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OFFICIAL: Library of Congress had original prints replaced with 1997 SE — Page 9

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TheoOdo said:

Just why is he so tenacious about keeping these films under wraps?

Did he accidentally slip a map to his buried treasure into a single frame? If you play it backwards, does it reveal the recipe for the elixir of immortality?

What the hell is going on in this man's head?!

I think he wants to be known as the first filmmaker in modern times to destroy a film before our very eyes. The OT is inextricably linked with GL's obsessive-compulsive revisionist behavior, and the sad fact that has developed over the years is that The films we saw in 77-80-83 are not gonna last physically like every other film made. I don't know why GL wants to hurt his fans so much, but no one could have expected the nadir we are all in, not even a year ago. It will be a matter of time when we are sunk into a new seeming pit; maybe GL will show us burning the original negatives: why not? He has billions of dollars, and can just bypass any law he finds inconvenient. It is also a matter of time that he will recall every copy from private collectors and film institutes around the world and just smash them to pieces. Think that's far-fetched? WE didn't expect Darth Vader to say NOOOO at the end of the new version of ROTJ, and we didn't expect this saddening news about the lack of new prints in the LOC. What pisses me off the most is that is that I can't live without these movies, and yet I cannot have them.

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ray_afraid said:

generalfrevious said:

 

I can't live without these movies, and yet I cannot have them.

Yikes.

Alright that was selfish, I'm sorry. But these movies deserve to be seen by everyone, and the idea that future generations will not be able to see these essential films of american cinema just scares me.

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generalfrevious said:

ray_afraid said:

generalfrevious said:

 

I can't live without these movies, and yet I cannot have them.

Yikes.

Alright that was selfish, I'm sorry. But these movies deserve to be seen by everyone, and the idea that future generations will not be able to see these essential films of american cinema just scares me.

Haha, yeah, I'm with ya there.

Ray’s Lounge
Biggs in ANH edit idea
ROTJ opening edit idea

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generalfrevious said:

What pisses me off the most is that is that I can't live without these movies, and yet I cannot have them.


I felt that way about a girl once. Still do, in fact, to an extent.

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Generalfrevious is my favorite _____.

generalfrevious said:

...and the idea that future generations will not be able to see these essential films of american cinema just scares me.

You are obviously unaware of the fine preservation efforts we offer.

Not to mention, any old shmoe can get a used copy of pre or post THX in their favorite flavor on both VHS and Laserdisc (and post on DVD).

This signature uses Markdown syntax, which makes it easy to add formatting like italics, bold, and lists:

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Asaki said:

Generalfrevious is my favorite _____.

 

generalfrevious said:

...and the idea that future generations will not be able to see these essential films of american cinema just scares me.

You are obviously unaware of the fine preservation efforts we offer.

Not to mention, any old shmoe can get a used copy of pre or post THX in their favorite flavor on both VHS and Laserdisc (and post on DVD). 

 

Alright, you got me there. But what about the original film elements? The survival of the OOT depends on a actual film print that GL failed to preserve 20 years ago. They only exist in private collections now. Without that film source the preservations cannot last beyond several generations of video copying, right? Plus, about this time VHS tapes are probably unwatchable by now, and LD will follow in about 15 years.

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generalfrevious said:

ray_afraid said:

generalfrevious said:

 

I can't live without these movies, and yet I cannot have them.

Yikes.

Alright that was selfish, I'm sorry.

I don't think this is selfish as much as...well...creepy.  If I were the original films, I would definitely file a restraining order against you.

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Just to clear something up, US law requires anyone seeking a copyright to submit the at least one copy of the material to the Library of Congress (if it requests one). Lucasfilm can't get to them. Same goes for whatever is archived at the BFI.

I also doubt Lucasfilm has actually allowed the negatives to deteriorate. Think about it. This is a guy who actually PLANS on upgrading and repackaging these movies for as long as it remains profitable. Sooner or later, he'll need that stuff.

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generalfrevious said:


Plus, about this time VHS tapes are probably unwatchable by now


Most of the movies I own (including the OT) are on VHS. They are not in pristine condition, and far from DVD (and I'll assume Blu-Ray) quality, but most of them are far from unwatchable.

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DuracellEnergizer said:

 

generalfrevious said:


Plus, about this time VHS tapes are probably unwatchable by now


Most of the movies I own (including the OT) are on VHS. They are not in pristine condition, and far from DVD (and I'll assume Blu-Ray) quality, but most of them are far from unwatchable.

 

Yours haven't worn out? My faces set (bought in 97) had run its course within ten years. 

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Nope, they haven't worn out. Of course, I bought them second hand, so I don't know what they were like new, but they sound and look clear enough to watch on a CRT TV made in the 90s without getting a headache or eye strain.

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I just watched a 1984 VHS tape of ANH that I bought a year or two ago. The film looked suprisingly great, very nice and vivid colours, but the tape broke at one point and got chewed up. Managed to fix it pretty easily but that one part will have noise over it forever now. Just goes to show that every time you watch these, they die a little more.

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TV's Frink said:

 If I were the original films, I would definitely split-screen with you.

Fixed?

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Sluggo said:

TV's Frink said:

 If I were the original films, I would definitely split-screen with you.

Fixed?

The original films know that frevious would just move on to a different obsession if he ever got what he wanted.  Mark my words, the three films would be found scattered across at least ten different states.

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zombie84 said:

I just watched a 1984 VHS tape of ANH that I bought a year or two ago. The film looked suprisingly great, very nice and vivid colours, but the tape broke at one point and got chewed up. Managed to fix it pretty easily but that one part will have noise over it forever now. Just goes to show that every time you watch these, they die a little more.

 

he he

I plugged my VHS player through an Optoma short throw(it can beam images 3 meters in width from as short a distance as 2.5 meters) projector that I bought a year or so back.

Stuck in my 1982 VHS of ANH and boom!!---a revelation----details that I had not seen before were very prominent with just the right amount of depth between foreground and background to instill a filmic sense to the proceedings----plus the fact that this unmastered version has a lot of dirt and scratches---it all adds up to quite an experience.

Because the 1982 transfer is quite bright there really is a feeling of a full picture(all be it in 4:3)-----as opposed to a transfer where a lot of the image is in shadow(ala the 2004 DVD)

This is the 1982 VHS PAL version BTW-----which is certainly better if not superior to NTSC(sorry my American friends!)

And the size of the image was roughly 1.5 in width by 2 meters in height---If I sat too close then the VHS's video noise(or even film grain!) became too distracting----but sitting further back yielded excellent results----+ the nostalgic factor of actually playing a physical cassette  from the era is something that not even holding a 2011 digitally restored high def Blu ray can replicate.

 

 

I saw Star Wars in 1977. Many, many, many times. For 3 years it was just Star Wars...period. I saw it in good theaters, cheap theaters and drive-ins with those clunky metal speakers you hang on your window. The screen and sound quality never subtracted from the excitement. I can watch the original cut right now, over 30 years later, on some beat up VHS tape and enjoy it. It's the story that makes this movie. Nothing? else.

kurtb8474 1 week ago

http://www.youtube.com/all_comments?v=SkAZxd-5Hp8


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And the size of the image was roughly 1.5 in width by 2 meters in height---If I sat too close then the VHS's video noise(or even film grain!) became too distracting----but sitting further back yielded excellent results----+ the nostalgic factor of actually playing a physical cassette  from the era is something that not even holding a 2011 digitally restored high def Blu ray can replicate.

 

 

Danny what projector is it?

I've got an Optoma hd65 (720p) projector on a 2.5m wide screen in my living room and my VHS copies look awful on it! Its like watching them thru a pair of womens stockings over your head(which I usually only wear while watching the prequels) Give me a Blu Ray or DVD copy any day. One day GL will release the originals untouched on blu ray without a doubt. An Xmas coming soon I reckon there'll be a mega mega superdooper collectible box set which will have them in it and it'll cost an arm and a leg.

Although GL beter hurry up as I've heard he thinks the worlds gonna end in 2012!

 

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danny_boy said:

This is the 1982 VHS PAL version BTW-----which is certainly better if not superior to NTSC(sorry my American friends!)

Riiiiiiight....because making everyone sound like chipmunks is an improvement. =P

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lpd said:

And the size of the image was roughly 1.5 in width by 2 meters in height---If I sat too close then the VHS's video noise(or even film grain!) became too distracting----but sitting further back yielded excellent results----+ the nostalgic factor of actually playing a physical cassette  from the era is something that not even holding a 2011 digitally restored high def Blu ray can replicate.

 

 

Danny what projector is it?

I've got an Optoma hd65 (720p) projector on a 2.5m wide screen in my living room and my VHS copies look awful on it! Its like watching them thru a pair of womens stockings over your head(which I usually only wear while watching the prequels) Give me a Blu Ray or DVD copy any day. One day GL will release the originals untouched on blu ray without a doubt. An Xmas coming soon I reckon there'll be a mega mega superdooper collectible box set which will have them in it and it'll cost an arm and a leg.

Although GL beter hurry up as I've heard he thinks the worlds gonna end in 2012!

 

 

Hi---yeah---it's an Optoma EW533st which scales up to 1080p(it's native resolution is 1280 x 800).

http://uk.buy.com/PR/Product.aspx?sku=217115923

 

I bought it for my Blu Ray----discs like Avatar do look amazing when you blow them up to 3 meters wide.

But I thought it would be an interesting experiment to pump the VHS through it.

Other factors to be wary of are the quality of the VHS player and of course the condition of the cassettes themselves.

But watching the unmastered and luminiscent 1982 transfer of Star Wars through this projector  was amazing.

 

 

 

 

 

I saw Star Wars in 1977. Many, many, many times. For 3 years it was just Star Wars...period. I saw it in good theaters, cheap theaters and drive-ins with those clunky metal speakers you hang on your window. The screen and sound quality never subtracted from the excitement. I can watch the original cut right now, over 30 years later, on some beat up VHS tape and enjoy it. It's the story that makes this movie. Nothing? else.

kurtb8474 1 week ago

http://www.youtube.com/all_comments?v=SkAZxd-5Hp8


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Tobar said:

danny_boy said:

This is the 1982 VHS PAL version BTW-----which is certainly better if not superior to NTSC(sorry my American friends!)

Riiiiiiight....because making everyone sound like chipmunks is an improvement. =P

However, PAL offers a higher resolution image and better color stability than NTSC. Countries on the PAL system include the U.K., Germany, Spain, Portugal, Italy, China, India, most of Africa, and the Middle East.

http://hometheater.about.com/od/televisionbasics/qt/ntscpalframes.htm

 


I saw Star Wars in 1977. Many, many, many times. For 3 years it was just Star Wars...period. I saw it in good theaters, cheap theaters and drive-ins with those clunky metal speakers you hang on your window. The screen and sound quality never subtracted from the excitement. I can watch the original cut right now, over 30 years later, on some beat up VHS tape and enjoy it. It's the story that makes this movie. Nothing? else.

kurtb8474 1 week ago

http://www.youtube.com/all_comments?v=SkAZxd-5Hp8


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 (Edited)

Yeah you get a slightly higher resolution while sacrificing the presentation of the film. I've compared the two before and found the speed up unbearable.

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Tobar said:

Yeah you get a slightly higher resolution while sacrificing the presentation of the film. I've compared the two before and found the speed up unbearable.

This is a key point to me.  These films were originally presented with audio at NTSC speed...which should mean something at this forum, no?

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 (Edited)

Meh, if the audio pitch is preserved (relatively easy to do), who'd even notice? Now, NTSC motion jitter, on the other hand...

Mind you, that doesn't mean I think PAL is flawless. I applaud the advent of 1080p24. Both video formats have their drawbacks, but I honestly do think NTSC is the lesser one, and it's just as crap at preserving the presentation of the film; you still don't get the film at the correct speed.

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FrederikOlsen said:

Meh, if the audio pitch is preserved (relatively easy to do), who'd even notice? Now, NTSC motion jitter, on the other hand...

 

I believe the PAL discussion came about due to the mention of the 1982 PAL VHS...was that pitch preserved?

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Probably not, no. I'm not sure they cared in 1982 - mind you, there were even NTSC Laserdiscs of "Star Wars" that were sped-up because of disc constraints.

You could easily splice in a pitch-corrected PAL audio track, though, making it possible to do a nice preservation project using the 1982 release.