bubble Lucasfilm lives in anyway. Maybe enough bad reviews (and a bad rep as a seller of crappy products) will follow them to enough industry shows and conventions to have some effect.
Author
Time
You got to admit Jar-Jar looked pretty good.
VADER: Let me look on you with my own eyes...

LUKE: Dad, where are your eyebrows?

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=WO_S6UgkQk0