Jump to content

Home

Original Trilogy finally coming on DVD!


Lightsaberboy

Recommended Posts

All I have to say is, it's about damn time.

 

http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=14373

 

Lucasfilm has announced that this September fans can look forward to the long-awaited DVD release of the original theatrical incarnations of the classic "Star Wars" trilogy!

 

In response to overwhelming demand, Lucasfilm Ltd. and Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment will release attractively priced individual two-disc releases of "Star Wars," "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Return of the Jedi." Each release includes the 2004 digitally remastered version of the movie, as well as the original theatrical edition of the film. That means you'll be able to enjoy "Star Wars" as it first appeared in 1977, "Empire" in 1980, and "Jedi" in 1983.

 

See the title crawl to "Star Wars" before it was known as "Episode IV"; see the pioneering, if dated, motion control model work on the attack on the Death Star; groove to Lapti Nek or the Ewok Celebration song like you did when you were a kid; and yes, see Han Solo shoot first.

 

This release will only be available for a limited time: from September 12th to December 31st. The international release will follow on or about the same day. Each original theatrical version will feature Dolby 2.0 Surround sound, close-captioning, and subtitles in English, French and Spanish for their U.S. release. International sound and subtitling vary by territory.

 

"Over the years, a truly countless number of fans have told us that they would love to see and own the original version that they remember experiencing in theaters," said Jim Ward, President of LucasArts and Senior Vice President of Lucasfilm Ltd. "We returned to the Lucasfilm Archives to search exhaustively for source material that could be presented on DVD. This is something that we're very excited to be able to give to fans in response to their continuing enthusiasm for Star Wars. Topping it off with a new interactive adventure makes September 12 a red-letter day for Star Wars fans."

 

And since this is only gonna go from Sept to December, who wants to bet people are gonna be selling these online for wads of cash??

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 69
  • Created
  • Last Reply

:rolleyes: *Sigh* YET another version of SW media cluttering up the house. Damn.

 

Yes, I'm excited that the original versions are being released... and I already know that I will be buying them... but I already have a DVD version of each movie. And several different VHS versions...

 

WHY THE HELL COULDN'T THEY HAVE DONE THIS A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, BEFORE I PAID FOR THE DVD BOX SET?!??

 

*Puts head in hands and thinks about George Lucas' bank balance, and my personal percentage of it*

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You know, if I didn't blow the money for the SE last year (or whenever they came out), I would buy these. I haven't seen the unaltered versions since...the late 80s. Makes me mad though that they didn't release these before now.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

They are also releasing Lego Star Wars II around that time period. In classical Lucas fashion, he will be releasing things yearly to get people to buy anything Star Wars in movie and game form. In recent years, here is how it went down:

 

2004: First DVD trilogy, Star Wars Battlefront

2005: EpIII DVD, Star Wars Battlefront II

2006: Original DVD trilogy, Lego Star Wars II

 

P.S. Here is the link with more info on Lego Star Wars II and the DVD Tril: http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/10868/LEGO-Star-Wars-II-Confirmed-for-Xbox-360-Game-to-Debut-Along-with-Original-Versions-of-the-Star-Wars-Trilogy/

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Good thing I didn't buy the DVDs last year! :)
Hehe, I didn't buy them either. :p

 

One I'd really want even more than this is remastered originals without any edits. It was the actual changes (Hayden in RotJ, different saber colors, Temuera Morrison as Fett's voice, etc) they made I had problems with, not the spiffication.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Does this mean we'll actually get to meet Biggs for who he was supposed to be? :rolleyes:

 

if you want to "meet Biggs for who he was supposed to be" then listen to the original BBC (i think?) Radio Broadcastings of the first trilogy. Fricken amazing, and they go much more in depth including things that GL couldn't fit into the movies.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I like how he's not remastering the picture or updating the sound past dolby 2.0, sounds like he's just putting the laser disc transfers on DVD. I'd like buy the originals on DVD, but jeez. He spends millions making special editions i dont like and i can't even get a nice version of the original trilogy, pfft. perhaps it will be on my 'to get when it goes down to below arm and a leg price' like the indiana jones trilogy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Time to put my DVD trilogy on ebay methinks!! :)

 

Dunno why he couldn't have done this originally either.

 

Is it just me or is he doing it as a bit of an "i told you so" to all the people who wanted the originals? Sounds like he is releasing the originals without remastered visuals or improved sound... just so he can say "see, told you the new versions were better!". :p

 

What we all really want is the originals.. but with remastered visuals and DTS sound (though not the messed up mix from the new DVDs please).

I could take or leave the added CGi in the battle scenes.. but don't want any of the big changes.

 

Still, i'm sure they'll continue to release version after version once HD-dvd appears. And i'll definately pick it up as its better than nothing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I also don't understand why the "original" unaltered re-masters don't exist... they had to have scanned each frame of the film into the computers in order to re-master them in the first place, before adding all the new CGI and fixes. Those files must be archived.

Same goes for the sound... all those mixes exist somewhere in a Pro-Tools file.

 

But I believe I said this is what he should have done several years ago... right after the "ET" DVD set came out. Give the viewers a choice as to which version we want to see.

 

But whatever... I'll take it now. Better late than never.

 

I just wish I could get all the "old" versions without having to buy an additional copy of the 2004 SE versions... then I would have (almost ;) ) no complaints.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


×
×
  • Create New...