Is there any hope that Disney is sitting on a surprise announcement of the original versions of the OT coming to Blu-Ray and UltraHD for the 40th anniversary next May?
I have hope, if that counts.
I’d say the chances are 50/50. I’ll be unsurprised one way or the other.
Honestly, I’d take a new transfer of the SE. I wouldn’t be thrilled about it if it wasn’t released alongside the OUT, but I’ll support anything that results in that awful Lowry master being retired.
Honestly, I’d take a new transfer of the SE. I wouldn’t be thrilled about it if it wasn’t released alongside the OUT, but I’ll support anything that results in that awful Lowry master being retired.
I think a home release of that in the absence of an OUT is unlikely. There’s not enough AV nerd Star Wars fans out there to make it worthwhile. Your average fan isn’t going to buy it if they already own the box set.
I would put this in my sig if I weren’t so lazy.
Honestly, I’d take a new transfer of the SE. I wouldn’t be thrilled about it if it wasn’t released alongside the OUT, but I’ll support anything that results in that awful Lowry master being retired.
I think a home release of that in the absence of an OUT is unlikely. There’s not enough AV nerd Star Wars fans out there to make it worthwhile. Your average fan isn’t going to buy it if they already own the box set.
They’ve been pretty successful so far in the “getting fans to quintuple-dip on a marginally-better-or-actually-somewhat-worse-but-newer! release” strategy. I think it’s reasonable to assume they’d keep it up, at least until they make a release that actually doesn’t sell.
IMO, the best-case scenario for the Reliance work is more and better raw materials to despecialize. No scenario involves something I’d want to watch, that’s just fantasy.
It would be pointless to put out a new transfer this late in the game unless it’s being released day and date on 4k UHD. Even then, they’d need to throw in the unaltereds for people to actually care.
Honestly, I’d take a new transfer of the SE. I wouldn’t be thrilled about it if it wasn’t released alongside the OUT, but I’ll support anything that results in that awful Lowry master being retired.
I’d have to agree. At this time (while he’s alive), I don’t think that Disney would want to disrespect George and put out any versions of the movies he doesn’t consider cannon. Therefore, I would gladly settle for the SE’s in 4K, so long as they’re created actually respecting the original look of the films (i.e. without George) because DEAR GOD those Blu-rays got some funky looking transfers.
Honestly, I’d take a new transfer of the SE. I wouldn’t be thrilled about it if it wasn’t released alongside the OUT, but I’ll support anything that results in that awful Lowry master being retired.
I’d have to agree. At this time (while he’s alive), I don’t think that Disney would want to disrespect George and put out any versions of the movies he doesn’t consider cannon. Therefore, I would gladly settle for the SE’s in 4K, so long as they’re created actually respecting the original look of the films (i.e. without George) because DEAR GOD those Blu-rays got some funky looking transfers.
I honestly doubt an OOT restoration would bother George at this point.
At this time (while he’s alive), I don’t think that Disney would want to disrespect George and put out any versions of the movies he doesn’t consider cannon.
They threw out his ideas for Episode 7 and they let his last movie go completely unnoticed, if this isn’t a big “Fuck you, George”, then I don’t know what is. Would releasing the OOT really make things worse between Disney and Lucas after that?
Ceci n’est pas une signature.
At this time (while he’s alive), I don’t think that Disney would want to disrespect George and put out any versions of the movies he doesn’t consider cannon.
They threw out his ideas for Episode 7 and they let his last movie go completely unnoticed, if this isn’t a big “Fuck you, George”, then I don’t know what is. Would releasing the OOT really make things worse between Disney and Lucas after that?
True. Another reason to hope that they will indeed release a proper restoration of these films sooner rather than later. It would honestly feel wrong to me that, on the 40th anniversary of one of the biggest films of all time, they didn’t have something big planned. Maybe reaching a distribution deal w/FOX for ANH requires far more legal calculus than they’re currently willing to fool with - which would be sad.
At this time (while he’s alive), I don’t think that Disney would want to disrespect George and put out any versions of the movies he doesn’t consider cannon.
They threw out his ideas for Episode 7 and they let his last movie go completely unnoticed, if this isn’t a big “Fuck you, George”, then I don’t know what is. Would releasing the OOT really make things worse between Disney and Lucas after that?
True. Another reason to hope that they will indeed release a proper restoration of these films sooner rather than later. It would honestly feel wrong to me that, on the 40th anniversary of one of the biggest films of all time, they didn’t have something big planned. Maybe reaching a distribution deal w/FOX for ANH requires far more legal calculus than they’re currently willing to fool with - which would be sad.
Fox and Marvel hate each other, so there’s that.
I don’t know if George Lucas is really behind the holdup. After all, he did release the OOT in 2006 (albeit in bad video quality). And he’s even mentioned that restorations are expensive, and so he gave the SE’s priority when deciding what to restore. This tells me that it was more an issue of him not wanting to spend his own time & money on what he considers to be “rough drafts”.
So I think the real question is: does Disney think it’s worth the time & money to restore the OOT when the SE’s seem to be selling just fine? I hope the answer to that question is “yes”, but it doesn’t seem to be, given how Mike Verta described the executives to be either “skittish” or “uninterested”. What I’m really hoping is that, one of these days, Disney sees how popular some of the fan restorations/recreations are and decides to capitalize on that with their own official release.
Fang Zei said:
Fox and Marvel hate each other, so there’s that.
If that were true then I don’t think this would be happening.
It would be pointless to put out a new transfer this late in the game unless it’s being released day and date on 4k UHD. Even then, they’d need to throw in the unaltereds for people to actually care.
The fact that they just put out the new steelbooks and the digital HD last year make me think you’re probably right, but that 2011 blu ray really is bad enough to warrant a remaster of its own. If a few years had gone by without a repackaging, I don’t think it would have been surprising or inappropriate to give the SE an overhaul, regardless of the status of the OUT.
Although I could still see the scenario of a new SE without an OUT playing out if they do a theatrical rerelease for the anniversary next spring. That would be a reason for them to be prepping a 4K version, and they’d be able to refer to it as “remastered” which would probably get more asses in the seats. Then at Christmas, they put out some sort of nifty box set of either the OT or the entire saga using the new masters.
There’s also the possibility of 3D versions to consider.
The fact that they actually bothered to finish converting the PT makes me think they’ll eventually do the same for the OT, even if it’s not next year.
It’s the “how/when” of their release strategy that’s still anyone’s guess.
So far, we’ve gotten a new master every seven years (1997-2004-2011).
So far, we’ve gotten a new master every seven years (1997-2004-2011).
It would be more accurate to say we’ve gotten a new version of the SE every seven years, each time also being the movies’ hotly anticipated debut on the latest home video format. The 2011 version simply used the 2004 master and made the additional changes from there.
It’s also worth noting we’ve gotten a reissue of the 2011 discs every two years. This would make us due for something next year even if it wasn’t the 40th anniversary.
The Special Editions simply don’t work without the prequels. We’re never told who Hayden is in any version of the OT, so if someone who hasn’t seen the prequels watches the 2004 or 2011 version of ROTJ, they would be utterly confused when Hayden shows up.
Maybe they’ll announce it at E3 next year.
The Special Editions simply don’t work without the prequels. We’re never told who Hayden is in any version of the OT, so if someone who hasn’t seen the prequels watches the 2004 or 2011 version of ROTJ, they would be utterly confused when Hayden shows up.
One would assume that Hayden was the ghost of Anakin because he’s right next to the ghosts of Obi-Wan & Yoda. But yeah, twelve years later that decision to use the PT Anakin is still nonsensical, and honestly it’s an act of active contempt by Lucas to fans of his work. Disney better not add more nonsensical bullshit to ROTJ like George did.
The Special Editions simply don’t work without the prequels. We’re never told who Hayden is in any version of the OT, so if someone who hasn’t seen the prequels watches the 2004 or 2011 version of ROTJ, they would be utterly confused when Hayden shows up.
One would assume that Hayden was the ghost of Anakin because he’s right next to the ghosts of Obi-Wan & Yoda.
Why would anyone assume that? We just met Anakin and he didn’t look anything like Hayden.
The Special Editions simply don’t work without the prequels. We’re never told who Hayden is in any version of the OT, so if someone who hasn’t seen the prequels watches the 2004 or 2011 version of ROTJ, they would be utterly confused when Hayden shows up.
One would assume that Hayden was the ghost of Anakin because he’s right next to the ghosts of Obi-Wan & Yoda.
Why would anyone assume that? We just met Anakin and he didn’t look anything like Hayden.
I don’t know then. Trying to understand Lucas’s changes to the OT is like trying to understand a schizophrenic person while you are under the influence five or six different psychedelic drugs. It’s actually a work of genius, the levels he actually goes to piss off the people who have made him successful in the first place.
My money is on a revamped 40th Anniversary edition which will include the Original theatrical version as well.
If you looked at the video from Star Wars celebration Europe/ John Knoll who was I think the lead on the special edition in 1997. He has already been tinkering about with the death star Hanger which has major issues. Claiming it was just a project he was doing in his spare time…
Mentioning the shape of the death star was like oval or egg shaped and it was not meant to be. The deathstar has been re-created meticulously digitally but is the shape it was meant to be now.
And also the death star plans were incorrect as an earlier design was given to the animator of the stolen plans and the death star dish was in the wrong place. This has been re-created meticulously. And the error could be easily fixed also.
We know the Massasi Temple is missing from a number of shots in the special edition also and it is clearly present in Rogue one.
But I would also imagine some very current unpopular changes will be reversed (there is little guess work about what needs to be removed to make it not stupid or horrible plastic looking). I would hope that we get to see a few extra snippets of footage intergrated as well from the actual time the film was made along with some cut music also perhaps. Definitely un-censor the gunshots.
I would hope for a 3 or 4 disc version with a bonus disc also.
As Far as extra footage goes this is what I know of and would include in a new special edition.
Not keen on shoehorning in any “new footage” filmed especially or characters. All of that should go pretty much. Aesthitic backgrounds I can live with and matte painting replacements and matte line removal. CGI models as long as they are done photogrammetry from the original models they would look very very similar.
That’s my rule book on it.
Unnecessary question marks added here and there?
I would put this in my sig if I weren’t so lazy.
The question marks relate to extra footage I am not entirely sure exists without looking in to it further, but pick me up if there were not extra Cantina Aliens or extra gun fight footage on the Tantive IV. I am sure I saw an extra shot the other day on board the Tantive and I thought wow! that’s great but it had no lasers rotoscoped in on it.
Another change you can expect is the star destroyers being revamped to have lights on the models.
Re: Cantina - I hope we get the proper shot of walrus man’s arm being chopped off too. Along with the missing laser bolt being deflected back a that bloke with the scars all over his face.