Fight The Dark Side!

[Kirok]

here's a petition to convince Lucas to release the ORIGINAL theatrical versions of the original trilogy on dvd:

http://www.originaltrilogy.com/

Here's an exchange I had with a friend when I fwded this link to some folks:

Yeah, because the original petition to Lucas 4 years ago to bring the original trilogy to DVD worked so well. It ended up with over 200,000 signatures.

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4 years ago, huh? Let's see...here's some figures Lucas should be looking at, from http://www.business2.com/articles/ma...,39362,00.html
If he thinks it's an artistic issue, I'd like to sit him down in a freshman Art Theory class, and maybe a film history class.

---

The average dvd player price has dropped from over $400 in 1999 to under 200 in 2002 You can buy a low-end but perfectly functional dvd player now for $60.

It took dvd players 5 yuears to sell 30 million units (by 2002), compared to the 13 years fit took or VCRs to sell the same # of units.

DVD sales rose from $1 billion in 1999 to over $7 billion in 2002.

4 million dvd players sold in 1999. Over 16 million in 2002.

Blockbuster's DVD rental revenues, 2000: $300 million (7.5% of total)
Blockbuster's projected DVD rental revenues, 2002: $1.8 billion (40% of total)

Percentage of titles released on DVD the same day as the VHS version, 1997: 25
Percentage in 2001: 100
VHS titles purchased, per household with VCR, 2001: 7.5
DVDs purchased, per household with player, 2001: 14.9
Pearl Harbor's opening-weekend box-office revenue (May 25-27, 2001): $59.1 million
Pearl Harbor's first-day DVD revenue (Dec. 4, 2001): $67.5 million (est.)


Worlwide dvd replication (in millions of units), according to the International Recording Media Association:
2001 2003
1,080 2,415

where thing were in 1999...

Best Buy Reports Strong DVD Sales
MINNEAPOLIS, Jan. 6, 1999
(CBS MarketWatch) Best Buy Co. Inc. saw shares rise Wednesday after it said its December same-store sales shot up almost 11 percent, largely from robust DVD product sales.
The electronics retailer (BBY) said December sales rose 21 percent to $1.84 billion compared with the $1.52 billion earned in the year-earlier comparable period.
Best Buy said digital video disc players have sold "far beyond" expectations, while DVD movie sales exceeded $1 million the day after Christmas, marking the first time the retailer saw DVD movie sales higher than VHS movies, the company said.
"DVD was by far the runaway consumer electronics gift this year," said Best Buy's vice president of marketing Wade Fenn in a statement. "By mid-December we sold out of many models and were unable to fully meet demand."
The company attributed the huge sales of the new technology to increased selection of movie titles, player affordability and various promotions, which included free rental offerings.
Fenn said the strong sales in DVD products shows "it is the preferred format for future movie viewing."
Written By Lisa J Ulmer
Copyright 1999 MarketWatch.com, L.L.C.

[Dan Gurden]

Whilst I can empathise with George's opinion that as Director he reserves the right to adjust and alter his work of art as he see's fit. Someone ought to explain to him that in Art history, all the greats, from Da Vinci down work for commissions.

And as such, once the art was finished, the artist was paid (not before), and if the customer was not satified (the customer, not the artist) the artist lost a job, materials and did not get paid...

And the artist was not at liberty to show up on a doorstep with some fresh paint to touch up the masterpiece.

However, I cannot see George Lucus giving us all our money back until he has finished with the film.

Lets face it, the studio has no artistic control over this creature, at least, the studio THAT IS George Lucus concurrs with George on the matter, and so all the ancient rules are out the window.

But facts and figures, and comparrisons aside. In this age of Directors Cuts, Special Editions and extra features on DVD's, why cant George simply put multiple cuts of the film on the disc. The standard film, the special edition and the fabled DVD version that he has threatened to update for... We will happily go without a commentary in order to have all three, hell, most of us have already heard the stories anyway!

What gets me, is that part of the Delay is quoted as an absence of available special features to support the disc. now I dont know about you, but I have clearly seen;

- Screen Tests
- 'Making Ofs...'
- Interviews
- Fan produced extras (Troops anyone?)
- Artwork
- Luke/Mark on the Muppets
- The God-forsaken Christmas Special

Among many others, some of which have not been seen this side of the atlantic... Enough for several disc's.

Just release the DVD's already for those of us that dont mind about only having 3 films. The 3 that count anyway!

[Balok]

I suspect Lucas wants to do more than scare up some extras. I suspect he wants to go back and add/fix the films, as he did before they were re-released (as part of the Prequel pre-marketing frenzy).

For example, the X-wing display during the trench run is *very* dated looking. I'd expect Lucas will try to update things like that.

And he doesn't have time to do that, and won't until Episode 3 is completed in two more years. So I doubt we'll see the original trilogy for at least three more years, and maybe longer than that.

[Liz Not Beth]

This message has been removed on request by the
poster

[Ramage]

Lucas has threatened to do a Specialer Edition for the dvds (assuming they are ever even released ... same fate as Indiana Jones ...).

Personally I am VERY happy that I own vhs copies of the non-special edition, the way the were originally shown.

Hey, Casablanca and Citizen Kane didn't need extra scenes, new sound effects, of cleaned-up special effects. What would make Star Wars so much more special?

Just give us the movie, Lucas!

[Sho-sa Kurita]

Given George's frequent allusions to Star Wars films always ending with a 3-part battle (space, ground, and personal), I have a feeling there's a lot in the works for A New Hope. Given the level of realism of the CG Battle of Geonosis, I think he's planning on giving us some form of battle on the surface of Yavin. Stormtroopers and rebels duking it out in the jungle would be cool.

I have no problem with him fiddling with his creations all he wants, but I definitely want the original versions (cleaned up is OK though) released along with whatever spendiferous ultra-rare extended director's cut 3rd edition he wants to put out.

-- Daniel

[Aldaron]

Originally posted by Sho-sa Kurita
Given George's frequent allusions to Star Wars films always ending with a 3-part battle (space, ground, and personal), I have a feeling there's a lot in the works for A New Hope. Given the level of realism of the CG Battle of Geonosis, I think he's planning on giving us some form of battle on the surface of Yavin. Stormtroopers and rebels duking it out in the jungle would be cool.

I have no problem with him fiddling with his creations all he wants, but I definitely want the original versions (cleaned up is OK though) released along with whatever spendiferous ultra-rare extended director's cut 3rd edition he wants to put out.

-- Daniel

I can't believe he'd be crazy enough to do that (re: ground-battle in the end of ANH). There is simply no logical way of bringing it about - it would require re-writing of a good deal of dialog, including the entire point of the battle's sense of urgency - that the DS was about to vape Yavin IV.

Why would they land stormtroopers on the planet before destroying it? Sort of llike packing nails around a 20 Mt nuke to increase shrapnel wounds, really.

I think he just wants to re-release the entire "sextology" (can I say that here? ) on DVD together - I'll my left...err...arm...that come 2005, we'll get Ep III released on its own...then there's be a special release of all SIX movies - not just the original three.

[Greg Smith]

Originally posted by Ramage
Hey, Casablanca and Citizen Kane didn't need extra scenes, new sound effects, of cleaned-up special effects. What would make Star Wars so much more special?

But J-Lo and Ben Affleck are remaking 'Casablanca'.

[Balok]

Originally posted by Greg Smith
But J-Lo and Ben Affleck are remaking 'Casablanca'.

What's your source on this? IMDB and Upcoming Movies don't list any project like this. Not saying it isn't happening, just curious how you know.

I think Colonel Kurtz put it best: "The horror. The horror."

[erhershman]

Originally posted by Liz Not Beth
Alright! Lets rip on Star Wars and leave Enterprise alone for awhile!

Here, here! Everybody over on the WotC boards just finished ripping me for having a SW quote in my signature box there.

[Greg Smith]

Originally posted by Fesarius
What's your source on this? IMDB and Upcoming Movies don't list any project like this. Not saying it isn't happening, just curious how you know.

I think Colonel Kurtz put it best: "The horror. The horror."

Good question. I can't honestly remember the source. I do remember a quote along the lines of "It'll give us chance to show the chemistry between us on screen."

[Greg Smith]

Now I remember, Sky News.

Here's a link. http://www.sky.com/skynews/article/0...281956,00.html

[Capt.Hunter]

It is extremely annoying that Lucasfilm hasn't put out the original trilogy on DVD yet. The first two films would have to be near the top of my "must-have" list (I never bought the video editions as my VCR has the occasional tendency to chew tape...), and even RotJ is bearable. As for whether they're the original films or the Special Editions - I'm not too bothered, as long as they get rid of a few of the alterations:

a) Greedo shooting first. I mean, Han is supposed to be a scoundrel. He redeems himself by helping Luke out during the trench run. He doesn't need toning down!

b) Luke's scream falling down the shaft in Cloud City. He decided to drop. He's not going to scream like a girl whilst doing it!

c) Ewoks. Can't we just alter the whole damn movie and set the shield generator on Kashyyk with Wookies, like the plan was all along? It'd give Chewie something meaningful to do and at least the idea of Wookies taking on a legion of the Emperor's finest sounds more plausible than the Teddy Bears of Doom...