1203 replies to this topic

[JackChase007]

It's his vision - his movies - and he can do whatever the hell he wants with them. I can't beleive what some people are complaining about on here.

Don't get me wrong, I love them as they are, but I don't think you should just throw away the "He's not remastering, he's completing" statement, Lucas is just trying to tell [i]his[i] story.

Yes, but these aren't the movies that the fans grew up loving. And they are not the movies that we have made into epics and classics. Yes, they are Lucas' movies, but that doesn't mean that because he has the idea that he should do it. Without us, the fans, he would not be who he is, nor enjoy the success that he does today. To an extent, yes, I can understand the "vision" thing, and many directors do it, yet manage to not screw up their work (many times a film's "director's cut" can be superior to the original theatrical release). However, their is a line. If Lucas really wanted to make all these changes, but kept the originals available to those who wanted them as an alternative, we wouldn't be making these complaints. But the problem is that Lucas doesn't listen to squat that the fans say, and I understand that the man can't cater to every single need from the fans, but this is something that nearly all the fans would want; just keep the originals where they are. But he does not care what they want. He does not even make any attempts, and the fans have made him the success that he is. The same with everyone in Hollywood. If he's really making these films just for himself, then he never should have released them to the moviegoing public.

The fans deserve some sort of dedication on Lucas' part, but he fails. He certainly delivered us three masterpieces of cinema years ago, but he's done much over the past 20 or so years to counter that. We can't even watch the movies that we grew up with; instead, we watch these versions that drastically rape what we know and love. His vision/story or not, there's an extent to which he should understand and try to compromise with the fans, after all, they made him who he is.

[hrabb04]

The Phantom Menace: ****
Attack of the Clones: ***
Revenge of the Sist: ****
A New Hope: ****
The Umpire Strikes Out: ****
Return of the Rabbi: ***1/2

[Harmsway]

Not to mention, Lucas ed with the audio. For example, we will no longer hear Boba Fett's voice; his is being replaced by the actor who played Jango Fett (to keep with the idiotic "clone" idea), not to mention the voice of every Stormtrooper is reportedly being dubbed by him as well.

Didn't know that. That pisses me off a lot. Damn you Lucas!

[hrabb04]

I guess I must be in some type of minority here. I don't give a rat's what Lucas does with the movies. They are his. He put up his money to make them, with Fox's help, and with the same relationship, they are making the changes to the DVDs. If he wants to make them better, that is fine with me. He is a film maker, I am not.

[Harmsway]

I guess I must be in some type of minority here. I don't give a rat's what Lucas does with the movies. They are his. He put up his money to make them, with Fox's help, and with the same relationship, they are making the changes to the DVDs. If he wants to make them better, that is fine with me. He is a film maker, I am not.

Well the idea is this: Lucas is making his films suckier and suckier, and the fans want to hold onto the better vision. But by making better vision unavailable, the fans are forced to watch the sucky vision and that results in anger. Sure, we don't have a right to tell Lucas what to do - but we do have the right to complain.

And what does being a filmmaker have anything to do with it? If you watch movies, you can judge which ones are good and which ones are bad. Most film critics aren't filmmakers!

[hrabb04]

Well, Harmsway, it is your opinion that they are getting suckier and suckier, just as it is my opinion that I don't give a damn what he does to it. Star Wars is not sacrireligious. Lucas isn't taking apart something like the Bible and changing the words there. It's just a movie. I grew up on these things, too, but I don't feel the least bit violated. Lucas isn't gang-raping my childhood, as so many people these days feel he has done. They are just movies. You watch them every now and then for a couple of hours and then you face life again, the real world. Now, if Lucas had taken my wife, my house, and my kids, and tried to change them with CGI, I would get upset.

[Harmsway]

Star Wars is not sacrireligious. Lucas isn't taking apart something like the Bible and changing the words there. It's just a movie. I grew up on these things, too, but I don't feel the least bit violated. Lucas isn't gang-raping my childhood, as so many people these days feel he has done. They are just movies. You watch them every now and then for a couple of hours and then you face life again, the real world.

Lucas is doing something that other filmmakers wouldn't dare to do. Star Wars is a classic - to Star Wars fans updating Star Wars is like Coppola updating The Godfather with CGI and then getting rid of the original version (Okay, that's an extreme example. Godfather is ten billion times the classic that Star Wars is, but you get the idea). There's just something wrong about that. Maybe you wouldn't care if Goldfinger was touched up with CGI, but there's a great number of us here who would.

I like to think that we need to preserve the original versions of films just for history's sake, and Lucas seems have thrown that idea out the window. The real problem here isn't so much that Lucas has updated the films, it's that he's made the originals unavailable. I think your statements come more out of an apathy for Star Wars than anything else. You just don't care too much. But some of us tend to like movies as art, and we like the original form of the artwork to be preserved (and made available to us).

[hrabb04]

Oh, ouch, Harmway, au contraire. I DO care about Star Wars. It's just not that big of a deal to me if he wants to make changes the way he sees fit. It's not like he's doing them for [censored]s and giggles. Most of them he is doing so the films will all tie together better. If Lucas wants to do that, it's his prerogative. Granted, if someone OTHER than Lucas were to try this with Star Wars, I would be upset, but Lucas is the guy in charge. They are his creations. If he think it's best to make changes, more power to him.

[Loomis]

It's just a movie.

Of course it is. But don't you agree that the original versions of the STAR WARS flicks should ideally be made available, as well as the tarted-up ones? One does not have to buy into the whole "Unless Han shoots first I'm not interested!" and "Lucas raped my childhood!" business in order to support the view that it would be nice for viewers to have the option of seeing the original theatrical cuts, surely?

[Glor (009)]

This is an out there suggestion but once a film is released to the public and becomes the phenomenon that Star Wars did, it doesn't soley "belong" to the creator anymore. The public takes a piece of it with them as a part of the process.

I agree, Lucas can do whatever he wants to the films but the originals should be available to people if that's what they prefer over the remastered versions. I have Star Wars on Laser Disc and I'll watch it over the new version on DVD any day.

To the point he spent his own money to create them, that is only partially true. After the original he was spending moviegoers money. It's the public that made him rich. The only thing people can do is not buy anything they don't like from him. If you don't like Episode I, don't buy it, don't buy the toys, don't buy it for anyone else, etc. It won't help but at least you won't be supporting something you don't believe in.

[Qwerty]

It's his vision - his movies - and he can do whatever the hell he wants with them. I can't beleive what some people are complaining about on here. You'll always be able to get hold of the originals on DVD somehow, but I guess that just won't do. Don't get me wrong, I love them as they are, but I don't think you should just throw away the "He's not remastering, he's completing" statement, Lucas is just trying to tell [i]his[i] story.

Definitely, he can do what he likes, I don't see how totally great effects can come out of it though.

Who knows, as you said, we've got the originals.

[Loomis]

we've got the originals.

Well, no, we haven't - that's the whole problem.

[Qwerty]

we've got the originals.

Well, no, we haven't - that's the whole problem.

We've got the originals on VHS or DVD or whatever, I do.

[Harmsway]

we've got the originals.

Well, no, we haven't - that's the whole problem.

We've got the originals on VHS or DVD or whatever, I do.

Not on DVD, just VHS. And the originals on VHS ceased to be available to buy a long time ago.

[Loomis]

Bully for you, Qwerty. I don't have the originals on DVD - what am I supposed to do if I want them? Go to a bootleg dealer, who's only going to sell me discs inferior in quality to legal DVDs? Can't buy the VHS tapes either, since they've now been withdrawn.

[Qwerty]

Oh, I thought they were still available on VHS? I got mine on them a few years ago.

Surely eBay or Half might.

[Loomis]

I don't buy VHS tapes any more. Don't even own a video recorder. For me, it's a case of DVDs or nothing.

[Harmsway]

Oh, I thought they were still available on VHS? I got mine on them a few years ago.

Surely eBay or Half might.

There were VHS released recently, but they were of the '97 special editions. The last copies of the original were the THX re-releases, and they were released before the Special Editions. After that, Lucas decided to discontinue the original films in any way shape or form, calling his new versions superior.

[Qwerty]

Oh, I thought they were still available on VHS? I got mine on them a few years ago.

Surely eBay or Half might.

There were VHS released recently, but they were of the '97 special editions. The last copies of the original were the THX re-releases, and they were released before the Special Editions. After that, Lucas decided to discontinue the original films in any way shape or form, calling his new versions superior.

Ah, those were the ones I picked up. Got them in late 90's.

[DLibrasnow]

I don't buy VHS tapes any more. Don't even own a video recorder. For me, it's a case of DVDs or nothing.

Same here. Before I switched to the DVD format in March 1997 (when the format was launched) my movie watching medium of choice was laserdisc.

Never liked VHS

[Loomis]

I liked it, but only when there were no real alternatives - wouldn't give it houseroom now. Before DVD, I was always thinking of getting into laserdisc, but it never took off in the UK and was very expensive indeed. And at the time I was toying with the idea of buying a laserdisc player, it seemed to be illegal to import NTSC discs into the UK (on the grounds that they didn't have British Board of Film Classification certificates). I remember reading about someone who got done for importing RESERVOIR DOGS (and just for personal use, too). Obviously, there was next to zero choice if you just stuck to British discs.

Anyhow, now that it's been utterly annihilated by DVD, I'm very glad I never bought a laserdisc player.

[DLibrasnow]

I liked laserdiscs a lot. One thing I never liked was the tape based formats. I remember waiting anxiously for the first DVD players and titles to arrive in the stores.
There was very little selection back then with only a handful of movies available on DVD.

[Johnboy007]

Oh, I thought they were still available on VHS? I got mine on them a few years ago.

Surely eBay or Half might.

There were VHS released recently, but they were of the '97 special editions. The last copies of the original were the THX re-releases, and they were released before the Special Editions. After that, Lucas decided to discontinue the original films in any way shape or form, calling his new versions superior.

Ah, those were the ones I picked up. Got them in late 90's.

It's remarkable how well they've been holding up, considering their age, and the frequent use.

[Righty007]

It's his vision - his movies - and he can do whatever the hell he wants with them. I can't beleive what some people are complaining about on here. You'll always be able to get hold of the originals on DVD somehow, but I guess that just won't do. Don't get me wrong, I love them as they are, but I don't think you should just throw away the "He's not remastering, he's completing" statement, Lucas is just trying to tell [i]his[i] story.

Fo' real! I like all of the changes and I've decided to buy the new STAR WARS TRILOGY in September!

[Harmsway]

It's his vision - his movies - and he can do whatever the hell he wants with them. I can't beleive what some people are complaining about on here. You'll always be able to get hold of the originals on DVD somehow, but I guess that just won't do. Don't get me wrong, I love them as they are, but I don't think you should just throw away the "He's not remastering, he's completing" statement, Lucas is just trying to tell [i]his[i] story.

Fo' real! I like all of the changes and I've decided to buy the new STAR WARS TRILOGY in September!

Eww. If you like that dance number in Jabba's palace, I'm amazed.

[Genrewriter]

I'll grab the dvds but I'm definitely hanging onto the VHS copies of the initial cuts of the first three films.

[Johnboy007]

I'll grab the dvds but I'm definitely hanging onto the VHS copies of the initial cuts of the first three films.

I'm with ya Genrewriter. I was too young when the Special Editions were released, to remember how bad things may have looked. Can't base my decision on those releases, because I don't remember them. I have my VHS copies of the originals in perfectly fine condition, and a flawless functioning TV/VCR combo to play them. If anything, i'll be buying these to see all of the documentaries and extras on the fourth disc and watch the films a second time to listen to the audio commentaries, and just watch my VHS tapes if I decide the Special Editions bother me that much.

Then again, Lucas will probably release the "unmolested" versions after Ep III, just put the icing on the cake of pissing off his fans.

[Genrewriter]

I don't really mind the special edition cuts that much, what I do mind is that the original uncut films aren't currently available. But as you said, Lucas will probably put those out after Episode III.

[Qwerty]

Oh, I thought they were still available on VHS? I got mine on them a few years ago.

Surely eBay or Half might.

There were VHS released recently, but they were of the '97 special editions. The last copies of the original were the THX re-releases, and they were released before the Special Editions. After that, Lucas decided to discontinue the original films in any way shape or form, calling his new versions superior.

Ah, those were the ones I picked up. Got them in late 90's.

It's remarkable how well they've been holding up, considering their age, and the frequent use.

I agree. I watch them frequently.

[Righty007]

I can't imagine watching the STAR WARS TRILOGY before '97. Who wants to see Jabba as a human in A NEW HOPE and then as a slug in RETURN OF THE JEDI? Or the fuzzy crap under Luke's speeder? Not me! I support the '97 Special Editions 100% and I think they did a great job. I think the 2004 updates may be too extreme but I don't know many of the details so I can't judge them yet. I watched A NEW HOPE today and I loved it. This thread has influenced me to buy the STAR WARS TRILOGY on DVD, watch the prequels, and re-watch Episodes IV, V, & VI.