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Original Trilogy: Luke's lightsaber color — Page 2

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Both the cyan and the white blade coloring are defects of home video transfers.  On the Technicolor prints, Luke's saber is distinctly sky-blue in all shots.

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 (Edited)

I guess I meant sky blue - I thought sky blue and cyan were the same thing.

Yeah, what I've seen from Team -1's Spanish LPP print shows that it also has color in parts of the training scene where official pre-SE transfers show it almost white.

And it amazes me how Moth3r's VHS bootleg reproduces the color of the lightsaber better than any official video transfer.

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There's a lot to be gained from looking at sources made before the film materials had started to degrade.

Cyan to me indicates a kind of 'blue with some green in it', while sky-blue is more purely blue, just a light shade of it.

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Couldn't find anything in Rinzler's making of other than a few production notes and pictures with a blurb describing what we already knew. No mention of which effects house. 

Rinzler's Making of SW p.257 - "The seeker ball was made in the ILM model shop in two hours, and shot against bluescreen. But because all anamorphic shots had been filmed with the 35mm production camera and not the Vistavision, the “Jedi Lesson scene” had to be sent to an outside effects house to be completed."

TServo2049 said:

I have heard the SE might have been a little rushed because stuff kept getting added to the workload...

The original Star Wars in 1977 was being produced in a rushed state... I think it's more a lack of genuine care. We saw the culmination of it in the DVD and BD versions. The end result is simply unprofessional.

The point I was trying to make on the last page is that the poor rotoscoping is what makes me unsure what the hell the procedure actually was. Using the original elements shouldn't produce those poor results, even if the ones doing the work aren't professionals.

As you can see the blade in Ben's hut doesn't even appear as a three dimensional object in the SE, it's just flat where the original animation was perfectly fine. Something that stood out to me even the first time I saw it. Even if the intent might have been to redo those shots with all original flaws intact, they failed miserably.

We want you to be aware that we have no plans—now or in the future—to restore the earlier versions. 

Sincerely, Lynne Hale publicity@lucasfilm.com

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Hang on, how many original trilogy Lukes are there?  I can only think of one.

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TV's Frink said:

Hang on, how many original trilogy Lukes are there?  I can only think of one.

In the 2006 Bonus Feature there are sometimes many Lukes due to the DVNR process it went trough. ;)

We want you to be aware that we have no plans—now or in the future—to restore the earlier versions. 

Sincerely, Lynne Hale publicity@lucasfilm.com

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Better if viewed this way

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CyZksr3cXlQ/VN0SvHA1IXI/AAAAAAAA2lc/rCI5bubwCdk/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0521.PNG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-CsZAklZI6RM/VN0SvDM7t7I/AAAAAAAA2hw/vaDT9xasXvI/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0523.PNG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-HDeGdXRW6Gk/VN0SwxR35iI/AAAAAAAA2iE/kYKFPu5qzTg/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0524.PNG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-P5dEZi8nNxQ/VN0Sws_uWpI/AAAAAAAA2iA/fPgnFnQYQeA/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0525.PNG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-QcwZ6IjJtKI/VN0SyFcYpnI/AAAAAAAA2iY/tJJg7aABkdI/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0527.PNG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-pPJmNY0KPKQ/VN0SyMGwxzI/AAAAAAAA2ic/JOeh1Ef7gvA/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0528.PNG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-um4OZSYshuM/VN0SzPRm2VI/AAAAAAAA2iw/cE9k58DPWmQ/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0529.PNG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-dxGCiwcTxZ8/VN0Szmb-giI/AAAAAAAA2i4/fy1Nxax3EBw/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0530.PNG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-nsd4OvQO2Og/VN0Sz79ChYI/AAAAAAAA2jE/lxngx4tbRvo/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0531.PNG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-BnhjcTTxc4Q/VN0S0ZCgBMI/AAAAAAAA2jA/EeL9lnnwpDQ/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0532.PNG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-0oKUUei0cOY/VN0S092_4xI/AAAAAAAA2jI/qGwgx0NCXeQ/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0533.PNG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-CMvq5N1M9ts/VN0S1H1gXAI/AAAAAAAA2jY/VUKdhAq10zo/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0534.PNG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-tCRspvvh1GU/VN0S1Q5t_YI/AAAAAAAA2jc/7XegfAljRGM/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0535.PNG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-pPv9VCnOmJg/VN0S14d3PwI/AAAAAAAA2jg/lNyaOK0O_s8/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0536.PNG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-kwbA-_QuuIw/VN0S29gpLLI/AAAAAAAA2jw/L0pQA0XpHAM/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0537.PNG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-2woPxCelpnw/VN0S289nU0I/AAAAAAAA2j0/WR_t-1PHJaU/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0538.PNG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-k17GS1bXMc8/VN0S3IWfbLI/AAAAAAAA2j4/cGomAP3Oo1I/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0539.PNG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-FoflQzWyiFU/VN0S4P6uUVI/AAAAAAAA2kM/lsTUDBaafYg/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0540.PNG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-H8jPgzPQO5g/VN0S4D8rm0I/AAAAAAAA2kY/0Sx-k-KSlW4/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0541.PNG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-owj6yuawT3A/VN0S4TETBXI/AAAAAAAA2kI/e7KqcHMvIMc/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0542.PNG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-tlDefPqHeFk/VN0S5dYsD_I/AAAAAAAA2kg/9ML0Fd7ttO8/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0543.PNG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-6Mbe9DzaVC0/VN0S5iBuG-I/AAAAAAAA2kk/CqHlZKWB3fA/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0544.PNG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-hudAqlC1rOc/VN0S5p2Ye1I/AAAAAAAA2ko/BR6NWrcU-RE/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0545.PNG

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xxtelecine 7xx said:

Better if viewed this way

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CyZksr3cXlQ/VN0SvHA1IXI/AAAAAAAA2lc/rCI5bubwCdk/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0521.PNG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-CsZAklZI6RM/VN0SvDM7t7I/AAAAAAAA2hw/vaDT9xasXvI/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0523.PNG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-HDeGdXRW6Gk/VN0SwxR35iI/AAAAAAAA2iE/kYKFPu5qzTg/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0524.PNG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-P5dEZi8nNxQ/VN0Sws_uWpI/AAAAAAAA2iA/fPgnFnQYQeA/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0525.PNG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-QcwZ6IjJtKI/VN0SyFcYpnI/AAAAAAAA2iY/tJJg7aABkdI/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0527.PNG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-pPJmNY0KPKQ/VN0SyMGwxzI/AAAAAAAA2ic/JOeh1Ef7gvA/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0528.PNG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-um4OZSYshuM/VN0SzPRm2VI/AAAAAAAA2iw/cE9k58DPWmQ/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0529.PNG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-dxGCiwcTxZ8/VN0Szmb-giI/AAAAAAAA2i4/fy1Nxax3EBw/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0530.PNG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-nsd4OvQO2Og/VN0Sz79ChYI/AAAAAAAA2jE/lxngx4tbRvo/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0531.PNG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-BnhjcTTxc4Q/VN0S0ZCgBMI/AAAAAAAA2jA/EeL9lnnwpDQ/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0532.PNG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-0oKUUei0cOY/VN0S092_4xI/AAAAAAAA2jI/qGwgx0NCXeQ/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0533.PNG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-CMvq5N1M9ts/VN0S1H1gXAI/AAAAAAAA2jY/VUKdhAq10zo/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0534.PNG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-tCRspvvh1GU/VN0S1Q5t_YI/AAAAAAAA2jc/7XegfAljRGM/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0535.PNG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-pPv9VCnOmJg/VN0S14d3PwI/AAAAAAAA2jg/lNyaOK0O_s8/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0536.PNG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-kwbA-_QuuIw/VN0S29gpLLI/AAAAAAAA2jw/L0pQA0XpHAM/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0537.PNG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-2woPxCelpnw/VN0S289nU0I/AAAAAAAA2j0/WR_t-1PHJaU/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0538.PNG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-k17GS1bXMc8/VN0S3IWfbLI/AAAAAAAA2j4/cGomAP3Oo1I/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0539.PNG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-FoflQzWyiFU/VN0S4P6uUVI/AAAAAAAA2kM/lsTUDBaafYg/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0540.PNG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-H8jPgzPQO5g/VN0S4D8rm0I/AAAAAAAA2kY/0Sx-k-KSlW4/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0541.PNG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-owj6yuawT3A/VN0S4TETBXI/AAAAAAAA2kI/e7KqcHMvIMc/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0542.PNG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-tlDefPqHeFk/VN0S5dYsD_I/AAAAAAAA2kg/9ML0Fd7ttO8/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0543.PNG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-6Mbe9DzaVC0/VN0S5iBuG-I/AAAAAAAA2kk/CqHlZKWB3fA/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0544.PNG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-hudAqlC1rOc/VN0S5p2Ye1I/AAAAAAAA2ko/BR6NWrcU-RE/w1169-h657-no/IMG_0545.PNG

 Oh for goodness sakes, stop posting unclickable links already.

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hairy_hen said:

Cyan to me indicates a kind of 'blue with some green in it', while sky-blue is more purely blue, just a light shade of it.

Just for future reference: 

CYAN

AZURE (aka SKY BLUE)

(As an aside, I'd just like to say that I'll always prefer Luke's original saber as cyan even if that isn't how it originally looked.)

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xxtelecine 7xx said:

I think you guy are looking for something like this,

Then you would think incorrectly. We are aware of that even twelve year old kids can do lightsaber effects on their home computers these days.

We want you to be aware that we have no plans—now or in the future—to restore the earlier versions. 

Sincerely, Lynne Hale publicity@lucasfilm.com

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 (Edited)

^Go easy on him. His youthful enthusiasm may be a lifeline for him -- quashing it could have devastating results.

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Luke's lightsaber in the first scene in Ben's hut always had a greenish blue look to me in some prints (pre-1993 video prints at least) while it always looked more white to me in the Falcon scene. Also any notice Obi-Wan's saber looking white in the cantina scene in the pre-1993 video releases??

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I figured I'd do this for fun. Here I have a few Lightsaber shots from a few VHS copies and 2006 DVD aka GOUT of ANH. First is a shot I always get a kick out of when I watch the pre-1995 NTSC Pan and Scan VHS versions of ANH. It's the shot of Ben in the cantina holding up his lightsaber. As you can see its extremely washed out, hardly a hint of blue. If you squint you may be able to detect a hint of blue but not much.

Next is Luke's saber in Ben's hut. First shot is from the 1992 VHS which print is virtually if not completely identical to the VHS prints before it. Here his saber looks blue with a slight hint of green. Second is the 1992 Letterboxed VHS which as you can see although its a bit bright looks more greenish compared to the P&S version. Third is the 1995 Pan and Scan VHS which uses the same print used for the 1993 and 1995 Widescreen Laserdisc and GOUT. Here much like the '92 VHS it is blue with a hint of green, giving almost a teal look to it. Last is GOUT which as you can see the green tint is gone for the most part.

Last are three shots of Obi-Wan during his duel with Vader. First is from the '92 VHS, second from '95 VHS, third from GOUT. Mostly here I wanted to show how the blades look somewhat thinner in the pre-95 releases compared to the latter versions. As you can see below Ben's saber looks a bit thinner in the first image compared to the last two. You can even spot this in the above shots I posted of Luke.

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I'm curious as to the origin of Kenner's insistence that yellow lightsabers would play a prominent role in the original film (from box art for Obi-Wan to, most famously, Luke's actual yellow lightsaber accessory in the produced toy). Anybody have any theories? The Rinzler book is silent on the matter.

I know I'm not the only one, but I wish we could actually finally see some yellow lightsabers in action onscreen, but I'm not holding my breath... I think Lucas' blue/green (or purple if you're one particular guy) = good / red = bad idiocy is too firmly entrenched in the popular imagination for Disney to ever find itself inclined to shake things up like that... Shame, really.  

"These deadly rays will be your death..."

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TV's Frink said:

Yellow plastic was cheaper back then.

 Somehow I expected a less prosaic reason... but that makes perfect sense considering this was the company that would later turn the Gamorrean Guard into Friar Tuck.

"These deadly rays will be your death..."

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Akton said:

I know I'm not the only one, but I wish we could actually finally see some yellow lightsabers in action onscreen, but I'm not holding my breath... I think Lucas' blue/green (or purple if you're one particular guy) = good / red = bad idiocy is too firmly entrenched in the popular imagination for Disney to ever find itself inclined to shake things up like that... Shame, really.  

TCW shook up the status quo some by giving Ahsoka a chartreuse shoto alongside her regular green lightsaber, some Jedi Temple guards yellow lightsabers, one Jedi a white lightsaber, and Pre Vizsla his black lightsaber. Rebels seems to be carrying on the tradition, too, as there are pictures on the 'Net of Rebels-era Ahsoka wielding a pair of white/silver-blue lightsabers. So I'd say that the stupid RGB lightsaber colour scheme is slowly but surely being relaxed -- at least for Jedi characters.

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Don't forget the Making Of Star Wars documentary!

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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Akton said:

TV's Frink said:

Yellow plastic was cheaper back then.

 Somehow I expected a less prosaic reason... but that makes perfect sense considering this was the company that would later turn the Gamorrean Guard into Friar Tuck.

But Ben's lightsaber was blue.  Why not give him a yellow lightsaber, too? Interestingl, the Luke and Ben large size action figures (dolls) had blue lightsabers.

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Why was the Lightsaber compositing different spanning across so many stuff like the VHS’s and the Laserdiscs and The Silver Screen Edition? and the opening “A Long Time Ago In A Galaxy Far, Far Away…” shot is also inconsistent, it is dark blue in the gout but light blue like the other films in other releases, anyone know why?

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unamochilla2 said:

Akton said:

TV’s Frink said:

Yellow plastic was cheaper back then.

Somehow I expected a less prosaic reason… but that makes perfect sense considering this was the company that would later turn the Gamorrean Guard into Friar Tuck.

But Ben’s lightsaber was blue.  Why not give him a yellow lightsaber, too? Interestingl, the Luke and Ben large size action figures (dolls) had blue lightsabers.

A bit late replying here, but the 12" Ben Kenobi had a greenish yellow saber.

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4 inch Luke had a yellow lightsaber. The Bespin Luke had a yellow one as well. 12 inch Luke had a blue lightsaber. 4 inch Obi-Wan had a blue lightsaber, but the 12 inch one had a yellow/green one. So weird. It took until ROTJ for Luke to get the proper green saber, but even then early releases had a blue one because of Lucas changing the color relatively late in production.

It seems like people are really embracing the new characters. In fact, the big question people ask me now about Star Wars is, “Are Finn and Poe gay lovers?” And really how the f*ck would I know? My second husband left me for a man, so my gaydar isn’t exactly what you’d call Death Star level quality. ----Carrie Fisher

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TServo2049 said:

Nelson Shin’s story about suggesting the sound does seem embellished. AFAIK Ben Burtt came up with that sound all his own

Also I have read elsewhere that Barry Nolan at Van der Veer Photo Effects did the glows. But maybe that was only some scenes?

I forget, was that glow on the ceiling beam in the original shot there on the whole shot, or was it an “environmental” glow that was double exposed in only during that impact animation?

Just thought I’d mention that Barry Nolan is my grandfather.