A STAR WARS PAGE

 

 

The Star Wars Trilogy
1979-1983 (2004) - (Lucasfilm) 20th Century Fox

 

 

The Films & Changes

 

"A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away..."

The Star Wars Trilogy arrives on DVD in the form of a new 4-disc box set, containing not only the much-loved movies, but also a separate disc of all-new bonus material.

Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope tells the story of Luke Skywalker, a young farm boy with dreams escaping his humdrum plight for a life of heroism in outer space. Releases in 1977 by 20th Century Fox, George Lucas' original Star Wars became a hugely successful blockbuster almost overnight and it quickly changed the landscape of Hollywood filmmaking, not only reviving a long-lost cinematic genre but also pioneering the field of movie visual effects. The film had an incalculable impact on my then ten-year-old life, opening my eyes to the possibilities of the film medium and firing my imagination like nothing before it. I'm certain that, like me, most of you have a very special place for the film in your hearts. But Star Wars today is somewhat different than you might remember it from 1977... Or even the 1997 special edition re-release.

A number of new digital changes have been made to the Star Wars films for this DVD release. As with the 1997 special edition, A New Hope has received the majority of the attention. Many shots have been altered in very subtle ways, which only the most zealous fans will notice. There are, however, a number of more major changes. In A New Hope, these include a revised opening shot as Luke's land speeder enters Mos Eisley Spaceport (the speeder model is more detailed and moves more naturally), an improved version of the Han/Greedo fight (Greedo still shoots first, but only just - the blasts are much closer together and Han's movement is smoother), a new CG model of Jabba the Hutt (it's a revised version of the Episode I model of the character and is much improved) and re-rotoscoped lightsaber blades throughout the film (blade color is more pronounced and the animation is more like the prequel films). The Han/Greedo fight is still less than perfect, but it does look more natural. Han's head doesn't jerk like it did before - instead his whole upper body shifts over slightly. And the blaster shots are VERY close together now. During the first part of the Death Star battle at the end of the film, John Williams' score has been reduced in prominence in the sound mix. This is particularly obvious right as the X-Wings make their dive down to the surface to begin the attack - the familiar "Force Theme" trumpet fanfare is now almost inaudible. Lucasfilm says this was a deliberate creative decision.

Star Wars Trilogy - 2004 DVD Changes
Here are a few examples of the major differences between the 1997 Special Editions of the Star Wars films and the new 2004 DVD Editions. This doesn't include minor changes and sound mix changes. The 2004 DVD Edition images are on the right.

Click Here

Three years after the release of the original film, Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back continued the epic adventure. Widely considered to be the best of the Star Wars series, The Empire Strikes Back tells a much darker and more personal story than the original film, despite the inclusion of several dramatic action sequences. In a risky move, this unconventional sequel sees the good guys basically getting their asses kicked from the start of the film until the very end. It's not a happy or upbeat adventure by any means, and it ends with a stunning and unforeseen twist that left theater audiences hanging on the edge of their seats for more than three years after its original release in 1980. Despite the cliff-hanger ending (or perhaps because of it) Empire ranks easily among the best film sequels of all time. It holds up well to this day.

The digital changes to Empire for this DVD release are fewer than they are in A New Hope. In fact, there are only three major changes. These include the use of Temuera Morrison as the voice of Boba Fett (which I suppose makes sense given that Boba is a clone of Jango from Episode II), the elimination of Luke's scream when he jumps to escape Vader on Cloud City (which had been a source of much debate among fans - why would he scream if he were jumping willingly?), and the use of actor Ian McDiarmid as the Emperor (replacing the old woman and voice actor Clive Revill who played the character originally). I should note that the Emperor alteration also involves a change in the scene's dialogue - one that is at first confusing. The Emperor now tells Vader that he has no doubt "the young rebel who destroyed the Death Star" is the offspring of Anakin Skywalker, to which Vader replies "How is that possible?" That doesn't seem to make sense, because we know that Vader is aware of who Luke is from dialogue earlier in the film ("That's it. The Rebels are there. And I'm sure Skywalker is with them."). I suspect, however, that we'll find out in Episode III that Anakin DOES learn of Luke's existence as an infant, and he hides this knowledge from the Emperor. What that would mean is that Vader's been waiting all these years to find Luke as an adult and turn him to the Dark Side so that they can overthrow the Emperor together - a plot Vader ultimately confesses to Luke at the end of Empire. We'll have to wait for Episode III to see how this new bit of dialogue fits in.

Concluding the original trilogy in 1983, Episode VI - Return of the Jedi opens as Luke, now a fully trained Jedi Knight, returns with his friends to his home planet to rescue Han Solo from the vile crime lord Jabba the Hutt. As the final chapter of the Star Wars saga, Return of the Jedi fails to be either as fresh as the original film or as surprising as Empire. Too much is predictable here (such as the appearance of a second Death Star) and too many compromises were made for the younger audience members which are especially noticeable after the more adult themes of the previous installment. That said, Jedi does manage to adequately complete the story arc of the original trilogy. There's nice symmetry with the way the character storylines are wrapped up, and there's enough action to keep the film interesting. I'll be curious to see how well this conclusion works in the context of the overall 6-film saga once Episode III arrives in theaters in May, 2005.

As with Empire, are three major digital changes to Jedi, all of which appear at the end of the film. When Luke removes Vader's mask to reveal his father's face, the eyebrows of actor Sebastian Shaw have been erased (presumably because Anakin's face will be badly burned in Episode III). Then, after the second Death Star is destroyed, when the film cuts to the various celebrations around the galaxy, Naboo is now included among the planets we see. Finally (and this is a big one), when the Force ghosts of Ben, Yoda and Anakin appear to Luke at the very end of the film, actor Sebastian Shaw has been replaced with Hayden Christensen (as he'll appear in Episode III). Lucas' rational (as he actually explains briefly in the audio commentary - a rare instance where he comments on a change) is that when Vader joins the Force, he's able to retain his original identity as he was when he died as Anakin Skywalker (in Episode III). Since Yoda and Ben retained their good identities until they were old, that's how their Force ghosts appear. There are also a couple minor changes - the shot of Coruscant now includes the Galactic Senate and Jedi Temple on the horizon (as seen in Episodes I & II). And for some reason, Luke and Darth's lightsaber blades now appear a little dimmer in a select few shots during their fight (particularly at the very beginning).

So that's the films as you'll find them on these new DVDs.

 

DVD Presentation Quality & Extras


Simply put, the Star Wars films have never looked this good before. The films presented on these discs absolutely sparkle, in all their anamorphic widescreen glory. The folks at THX and Lowry Digital worked for months to create new high-definition digital masters of these films, transferred directly from the original negatives. Once the films were transferred, painstaking efforts were made to clean the digital masters of dust, dirt, scratches and excessive grain. To give you an idea of just how much work was involved, more than 100 bits of debris were digitally removed from EACH FRAME - ultimately entailing the removal of over 10 million such blemishes in all over the three films combined. As a result, you will not find a single speck ANYWHERE on any of these films. The snow-white slopes of Hoth and the sand-baked dunes of Tatooine have never looked so pure.

Because the transfers were done from the original negatives, you're going to see detail in these films that you've never seen before. You'll notice this right from the opening shot of A New Hope, when the Star Destroyer chases its quarry over the surface of Tatooine. Just look at the subtle swirl of cloud patterns on the planet below - astonishing. Best of all, not a lick of added edge enhancement was required to bring out this detail. What else is good? The color palette here is more lush and accurate than ever before. You're going to be blown away by everything from subtle flesh tones to the vibrant gold plating on C-3PO's chest to the bright orange flight suits of the Rebel pilots. Contrast is also spectacular, with deep detailed blacks and clear, accurate whites. All three films in this set are just going to absolutely blow you away, and the bigger your screen the better it gets. The Star Wars Trilogy on DVD is the best excuse you're ever going to have to go out and buy yourself a good anamorphic widescreen display. Until true high-definition arrives, it just doesn't get better than this.

On the audio side, all three films have been fully re-mixed in true Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround EX. The dynamic range in these mixes is impressive - everything from the softest passages of John Williams' signature score to the most explosive moments of action will full your home theater space with natural, immersive sound. There is some concern that the music has been repositioned in the surround channels during A New Hope in such a way that they seem "flipped" (instruments heard from the front right channel occasionally come from the left rear instead of the right rear) but Lucasfilm says this was a creative decision. In any case, the mixes are packed with atmospheric fill, active panning and surround play. The matrix-ed EX center back channel is nicely active - you'll definitely be glad you have an extra speaker back there. Dialogue is almost always clear, with the exception of a few lines of dialogue in A New Hope (listen to Tarkin's line: "You would prefer another target, a military target? Then name the system." The tonal quality changes during the line and it's distracting). We suspect this is the result of the deterioration of the original sound elements and were unavoidable. In the mixes for all three films, the LFE will really give your subwoofer a workout. The new 5.1 EX mixes are a generally appropriate match to the near perfect image quality. The overall sonic experience of these films on DVD will floor you.

As with the previous DVDs for The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones, each movie disc features three different menu sets themed to the various planets visited in the film. These appear at random when you boot up the disc.

In terms of extras, each movie disc also features a full length audio commentary track with members of the cast and crew. For all three films, George Lucas provides his thoughts on the overall themes and concepts, as well as interesting anecdotes on the characters and production. Actress Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia) chimes in as well with her thoughts and shares some particularly funny behind-the-scenes stories about working on the films. Sound designer Ben Burtt discusses his audio work and the creation of various sounds for each character, vehicle, prop and environment. And Dennis Muren addresses the elaborate special effects work. For the Empire commentary, director Irvin Kershner joins this group to provide his insights on the making of the film. As with The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones commentaries, the name of the person talking will occasionally appear at the top of the screen to help you identify them. The commentaries are fascinating and absolutely worth listening to.

The majority of the extras in this set are contained on its fourth disc, appropriately titled Bonus Material. This opens with an animated menu that depicts the Falcon flying through the asteroid field in Empire (you eventually end up in the Falcon's cockpit to make your selections). I should also note here that nearly every item on this disc is presented in anamorphic widescreen video - a very nice touch.

Arguably the most important bonus feature on the disc is Kevin Burns' 151-minute Empire of Dreams: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy documentary. Burns was given full access to the expansive Lucasfilm Archives and was able to uncover hours of behind-the-scenes footage from the making of these films that you've definitely never seen before. The documentary begins with Lucas' original idea for the films, and then covers the development, pre-production, filming and post-production of the original Star Wars in tremendous depth. Burns' idea was to take you back to 1977, to relive not only the struggle that was the making of the original film but also the film-going climate into which it was ultimately released. You are there are at the Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, waiting in line to see the film for the first time. You actually get to see the original version of the opening crawl, sans the Episode IV - A New Hope tag (and it will give you chills to see, believe me). You get to hear from absolutely everyone involved in the making of these films. Over 40 new, in-depth and original interviews were conducted with all the major cast members, the production staffers, etc. They're all here to give you their thoughts on the films.

The first hour of Empire of Dreams is devoted exclusively to A New Hope, and then the remaining time is split between the making of Empire and Jedi. As I said, you're going to see things you never knew existed - footage of the cast clowning around on thee set, a couple alternate versions of scenes from the films, plenty of production artwork and still photos - you name it. Irvin Kershner tells a great story about how the secret of Luke's parentage was kept hidden from the cast, crew and fans. It's pretty amazing stuff. The documentary does drag a little bit once you get past the first hour, but you'll still enjoy every minute of it and you'll probably watch it more than once if you're a fan.

Also on this disc are a set of three production featurettes. The Characters of Star Wars tells of the development of each character within the story and how each major role was cast. This includes some great, never-before-seen video of actors who tried out for the parts but didn't get them. Can you imagine Kurt Russell as Han Solo? Cindy Williams as Leia? William Katt as Luke? It's fun stuff.

The Birth of the Lightsaber addresses how the traditional weapon of the Jedi came to be. We get to see rare video of fight rehearsals and on-set raw footage (without the blades rotoscoped in). Ben Burtt tells you how he came up with the sound, etc. Again, good stuff.

The Force is with them: The Legacy of Star Wars looks at the influence the Star Wars films have had on Hollywood filmmaking (and filmmakers) as a whole. It features new interviews with the likes of Peter Jackson, Ridley Scott, Steven Spielberg, James Cameron and many others as they each talk about how the success of these films affected their careers and their work.

Fans of Star Wars minutiae will be pleased to learn that a whole gallery of rare theatrical trailers and TV spots for each film has been included on this disc, each in anamorphic widescreen video and presented in quality you've never seen before. There are also galleries of original poster art for the films, as well as a gallery of rare production photos. The production photos are very cool to see, they include images from many deleted scenes. Lucasfilm is already planning the high-definition box set of the whole 6-film saga, possibly for the original film's 30th anniversary in 2007. It shouldn't come as any surprise that more elaborate special editions will eventually be released.

There are three other cool extras on this disc you'll want to check out. The cool stuff includes a long-awaited sneak peek at the forthcoming Episode III. This takes the form of a featurette on the return of Darth Vader. We get to see the production staff building the new Vader costume, actor Hayden Christensen talking about what it's like to don the familiar black helmet, and Christensen and co-star Ewan McGregor practicing the infamous lightsaber duel that will climax the film. I think it will get you sufficiently pumped for the last Star Wars film ever... at least enough to hold you over until November when the teaser trailer for the film will arrive in theaters.

As with the previous Star Wars DVDs, these discs include DVD-ROM web links to an exclusive online site where you may get the first look at additional footage from these films, the Episode III trailer.

The other cool extra is a nifty Easter egg hidden in the bonus disc's menus. Like the previous DVDs, "1138" is the code to unlock it. When you do this successfully, you'll be treated to a funny gag reel from the original Star Wars films. I should also note that two of the aforementioned production featurettes on this DVD have funny little moments during the credits that you'll enjoy as well.

What's left on this disc includes a trailer for the Star Wars Battlefront Xbox game and a preview teasing the making of the forthcoming Episode III videogame. It's also worth noting here that if you put this disc in your Xbox machine, you'll get to play a complete preview level of Star Wars Battlefront.

Easter Egg Instructions

Movie Discs

Each movie disc has a set of 3 different animated menu schemes, patterned around the major worlds visited in each film. The different menu sets are randomly accessed when you boot up the disc. However, it is possible to directly access each scheme individually with the use of special codes. During the Attention warning screen on each movie disc, try entering the following codes with your remote:

Code 1 - "Audio"
Code 2 - "2"
Code 3 - "10+", "2" (or "12" depending on your player), then "2" again

Each of these should allow you to access a different specific menu scheme on the movie discs.

Bonus Disc

To access a Star Wars Trilogy gag reel, go to the Video Game & Still Galleries menu page. Using your remote, press "10+", "1" (or "11" depending on your player) and wait for the pause as the player accepts the input (note that a small box next to R2-D2 will illuminate if you're on the right track). Then press "3" and wait for the pause. Finally, press "8".

Look also for additional outtake clips during the credits of The Characters of Star Wars featurette, and funny lightsaber spoof clips during the credits of The Birth of the Lightsaber featurette. You don't have to do anything to access them other than watch the featurettes.

 

 

The Phantom Menace | Attack of the Clones | Revenge of the Sith
Star Wars: A New Hope | The Empire Strikes Back | Return of the Jedi

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