Lucas THX-1138 The (Digitally Enhanced) Director's Cut

[lone]

WIDESCREEN REVIEW shows a release date for two versions, the new one and, presumably, the original.

[Rudity]

A re-release of an anti-consumerism movie?.....hmmmmmm

[NanoGator]

Is this movie (director's version or not) worth dropping a few bucks on?

[Layer01]

i can't wait to get this looks awesome

[Berserga]

It's not a super entertaining movie, but like a lot of 70s SF movies, it has a bit of intellectual meat to it.

I think Lucas is a jerk tho. With his Revisionism he's exerting the kind of totalitarianism that this movie is against! :banghead:

A person can't change their past... no matter how obnoxiously rich they are.

[DannyDreams]

I think South Park said it right on this one. We have got to stop directors from going back and changing their movies. Lets just hope he really isn't thinking about changing Indiana Jones. :cry:

[Berserga]

I can see it now! Short round to be replaced by Jar jar! John reese Davies to be replaced by a giant CG Ewok.

All the cars in american Graffiti will get a CG makeover too, in fact I hear John Milner's car will turn into a big robot! :D

[heavyness]

can't wait, nice clean version to watch.

if you head over to amazon.com, you buy THX-1138 and the new Star Wars Trilogy on DVD as a set and save some money. or you can waste your time and post threads like the three above.

[Berserga]

Say Kole if ya keep defending george a bit more ya might get edited into The new new version of empire strikes back. :p

The new super neato best version evar even! :bounce:

[HTH]

All the cars in american Graffiti will get a CG makeover too, in fact I hear John Milner's car will turn into a big robot!
American Graffiti has already been released on DVD, and the only new thing in it is a sunset in the opening shot.

Say Kole if ya keep defending george a bit more ya might get edited into The new new version of empire strikes back.
Or, you can continue to be pissed off about something you have no control over, which only affects you. It certainly doesn't achieve anything. :)

Lets just hope he really isn't thinking about changing Indiana Jones.
Um, Indiana Jones was released quite a long time ago. No changes.

[Berserga]

well, this was all just joking around guys, though I am genuinely distressed at the thought of someone trying to rewrite film history. Ya know Lucas wasn't the only person involved in these films. I'm also equally distressed by how "aint it just dandy" so many people seem to be about it.

"Little man with big eraser changing history"--- Megadeth

[DigiLusionist]

The more time that George spends on revising his old flms, the more I'm convinced he no longer has anything new to offer.

[Layer01]

well while i can see where your fear comes form Berserga, i have to say i disagree with you, going back and changing stuff in your old movies is ok by me..let me explain:

first off its not so much changing as enhancing imho, lets take starwars (originals not the jokes) redone all that was added was some cool exposions cleaned up film, good sound, a few added scenes, and thats it (i may be forgetting stuff here) no real changes, just making it better and giving it a breath of fresh air in todays world of DVD's

directors make a movie in whatever year..then later on they get offered the option of maybe adding a few bits, of enhancing a few scenes etc.. in their movie, hell i know i'd do it...if i made a film and later on could maybe say..hmmm now i can have that scene look just that little bit better, i'd do it. a film shouldn't be seen as a static thing that can never change, you are allowed to improve on you own work if you so choose, like the new killer bean digital remake all jeff lew did was make some of the textures a bit higher rez and add some DoF now the movie is still the same just that much better now..no harm was done he just now had the technology to make it better and so he did.

[Tom N.]

well, this was all just joking around guys, though I am genuinely distressed at the thought of someone trying to rewrite film history. Ya know Lucas wasn't the only person involved in these films. I'm also equally distressed by how "aint it just dandy" so many people seem to be about it.


No one is "rewriting" film history here. It's HIS movie. Yes, others worked on it too, but they don't all share the movie equally, they knew at the time they were working FOR him so if he wants to go back and improve upon a peice of work he did in the past because there's new technology to make it better and easier to watch, then whats wrong with that?

And not to repeat things over and over, but nothing changed about the story, as Layer 01 said, its only been enhanced to make it more enjoyable to look/listen to.

-Tom N.

[heavyness]

when Lucas did this with the special edition, MANY directors said how they wanted to do that, but don't have the time or freedom to do so. how many directors have said "if only we had time for this scene." Lucas, because he owns EVERYTHING Star Wars, has that power.

also, there is no way Lucas can change history. no matter how many changes, special editions, of CG enhancements he does will take away my memories of camping in subzero weather in Cleveland w/ my friends to be the first in line to see the special edition, or camping out 24+ hours for episode 1.

growing up with Star Wars, i hold them closely to my heart.



but they are only movies.

[Berserga]

Sorry, I just can't buy the "It's his film." excuse.

Firstly When a film is released and becomes part of the culture, especially something as important from a historical standpoint as star wars, It no longer belongs to just the creator(S) anymore but to the culture as a whole. It is part of our collective past.

secondly It's not like george lucas , built the models, created the costumes, built the sets, operated the cameras etc... etc... ad nauseum. In order to add your so called improvements other shots needed to be cut. Shots that people worked on and were proud of.

Thirdly You assume the things done are actually imrovements... every time I see that effing ring around the death star explosion it makes me ill. Greedo shooting first? c'mon.

If these special editions were always released side by side with untouched versions (As may be the case with THX 1138) I can live with it, But replacing the originals is simply wrong.

BTW I do not see this as being the same as the case with the Blade Runner directors cut where hacks had originally made the director ad expository voiceovers to spoon feed the audience the plot, which were thankfully removed in the Directors cut. (which is now the defacto version of the film.)

[rootdown]

berserga, I am not a fan of directors making their own movies over again either (like rather than making new stories, which was one of the reasons lucas gave for not wanting to make more star wars movies after the prequel trilogy and then he's all like hay guys let's remake my first movie lol, whatevs lucas) but your argument doesn't really float.

saying that a story ought not to be changed once it has been told would invalidate like eighty percent of film history. I mean, the story of snow white is hundreds of years old, was walt disney being out of line when he decided to make a children's cartoon out of it? also quoting megadeth to back up your point sort of automatically invalidates any point you were trying to make in the first place no matter how correct you were originally were.

personally I have nothing invested in whether the THX digital surround movie gets remade because I have never seen the original but I would give him props if on a dvd release it had the original unedited version so that people could appreciate it in its historical context as well as the flashy update.

[Tom N.]

Firstly When a film is released and becomes part of the culture, especially something as important from a historical standpoint as star wars, It no longer belongs to just the creator(S) anymore but to the culture as a whole. It is part of our collective past.


Maybe in OUR minds or hearts this film might "belong" to us in some certain way. However there are copywrites that say this film belongs to George Lucas, and only George Lucas, and that only he has say over what happens to it. Sad but true.


secondly It's not like george lucas , built the models, created the costumes, built the sets, operated the cameras etc... etc... ad nauseum. In order to add your so called improvements other shots needed to be cut. Shots that people worked on and were proud of.


Again, these people went into creating the film knowing that all their work would, thats right, belong to George Lucas. I'm willing to bet that he owns their personal work as well, just for being a part of his company. I know some companies have that in their contract (the company owning your personal work) I dont know if ILM or any of the other Lucas companies do it, but it does happen.


If these special editions were always released side by side with untouched versions (As may be the case with THX 1138) I can live with it, But replacing the originals is simply wrong.


Its not a replacement, its just an enhanced version. It's not like all the old ones are being burned.

Clearly we're not going to see eye to eye on this issue, these are just my thoughts. But, as Kole said, we can feel however we want about films, but they are just movies.

-Tom N.

[Berserga]

You are using legalities but IMO this is more of an ETHICAL issue. IE: Lucas may have the legal right to do it but I can still think he's a dick.

The megadeth dig was pretty astonishingly ignorant. Rather like disscounting Blade runner and 2001 cuz they are in the same genre as star wars :p You can find wisdom in words wherever they may be found.

Its not a replacement, its just an enhanced version. It's not like all the old ones are being burned.

Perhaps not, but if the film is allowed to rot on the spool and the public is no longer allowed to see it it may as well be.

[RobertoOrtiz]

Guys, please keep the debate civil.

-R

[Berserga]

Sorry... If the ignorant bit sounded too harsh. :blush:

[skurge13]

I'm indifferent towards the THX changes, but I'm certainly not going to buy the Star Wars DVDs. I think bottom line everyone can agree that he should be releasing an un-modified version DVD of SW. Both versions would sell. It's not like he needs to make his money back on them. By not releasing the original trilogy, it's like he's thumbing his nose at the folks like me who saw them in the theater way back when. To me that's the worst thing. It's disrespectul of the people who made him a millionaire. I also think, just for historical purposes, it's important to have an original DVD version out there.

When I heard he was updating the series, I thought it would be great, that he would be improving special effects, but I was shocked at how much was changed. I mean, come on, we all know that Han shoots first. That's a fundamental change to the character, and not representative at all of Lucas's story sensibilities at the time he filmed it. After that, I was deathly afraid he was going to change the "Indiana Jones shooting the sword dude" scene in Raiders (although I'm pretty sure Spielberg would've blocked him if he had tried).

Check this out: http://www.originaltrilogy.com/

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