Which Star Wars "special editions" are on these DVDs?

G

grundy

CAGiversary!
We all know there's about 36 different versions of the original trilogy. OK maybe not that many, but the BB ad has the 2-CD versions on sale for $9.99 each.

I know that one disc is supposed to have the original theatrical version. Which special edition is on the other disc - the first theatrical re-release version or the DVD re-re-release version (where they dubbed over Boba Fett's voice and totally revamped the Emperor's hologram in ESB)

Thanks,

B
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
[quote name='jboss']It's the latest hacked together edition of the films with Hayden Christianson[/quote]

Unnh! I forgot about THAT bastardization at the end of ROTJ
 
I would buy them - I bought all three when they were first released last year for $9.99 and it's worth it. The two disc version is the better version, as you get both the special edition and the regular version, even if it is slightly altered.

I'll settle for Christiansen's ghost at the end of ROTJ if it means I don't have to watch that Goo Ney Tay dance segment in Jabba's Palace.
 
I'lll try to explain:

The two-disc has the 1997 rerelease versions, as well as the original 1977 versions. However, with the 1977 versions, they made small tweaks to let the older films relate to the newer ones.

Examples would be dubbing the Emperor's voice, removing the original Anakin ghost at the end of ROTJ and replacing it with the ghost of Hayden, and a few other things. The biggest changes were made to ROTJ, if I remember right.

So, yes, it is a bastardization of the original releases, but it's still worth owning, especially for $10. You might cringe at some of the small changes, but most are only noticable to die hard fans. The changes do suck, as it takes away a lot from the original, but for 98% of the film, you are watching the original.


EDIT: Just an FYE, for those who bought the black dvd box set back in 2004 when it was released, I traded mine in for $9 recently at EB/GS. Was a good value for something that's pretty useless after this newest release.
 
The "butchered" box set also contains the lengthy A&E documentary on Star Wars which the box set that has the original movies unchanged does not. If you haven't seen the documentary, whether you are a die hard SW fan or not, it is definitely worth checking out. Not to mention people overreact to the changes made in the DVD's they aren't that bad save the Hayden Christiansen one.
 
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think there aren't any official DVD releases of the original theatrical releases of the true (4-6) trilogy. There's been rumors for some time of a true release of the theatrical versions of the original films, but they still haven't been released. I'm with you guys, adding special effects to the classics is not my cup of tea and takes away from the classic feel of the films.
 
Just a note that the classic version that is on the 2 disk sets are 4:3 widescreen, and not 16:9. (At least that is what the back of the box says)

I wonder how long it will be before Lucas winds up re-re-releasing them again. (it will take a lot for me to buy the holy trilogy for a 4th (or is it more) time)
 
The two disc sets have the original versions as "extras" and are in non-anamorphic widescreen. The Video quality is not that great either as Lucas basically ripped the films from the LD versions. But as far as I know there are no tweaks at all to the movies themselves, they are the original versions.
 
Yeah, though they said awhile back they did not see a Blu-ray or HD-DVD release in the near future, I will just wait until they eventually show up on Blu-ray. I am more than satisfied with the box set that came out back in '04.
 
[quote name='jonlubbe']Just a note that the classic version that is on the 2 disk sets are 4:3 widescreen, and not 16:9. (At least that is what the back of the box says)

I wonder how long it will be before Lucas winds up re-re-releasing them again. (it will take a lot for me to buy the holy trilogy for a 4th (or is it more) time)[/quote]

I don't believe taht it is an exact 4:3 widescreen, but rather something of a cross between a 4:3 and a 16:9. Something weird is all I remember right now about the screen dimensions for the other cut that he came out with. I'm a huge Star Wars fan, probably one of the biggest (not crazy big though), and, as much as it hurts me to say, Lucas has really fucked over fans.
 
[quote name='hiccupleftovers']I don't believe taht it is an exact 4:3 widescreen, but rather something of a cross between a 4:3 and a 16:9. Something weird is all I remember right now about the screen dimensions for the other cut that he came out with. I'm a huge Star Wars fan, probably one of the biggest (not crazy big though), and, as much as it hurts me to say, Lucas has really fucked over fans.[/QUOTE]

They are non-anamorphic widescreen. This form of video doesn't utilize the full resolution of DVD and has hardcoded black bars.

This means nothing to standard 4:3 TV owners as it'll look normal to them, but widescreen TV owners will have to use a scaling function on their TV's or players (Zoom usually works best for non-anamorphic widescreen) to watch them with the picture touching the sides of their TV.

All things considered, the quality isn't too bad for essentially ripped laserdiscs. Just remember that it won't be nearly as squeaky clean as the new masters.
 
I prefer the original versions included on the 2-disc editions. Leave the extra crispy versions to those that can put a price tag on their childhood.

Seriously. Lucas has no soul. I'm waiting for the day that he inserts CGI creatures into American Graffiti.
 
The decisions that lucas makes, make no sense to me. The 3 prequals are some of the most CGI heavy movies ever made, yet no hd-dvd/bluray release? He said the same thing about DVD at first, wtf is this man smoking...
 
Lucas has to milk out a few more variations on regular dvd before he can even think of restarting the cycle for next-gen. Use your head man!!;)
 
[quote name='klwillis45']Lucas has to milk out a few more variations on regular dvd before he can even think of restarting the cycle for next-gen. Use your head man!!;)[/quote]

Yup, I read somewhere he's working on the 3D versions for Imax-3D :roll:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
bread's done
Back
Top