Baronlando

Any actual examples of that happening here, Pollard? it's not even close.

Maybe the project should be scaled down to just do the 100+ shots from the original that are no longer in the movie? Or is it too far along for that? (just curious, I haven't read the whole thread.)

Yeah, dude it doesn't really help the "cause" of this forum if it can be dismissed as some angry crackpots. 

I agree that the theatrical version of Phantom Menace should be released, the fact that I personally don't care and would probably never watch it is beside the point.

At some point you'd think retailers would speak up and say they want something genuinely new taking up their store space. It's not like Star Wars dvds fly off the shelves Hannah Montana-style. I still see the same Phantom Menace discs out there from 2001.

I wonder if the discs will still say LIMITED EDITION. Readily available everywhere for years to come is limited right? At this point I wish somebody talented like adywan would make an original-ish/"close enough" version. 

There are other SO many three-packs/trilogies/combos that are also mere repackages (including Fox stuff) and they all cost about half as much as this or less. So if these have nothing new, that's pretty arrogant.

Remember a year before the Blade Runner set came out, they quietly re-released the director's cut with a brand new transfer, I guess just to get some extra mileage out of said transfer. So, over in the non-Bizarro world (away from Star Wars) , these things do happen. But over there making a new transfer also isn't an act of total fucking exertion.

I thought there had to be like, demand for a product to be released. The Star Wars Row at every Best Buy in town is as unchanging as Mt. Rushmore, if this is more of the exact same discs, I really don't get it.

Maybe the fan money will start to slow. This year alone, the Big Millennium Falcon, Force Unleashed, and Clone Wars tickets are 3 things that I didn't buy, but would have if this situation were taken care of. Hopefully the numbers will add up to the point somebody cares. 

Well, here's to naively getting my hopes up, like a big schmuck! (hey after all, if there was going to be a proper presentation of the originals, he might want it to be in a release like this, one that sneaks in through the back door without a lot of hoopla. He still gets the money, but without all the hassle and bad press of yet another big manufactured-hype event)

Well, if a basic new transfer of the original versions were to be made, without the full-on Robert Harris treatment, what's the best way? Would they do a straight transfer of the 1997 version, and then drop in the old shots where they're needed? How long would that take? (I know it ain't happening most likely, I'm just wondering what they're charging 50 bucks for.)

Even double and triple dipping usually involves some actual new content in the extras or transfer. We need a new word for whatever this is. Selling the same stuff from years ago, it's kind of hilarious, like a used car dealer rolling back the miles on an old junker. (The Phantom Menace extras are like 8 years old at this point, and of course the most classy extra is from 1993) Now if it actually includes the restored originals, I'll be glad to eat my words.

It's funny how the contents of the prequel discs are SO detailed and specific in this press info, but the originals are all cryptic. I think we're being teased by Lucasfilm. Or antagonized.

Well, even though it's most likely just a repackage of the shitty 2006 discs, look at it this way: the original versions have now been widely released TWICE, so much for the whole Integrity of Lucas' Vision BS holding things up, at least that's been put to rest.

So...what, if anything, does this feeble turnout (sub-Star Trek Nemesis) mean for the original trilogy? I would hope it illustrates that the super-loyal fan base, including the young ones, isn't exactly vast and unlimited, and appealing to the older fans who actually still care maybe isn't such a terrible idea. (I actually would like to see Clone Wars, but I stopped spending $ on Star Wars after the 2006 dvd insult. Although I was weak and bought the Making Of book last year.) Lucasfilm,  I'm SO ready to start spending money on your crap again, just make this right...

Is it possible Lucas was actually expecting a significantly bigger opening? All his company's practices seem to be operating on the premise that there's this "silent majority" of good ol' regular folk and their families out there that are the ones that have kept Star Wars going the last 10-15 years and loved Jar jar etc.. If that was the case, shouldn't Clone Wars have been like one of those "Wild Hogs"/Are We there Yet" family pieces of shit that make way too much money? 

"It's good enough." This reminds me of the 2006 dvd debate, where a cut-rate product is sold as something more than it is. "It's just a kids movie, so it's good enough." Well, it's playing in movie theaters at full price just like other kids movies such as Wall-E, etc. so why shouldn't it be held to the same standard? 

It's the first 3 episodes, cropped to be more rectangular (I guess?).

Yeah it was  a cash-grab, I just think the "regular" method (basic theatrical versions followed by double-dips of various alternate/enhanced versions and more extras) is just as effective at grabbing the cash, and without all these hard feelings. 

Ugh. Does everything have to be such a big deal? "Oh thank you for finally selling us something. This is the best day of 2011." It's a pretty ... interesting PR strategy. I have to wonder what, ultimately,  the actual difference in sales would be between selling the individual theatrical versions now, and the deluxe-o boxed sets/director cuts later, (the way every other movie does it) vs. this weird "you will wait for it, and we're not even gonna tell you what or when IT is" method. 

(Best case that Im hoping for, realistically)- We'll never get a Blade Runner megaset that is just for us obsessive types. Lucasfilm lives in fear of the great imaginary soccer mom who controls the money spent in the aisles of Target, and the weird-smelling aisles of Wal-mart. He'll want to sell something practical, something like a TV season on dvd, maybe 8 or 9 discs, gimmicky package, nothing substantive in the extras, promos for video games. The 6 movies, slightly different from what they are now. AND...hopefully the original theatrical versions because it's the ONLY feature that will make this set get purchased by the fans, former fans and plain old movie buffs. The originals will finally get a new transfer, it won't be as good as the se's because that can't be allowed, but they'll look good enough. Then we can all just let it go, Indiana.

Sorry if this is common knowledge, what makes the german HD broadcast a particularly desirable source? Was it the 1997 version, or something else about it that makes it the best? thanks

The Fox Planet of the Apes Blu-ray set is going to cost more than 150, and it's only 5 discs. A Saga Star Wars set with 6-10 discs is going to cost...a lot. Sadly, if it had the original versions I'd pay it, even if there were no extras and nothing new at all. 

In the Phantom Menace era, LUCAS was the one constantly saying how risky and different Jar Jar (as a character not just technically) was from anything before, so no,  threepio just ain't the same thing. In 2001-2002, leading up to Clones, LUCAS was the first guy to go around emphasizing that this type of cheeseball romance was NEW to Star Wars. That was when the romance was being played up to get more actual GIRLS to see a Star wars movie. 

4000, get the fuck outta here. But I know a cheaper way to get the same thing. THE PAUSE BUTTON

I cannot wait for this. About the crawl, am I nuts, or is the GOUT opening shot (including the crawl, pan down and the ships flying overhead)  look noticeably better than the rest of the movie? Apart from the whole non-amamorphic-ness the film source looks good to me, I wonder what it is...