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ADigitalMan

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Join date
26-Sep-2004
Last activity
7-Aug-2025
Posts
2,944

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Post
#162964
Topic
Convert DVD Vob files to Mpg2 ?
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/162964/action/topic#162964
Time
If I'm understanding the question correctly, then one of the simplest ways to convert is to demux the streams using your ripper program. Womble will let you then re-assemble the desired audio and video stream into a mpeg file without re-encoding.

DVD-Lab Pro has a wonderful demuxing tool. Drag the first VOB file in the sequence into the assets window and it'll split all of the remaining vobs into single, elementary streams. i.e. you'll get your video stream and each of your audio streams. Then use Womble to re-assemble the streams you want.

Don't forget that subtitles will be lost when you do this (assuming they aren't "burned in").
Post
#162893
Topic
obi wans name in ANH
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/162893/action/topic#162893
Time
"I haven't gone by the name of Obi-Wan since, oh, before you were born."

Another oversight in ROTS, because clearly in the final scene with Yoda and Obi-Wan, he's referred to as Obi-Wan, and Ben never comes up.

I agree with what was said above. Ben should have been his birth name with Obi-Wan being a Jedi Title of sorts. Another missed opportunity on Lucas part. But, hey, at least we got a wacky alien sidekick in Episode 1!
Post
#162883
Topic
spider-man 3
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/162883/action/topic#162883
Time
Harry will undoubtedly be either Green Goblin 2 or Hobgoblin, regardless of the specific nature of the comics. Remember, Mary Jane in the movies is a condensation of MJ and Gwen Stacey into one character. It won't be a total robbery if Harry becomes Hobgoblin, except to the literal purist.

Ziskin did indeed tell Sam Raimi to "Wrap it up" in Movie 3. I doubt we'll see a movie 4 with the same cast because everybody will ask for too much money. Especially Kirsten, who is too sold on herself as an actress these days. Halle Berry was in that mode for a while. Then Catwoman happened, and suddenly she was more than happy to reprise her role as Storm. Maybe Kirsten will get that same slap in the face and will come back for a fourth film.

Or maybe they'll kill her off.
Post
#162848
Topic
The all about Harry Potter thread
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/162848/action/topic#162848
Time
JK is ending it. She's said so many times, even recently ... that as she's writing this final book she is genuinely realizing that for the first time. I think she'll stick to that as well.

Does that mean she'll kill Harry? I doubt it, but it isn't implausible. That's why there are so many people who believe both stories. What I do know is this: I'm ordering Book 7 from Amazon and not leaving the house or getting online until I finish it. Too many of those "Snape Killed Dumbledore" assholes ruined it for so many people this summer and, while I didn't fall victim to that gag, it'll be in overdrive on Book 7. Every spoiler with a car and a handicam are going to be out in those midnight showings pissing off the masses and I, for one, intend to be far far away from them.

Thank you Jeff Bezos for a sane alternative to fighting the mobs and nitwits.
Post
#162842
Topic
HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/162842/action/topic#162842
Time
I saw this last month and came away largely satisfied. Most of what was cut from the book was worked out quite well. But there were a few too many cuts which made it feel quite rushed in a couple of places. Specifically:

1) Fleur and Viktor had NO lines. I'm blown away that these two major characters were so shortchanged.

2) We should have actually SEEN the Quidditch world championship. Given that it's the only Quidditch in the story, and it's supposed to be the greatest game of Quidditch ever witnessed in the seven year story arc (we don't even see the game in Book 5, we only hear about it) this was necessary ... especially for the development of Krum's character.

3) Something seemed missing between Harry & Snape's run-in in the potion storeroom and the final task.

4) And lastly, I really wanted to see the scene where Harry gives his prize winnings to Fred and George. It added some levity to such a heavy ending, and it gave one last dig at Ron's dress robes, which were funnier on film than they were in the book. Plus, it sets up their glorious finale in Book 5. And if THAT gets cut, I'll lodge a protest.

So all in all a good movie, just a bit rushed, mainly because of these bits. For all the attention they gave to the Yule ball, these were some areas that were shortchanged. Haven't moviegoers proven they're willing to sit through abnormally good films, so long as the quality is good?

Book 5 can afford so much more to be cut. For such a long book, it had the most expendable material of all.

What I wish they'd do is what Peter Jackson did. Film the whole thing, figure out what to remove for the theatrical cut, then release both the theatrical cut and the extended cut to DVD. Then I wouldn't have so much work to do. :-)
Post
#162413
Topic
Info & Help Wanted: Article on Fan Edits
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/162413/action/topic#162413
Time
I'm surprised I'm making any kind of blip on anyone's radar, but here goes.

Basically it's a reaction to the marketing hype machine in every movie studio. We're given expectations that a movie will be extraordinary through relentless marketing campaigns, but more often than not, the movie is a disappointment -- often because more attention is given to the production and post-production quality and not to the writing or acting. But we now live in an age were editing technology is relatively cheap and easy to use, and those with enough desire (or perhaps too much time on our hands) are trying to find the good films that were promised to us in trailers, magazine articles, press junkets and whatever else the spin machines have foisted upon us.

Notice there isn't a big interest in re-edits for Spider-Man or Lord of the Rings or even the new Batman movie. Good films aren't being screwed around with. In the case of Star Wars, the desire to do these projects comes from a desire to make the whole saga good again, especially when the OT is being screwed up and brought down to the level of the prequels. That's also why O-OT preservation is so very, very important.

Of course, a lot of what I personally do is create Extended Editions. Instead of trimming stuff out, I love to put it all back in, to see as much of movies that I am NOT disappointed in as possible. I don't have to create an Alien or Abyss or Gladiator or Lord of the Rings Extended Edition because the directors have been smart enough to recognize the demand is there. For the rest, it should be a lesson that a LOT of people tend to like the extended editions of films, even if they like the original theatrical presentation preserved. Spielberg realized this with the DVD of E.T. and we received a choice wrapped up in the same package. THAT is how it should be. The studios can either make money from the demand, or watch guys like us fill the demand ourselves.

It's our time vs. their dime.
Post
#161991
Topic
A Deep, Abiding Emptiness
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/161991/action/topic#161991
Time
Discuss this with your minister, and if venting to a psychologist isn't comfortable, perhaps a pastoral counselor may be more appropriate. At the end of the day, we're all a bunch of schmoes on some chat board -- we shouldn't be the real things in your life -- and I doubt any of us are qualified for genuine advice.

That said, here I go anyway. Mission work is always a good option -- depending on the ties may or may not exist in your life -- for feeling productive for the right things. This country needs a LOT of help in the Gulf Coast still. Depending on your church, there is probably some local area mission team you could join for even a small stint that could get you doing something productive with your faith. That may lead to other callings, but take one step at a time.

Churches need rebuilding down there. Homeless shelters need to be built too. After all, the homeless had nowhere to go when everything was obliterated.

They need a lot of THINGS there too, but I'm talking the essentials. Houses. Water. Toothpaste. Band-Aids. The things we take for granted. And money to buy things as well. And while you could sell everything you have and nobly donate it all, you may actually better serve by helping to raise money, putting in what you feel is an appropriate amount. Organize a fundraiser for those who are still suffering. Perhaps a churchwide auction or bake sale or clothing drive. Lots of summer stuff got donated to relief efforts in September, but now three months later they need warmer things when people are forgetting. It may be warmer in the gulf coast during winter, but it's not always HOT.

These are all things that could give you a better sense of purpose when bombarded by the messages of gross materialism that have overridden the true spirit of Christmas.

The main thing is to find something positive and constructive. The opportunities are there and the need is great. It's much better than allowing yourself to slip into a depression or worse. Your emotions are valid. Your faith is an advantage. The avenues are present and your minister is probably best-suited to help you find some real purpose.

Best of luck, and God Bless.
Post
#161975
Topic
Time to grow up.
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/161975/action/topic#161975
Time
There is enough room in my heart for just about everything in the SW universe. While the O-OT may be my favorite, I respect most of the SE changes (we know the ones I hate). Furthermore, this site has taught me the most important thing ever about these films: how to fix the stuff that in my eyes is broken, so I can enjoy what Lucas created once again. Thus, I also love virtually everything about every fan-edit and the positive guys who post in that area of the board.

Politics thread excepted, I have tried to be gentlemanly in most if not all of my postings and hope that good will is paid forward even more than the tangible things we've shared. I believe the golden rule still has merit -- but only if we actually try to follow it.

The wide age range that posts on this board is often forgotten, but I hope the more mature of us will continue to set an appropriate example that grownup talk comes first from intelligent, thought-out discussion, not about trash talking. It's especially pointless in the virtual environment where we're protected by anonymity and by distance. I'm confident not one of us would hurl the kinds of insults and threats we do if we were face to face. It's an empty gesture to do so on the board.

It is equally important to know and understand that the discussion of illicit behaviors, even academically, has no purpose on this forum. All it does is draw attention to this board unnecessarily, undermining the reason why this board exists: preservation of Star Wars as we know and love it, which has about as many interpretations as The Bible itself. Whether the Latin Vulgate is your canon or the New Revised Standard Edition (tell me those analogies don't apply), what is behind them both is what should draw us together. Then and only then can we sift out the differences and come to some understanding of our different points of view.