Official STAR WARS Saga Discussion Thread: Part 5 (1 Viewer)

[TravisR]

That subscriber cover with the toys is pretty fun.

 

[Alex...]

Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace is returning to cinemas for a limited time on May 3rd, to celebrate its 25th anniversary.

Star Wars: The Phantom Menace 25th Anniversary Cinema Release Confirmed For May The 4th Weekend – Exclusive

Episode I is heading back to cinemas in May 2024 with brand new poster art to mark 25 years. Read more at Empire.

www.empireonline.com

 

[SamT]

Yippee.

 

[Tommy R]

Wasn’t the theatrical 3D re-release of this a while back disappointing enough at the box office that Lucasfilm decided to NOT release the rest of the saga theatrically in 3D?

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Wasn’t the theatrical 3D re-release of this a while back disappointing enough at the box office that Lucasfilm decided to NOT release the rest of the saga theatrically in 3D?

It did reasonably well. What happened was that Lucas had intended to re-release both of his trilogies one film at a time (and all three prequel 3D conversions were actually completed) but then he sold Lucasfilm to Disney, and Disney canceled the rest of the re-releases in favor of making new films as quickly as possible.

 

[Bryan^H]

It did reasonably well. What happened was that Lucas had intended to re-release both of his trilogies one film at a time (and all three prequel 3D conversions were actually completed) but then he sold Lucasfilm to Disney, and Disney canceled the rest of the re-releases in favor of making new films as quickly as possible.

That is so heartbreaking. Oh well, in another reality I own both those trilogies on 3D BD, and the 3D is amazing

 

[Josh Steinberg]

That is so heartbreaking. Oh well, in another reality I own both those trilogies on 3D BD, and the 3D is amazing

They show the 3D versions of the prequels at the Star Wars Celebration convention each year and I swear I am so tempted to go each year just for that.

Bill Hunt reported at Digital Bits that Disney gave serious consideration to putting them on disc as bonus features when they did their nine film mega set, but I think the pandemic starting just before then scuttled a lot of things that had been in consideration. I’d spend big money in a heartbeat to get them on disc but hold out no hope that it’s on the horizon.

I had a lot of fun with Phantom Menace 3D in 2012!

 

[Osato]

Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace is returning to cinemas for a limited time on May 3rd, to celebrate its 25th anniversary.

Star Wars: The Phantom Menace 25th Anniversary Cinema Release Confirmed For May The 4th Weekend – Exclusive

Episode I is heading back to cinemas in May 2024 with brand new poster art to mark 25 years. Read more at Empire.

www.empireonline.com

I’m shocked to see this, but I’ll go! I’m in!

 

[Josh Steinberg]

It also bodes well for a 50th anniversary re-release of A New Hope, and my kids would be the perfect age to see it for the first time then.

 

[Alex...]

‘I was screaming, ‘UNLIMITED POWER!’ George said, ‘Go further, go further!’ So I did, and he seems to have kept most of it — there’s no holding back there.’

For our #StarWars prequels 25th anniversary issue, Empire was granted an audience with the Emperor.

 

[TravisR]

‘I was screaming, ‘UNLIMITED POWER!’ George said, ‘Go further, go further!’ So I did, and he seems to have kept most of it — there’s no holding back there.’

Lucas knew what movie he was making.

 

[The Drifter]

I'm doing a re-watch of the SW films (in the order of release), and started things off with ANH on Blu-ray. I've seen this film so many times when I was younger that I intentionally held off on re-watching it for many years - so I wouldn't get tired of it. So, this latest re-watch is only the 2nd time I've see this on Blu.

Obviously, SW: ANH is an iconic film with amazing visuals/ground-breaking special effects ATT; compelling story-line, decent casting, and incredible score. And, on this latest re-watch I noticed (not for the first time) how incredibly well edited this film is/was. IMHO the movie never drags or has any wasted moments; each sequence/scene smoothly seques into the next. I also appreciate the use of wipes here - though this is a film technique that I know not everyone likes/enjoys.

By my count there are four different main versions of ANH, i.e.: 1977 original theatrical cut/1997 Special Edition/2004 DVD/2011 Blu. And, all of these versions are either slightly or significantly different from each other. Added to this, I know there were some changes made to the 1979?! theatrical re-release.

What I like about the Blu version is that some of the more egregious changes to the 1997 SE have been modified to be slightly less egregious - at least IMHO. Notably:

-The infamous "Greedo shoots first" scene (originally seen in the 1997 SE) is still in the film, but not quite as bad due to Greedo & Han shooting almost simultaneously. Still, this was obviously a ridiculous "edit" and a bad, pointless revision.

-The scene when a CGI Jabba confronts Han in Docking Bay 94 was fairly awkward in the '97 SE due to the poor CGI; I remember reading that the Jabba here was informally known as "Grimace" - LOL. However, in the 2004 DVD release & possibly even more improved in the 2011 Blu release - this CGI Jabba looks significantly better. The scene is still awkward, but I understand that this was originally filmed back in 1976?!, but due to the special effects limitations ATT couldn't be included. So, I get why Lucas wanted to add this back into the film. And, I don't mind that this inclusion also adds a non-speaking Boba Fett cameo - so he's now seen in all three OT films.

 

[The Drifter]

One of the Special Effects revisions/edits in the 1997-on versions of ANH that I was very happy with was the lightsaber battle between Obi-wan & DV on the Death Star. In the original version, this wasn't that great - obviously due to the special effects limitations ATT. However, the lightsaber effects were significantly improved in the 1997 version....and IIRC they were improved even more in the 2004 & 2011 releases. Nice.

To go along with my last post on how well edited ANH was, here is an interesting video that I recently saw for the first time. This emphasizes how extremely important editing is to the film-making process, and especially re: this particular film. Fascinating:

Star Wars was a mess before it was saved by the editor

How a train wreck becomes a classic

www.polygon.com

One of the many interesting elements in the above video is the "rough cut" scene after the cantina fight showing the original flipper hand on the floor, after having been cut off by Obi-wan's lightsaber: I.e., in the actual film - when Luke & Obi-wan first enter the cantina & go up to the bar, you can clearly see Walrus Man's flipper hands. However, when Obi-wan cuts off Walrus Man's arm & you see it on the floor - it is five-fingered & clawed. It's an obvious continuity issue - but probably an intentional one.

 

[Alex...]

Star Tours Update

“Star Tours — The Adventures Continue,” the Star Wars themed ride with locations in Disneyland, Walt Disney World and Disneyland Paris, will add characters and locations from the Disney+ shows The Mandalorian, Ahsoka and Andor, beginning April 5.

That will include “urgent transmissions” from characters like Ahsoka Tano, Cassian Andor, Din Djarin and Grogu during the ride, with the planet Peridea from Ahsoka also joining the ride."

Star Tours at Disneyland and Disney World to Add ‘Mandalorian,’ ‘Andor’ and ‘Ahsoka’ Plots

The 'Star Wars' ride will add characters and worlds featured in the Disney+ shows beginning next month.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

 

[Joe Wong]

Star Tours Update

“Star Tours — The Adventures Continue,” the Star Wars themed ride with locations in Disneyland, Walt Disney World and Disneyland Paris, will add characters and locations from the Disney+ shows The Mandalorian, Ahsoka and Andor, beginning April 5.

That will include “urgent transmissions” from characters like Ahsoka Tano, Cassian Andor, Din Djarin and Grogu during the ride, with the planet Peridea from Ahsoka also joining the ride."

Star Tours at Disneyland and Disney World to Add ‘Mandalorian,’ ‘Andor’ and ‘Ahsoka’ Plots

The 'Star Wars' ride will add characters and worlds featured in the Disney+ shows beginning next month.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

I applaud Disney freshening the video scenes in their rides, but some riders may not be aware who those characters are if their Star Wars exposure has been mainly though the films.

 

[Alex...]

 

[Alex...]

Nothing has been made official...yet, but the 4K restorations of The Prequel and Original Trilogy will also be getting released theatrically in May as well.

Star Wars original & prequel trilogies to release 4K restorations in theatres this May (Exclusive) | CoveredGeekly

This May, "Star Wars“ fans will have the opportunity to experience the original and prequel trilogies in 4K restorations in theatres, as part of a

coveredgeekly.com

 

[ScottRE]

And if I had a sawbuck for every fan who is gonna ask if they will be the original versions...

I'll probably see Empire, maybe Revenge of the Sith. But the "maclunkey" in ANH and the added "nooo!" in Jedi were really a step too far.

 

[TravisR]

And if I had a sawbuck for every fan who is gonna ask if they will be the original versions...

I'll probably see Empire, maybe Revenge of the Sith. But the "maclunkey" in ANH and the added "nooo!" in Jedi were really a step too far.

Never say never but I don't believe that article and I've never heard of that site. Why would Disney put out Star Wars movies against the Planet Of The Apes (which they own) or Furiosa?

But yeah, if it actually happens, there will be people wondering if it's going to be the original versions.

 

[Chris Will]

It also bodes well for a 50th anniversary re-release of A New Hope, and my kids would be the perfect age to see it for the first time then.

But we will not get to see the actual 50 year old movie, just the 30 year old version.

I finally "acquired" the despecialized edition and what a treat. It is so great to finally be able to watch this movie the way it is meant to be seen.