Mavimao said:

Film does not have a set resolution. It is a piece of transparent plastic coated in a layer ( or layers) of light sensitive, silver hallide crystals. The more sensitive the film, the bigger the crystals, and hence the more grain that is apparent.

The fact that no one crystal is in one given spot at any one frame of the film at any given time is what gives film it's "organic" look. With digital, every pixel is side by side, and this gives digital video an image with sharp edges.

I'm not sure what point you are trying to make danny boy, but the only thing that the old 82 laserdisc was faithful to was a damaged IP print that had gone sour after years of making theatrical release prints.

Yes there will be grain on the original negative, but nothing like that horrid ip print. Just look back at the 97SE.

I agree with you although as I said earlier the IP print that was used for the 1982 VHS was just one year old at that point in time ---as it was used in the limited theatrical run engagements of April 1981 when Star Wars and Empire were shown back to back.

So in my view it is about as fresh a transfer of an original print (when I say original--I mean without any digital tinkering) as there is out there.

*Although this is not strictly original either as it was a new print with the then new "A New Hope" crawl spliced into the opening reel*

Considering that this 1982 VHS transfer was of superior quality to the 1977 U matic/Beta/VHS bootleg then I think it has considerable reference value(even though it is still only a VHS/laserdisc) .

Even the 1991 1st issue VHS widescreen and subsequent 1993/95 THX releases were digitally mastered in some capacity---let alone the 1997 special editions.