Stargate: SG1....recut remastered re-imagined? (1 Viewer)

[smithb]

Originally Posted by Mark Talmadge

No, it's not that.

I have nothing but total disrespect for every director and every studio who releases a director's cut edition of a movie after having previously released the movie just months or years before.

When DVD's were originally released, it was seen by many entertainment fans as a new video media that would allow director's and studios to re-incorporate deleted scenes and other material back into the movie so that movie fans could enjoy the entire video. Unfortunately, the directors and studios saw the DVD media as a way to force consumers to "double dip," forcing fans to buy two copies of the same movie.

That's the reason why I have a lack of respect when they do something like this.

That's fine, I can understand that. I was just trying to see if it was just related to this product and/or director. But I can see now that it is not. And for the record, I agree that many unrated, specal editions, ultimate and director cuts are directly associated with an attempt to cash in on what is essentially the same old product repackaged in an attempt to get consumers to double and triple dip on their purchases.

However, I also believe there are some that come out with more legitimate goals to improve upon the product. In some cases, because a director lacked the control to do it the way they intended the first time, they ran out of time or funds, or because the length would have been difficult in a theater setting but more condusive to viewing in a home environment and it takes additonal time to get that ready for DVD.

So while your point is valid I think there are exceptions. For example, I prefer the new cut of "The Natural" where it is not based on just sequential events in his life like the original but instead starts out with him on the train in the current day with flashbacks to what happened to get him to where he is now. The director remarked that all the footage was there but to meet certain studios pressure he ran out of time.

Without having seen it I can't really say where this revised Stargate first episode stands.

 

[Simon Massey]

Having seen it now I feel this this new version of Children of the Gods works very well. There arent huge changes but the film does just seem to flow better. Improved effects are good but its the edits and cuts that work much better this time. Redubbing Tealc was a good idea and I could care less abou the nudity removal - it added nothing to the scene in the first place.
The biggest flaw with the original cut was the sudden transformation of Tealc to switch his allegiance to the SG1 team. Clearly they thought so too as they have added shots of Tealc during the show to try and show him more conflicted about what he is doing in the build-up to his decision. It helps a little though unless they actually shot new footage its always going to seem a little odd. (and they overdid it a little bit with Tealc shaking his head at what he is watching just to be sure you understood he isnt happy )
Edited by Simon Massey - 8/2/2009 at 12:46 pm GMT

 

[Simon Massey]

When DVD's were originally released, it was seen by many entertainment fans as a new video media that would allow director's and studios to re-incorporate deleted scenes and other material back into the movie so that movie fans could enjoy the entire video

I disagree - the intent of DVDs were to provide movie fans with films in the best quality available at the time. Director's cuts and extended editions were very limited at the time - Blade Runner, Aliens, Terminator 2, The Abyss, Brazil and the Star Wars films were about the only films I can thing of at the time of the introduction of DVD - Im sure there were more but not compared to today. Deleted scenes go back to the time of laserdiscs and they were seen more as curios or a way into understanding the editing process that goes into removing scenes.

The problem is incorporating the entire video is not always a good thing. Although I prefer the Extended Version of Aliens, equally I can see the flaws in adding it to. I'd bet few would argue though that the re-cut of Blade Runner isnt much better than the theatrical version and that involved the removal of footage. To me the best example of a scene that should never have been added is the Jabba The Hut scene in Star Wars - A New Hope. It adds nothing to the film as the information given is the same as in the Greedo scene and even in the context of the saga is a waste of time - we already know who Jabba and Boba Fett are from Episode I and II and why include them when they do nothing else in the film and are irrelevant to the plot ?

Rather than simply dismiss every director's cut or extended version, its worth checking it out first or looking at the circumstances surrounding the release. These days its pretty obvious which extended versions are simply studios trying to get us to buy the product again and which versions are released for additional reasons. Im sure the studio sees the recut of Children of the Gods as a chance to cash-in but equally the director had given valid reasons for the changes too IMO. At least you dont have to buy the entire Season 1 again to watch it.

 

[mattCR]

Look, I think you're best with both. As to those that say "you can't remove footage, that's no good" I have one example for you that pretty well showcases this:

Terry Gilliam's "Brazil"


There were a TON of things in that film HE DID NOT WANT, like the ending. So, when people had an option to see it the way he wanted, they lept for it, despite the fact it meant a lot of scens were removed or changed.

Just the way it is.

I'm a fan of the series, and I appreciate the work done on the first episode as it aired. But I have no problem with the director saying "I had originally filmed a bunch of scenes that never made it in, and then had some scenes I didn't want inserted into the cut to make it racy.. here's the way I thought it should flow"