Info Wanted: Newbie questions - preservation remastered from the original theatrical cuts?

I’m trying to sift through all the various forums and topics to find an answer to what I thought would be a relatively simple question, but the various restorations, cuts, fan edits, etc. are making this search of mine a bit difficult.

Is there a version of the original trilogy, remastered in high def, blu ray, dvd, etc. that is from the original theatrical cuts? I know there is a petition out for Lucasfilm to release this, but I find it hard to believe something similar has not been attempted or achieved on a fan level.

I have every copy of these films on every commercially released format, clearing my throat for any of the infringement warnings etc, and am not asking to trade or purchase.

I would simply like to know if someone can direct me in my search. I have a friend who wants to see the films for the first time and I do not want to show him anything with CGI Jabbas, Sarlac beaks or Death Stars exploding with shockwaves.

Thank you.

Howdie Talkinghead80.

A HD Original Unaltered Trilogy is the dream of everyone who posts here.

There are (thanks to television broadcasts) HD transfers of the Special Editions but converting them back into the pre SE form would be impossible because all the elements that would have to put back are of a lower resolution.

Most of the preservations on here are based on Laserdisc versions of the OTT or OUT (different acronyms for the same thing).

Adywan's Empire Strikes Back reconstruction was based on scaled down HD and a mixture of sources to create a very crisp DVD quality version of the pre-SE version of that film (well worth checking out).

I'm really not in a position to recommend a Laserdisc based preservation but I'm sure other users will have their favourites.

In short, unless Lucasfilm finally restore the original version to a professional standard and make it available to purchase in the best format available, the original versions of these films will be lost forever so if you haven't yet done so please make your feelings known by signing the petition and I hope you have fun reading and posting here.

Don't forget Harmy's Partially Despecialized HD versions.

Thanks for the responses. I was aware that the original theatrical cuts came out on DVD some years ago, but I believe they were from LAserdisc versions?And that fans were enraged or something?

Are these "unaltered" versions that bad? I have a pretty nice LCD tv and sound system so I would like to show my bud something decent. The Adywan (sp?) Star Wars Revisited looks fantastic, but it's not really my style - all the new improvements, edits (lots of explosions it seemed too.) I really just want this kid to experience STAR WARS for the first time the way I did.

Which means I should show him a full-screen Beta max copy, but I'm trying to do better than that :)

Bingowings pointed you on Adywan ESB reconstruction, not on Revisited. People are rather precise here around. ;)

If you want as close as possible to the original versions in good quality, I'd recommend dark_jedi's versions of all three films and the adywan ESB reconstruction that Bingo referenced above.

Thanks for the direction all.

I definitely HIGHLY recommend Adywan's Empire Strikes Back theatrical reconstruction.

These are the only differences from the 1980 theatrical version still present (that I remember from watching it):

- Re-composited snowspeeders (not CG, just the original elements better integrated in some instances, from the 1997 SE)
- Han's "vest" shadow "fix" (in the carbon freezing scene, from the 2004 SE)
- Re-composited falling Luke (so he's not transparent; from the 2004 SE I think)
- A couple imperfect lightsaber effects (i.e. the core isn't 100% white in a couple shots, but at least the blade isn't pink like it was in the 2004 SE)

Everything else is the same as the 1980 theatrical version, and it looks even better than the 2004 DVD due to Adywan's masterful color correction.  And I'm amazed at how seamlessly he removed the Cloud City SE additions.

For the other two, the best you can do is to get Dark_Jedi's V1 or V2 releases, or wait for his V3.  I haven't seen Harmy's "partially despecialized" HD versions, so I don't know how faithful they are to the theatrical cuts.

if you want to go super hardcore you can just go kill george lucas and snag his personal technicolor dye print of star wars, and then hunt down a 35mm projecter and the 35mm copies of empire and rotj

Enjoy your prison sentence.

Skin sings :

They're Killing Lucas Again!