Taking a break from politics-business events, but unfortunately no less maddening :)
The top 10 ways Lucas messed up Episodes 4-6 in his special edition ("special" clearly denoting mentally deficient in this case): https://www.youtube.com/watch?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
We can respect Lucas for being a smart businessman/generous philanthropist, AND acknowledge that he is a total A-hole for ruining cherished Eps 4-6 and epic failing on Eps 1-3. If he was truly generous, he would have given the SW franchise to a nonprofit fan foundation, to make sure future content stays true to the mythos. His decision to sell to the likes of Disney nullified his giving ("blood money"). So it seems clear that Lucas has done nothing good for SW or humanity since 1983. He just helped himself and his investors at the expense of a major part of US film and cultural history.
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If you're desperate for a good version of the original, you should torrent this guy's despecialized version of Ep 4-6: http://originaltrilogy.
Basically, he started with the Hi-Def versions that were
released later, deleted all the dumb George Lucas later additions, and
cleaned up some things even George Lucas missed (such as light saber
colors being wrong), and remastered the sound.
For people that have seen it, it's basically the
ultimate nerd version of Star Wars; high def but true to the original
(Lando shoots first!).
For the disaster of Episodes 1-3, there is always the Phantom Edit (http://starwarsfans.wikia.com/wiki/The_Phantom_Edit )
which cuts out much of the crap in Episode 1. (He also made versions
for 2 and 3). There's also The Editor Strikes Back, which condenses Ep
1-3 into a very watchable 85 mins: http://www.slashfilm.com/topher-grace-edited-star-wars-prequels-85minute-movie/ (shows just how much fluff and useless shit Lucas included in the Prequels really)
Even the viewing order has been challenged by fans online: http://www.nomachetejuggling.com/2011/11/11/the-star-wars-saga-suggested-viewing-order/
- basically, this guy argues the best viewing order is IV - V - II -
III - VI. Now that the Editor Strikes Back has been released, I think
you could make a good argument for IV (despecialized) - V
(despecialized) - Editor Strikes Back - VI (despecialized) as more or
less how Star Wars was meant to be experienced in a perfect world.
I guess in this day and age of Internet
collaboration, there's just no way that George Lucas can try to keep
sole creative control over something that nerds the world over cherish -
fans will route around his ham-handed attempts to "improve" the
originals.
http://www.tested.com/art/
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Thx! I know I can always count on a fellow true fan for
empathy and resources. Sadly I don't torrent (ignorance rather than
respect for IP, LOL), but I will look into it. I found a guy on eBay
who is selling unofficial DVDs of the unaltered trilogy, so I got that
as a post-Xmas gift for myself. :) But mostly it's "historical record"
for my daughter, so when she gets older, she will be able to experience
the real SW the way we did (before Lucas and Mickey destroy all the
surviving copies of the original trilogy).
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More ludicrous changes in the recent Blu-Ray release:
http://blog.zap2it.com/pop2it/2011/08/ewoks-now-blink-in-blu-ray-release-of-return-of-the-jedi.html
Yes,
it was eating me up inside that the Ewoks in Return of the Jedi didn't
have blinking eyes. That really detracted from the realism of a battle
where a galactic imperial army was soundly defeated by talking care
bears. Sure, the Ewoks were by far the worst part of Eps 4-6 (an early
attempt at commercialization and youth targeting), but changing them now
is even dumber. ---
Supposedly Lucas (who is more of a
merchandiser and effects wizard than a pure storyteller and filmmaker)
was not happy with the state of the art in 1977, but had to keep Ep 4 on
schedule, so the film released without all the cool effects that he
wanted. The industry just wasn't ready for his vision. Fair enough, but
since when has any work we've had to deliver under time pressure
satisfied us 100%? I know Hollywood directors are infamous
perfectionists, but at some point you just go with the best you have
ready, and leave it at that. No "do overs" later (or leave it to the DVD
bonus features at least, don't alter the original work!).
Say all that is true, and the special edition is Lucas' "true vision" for how he wanted the trilogy to look and feel. So he really believed that CG mini-Jabba, a rock in front of R2-D2, and Han shooting 2nd made the movie complete? If he "did it right" the first time in 1977, then SW would have become an even bigger hit? I call BS. He just used the special edition as an excuse to invest in more tech, showcase ILM effects, and sell more DVDs. Seriously, the changes are as if Lucas asked his 12-year-old child for advice. First off, you don't need to change what is fine, or in fact nearly perfect. Second, if you do decide to change what is already fine, then your change should at least be an IMPROVEMENT and not a distraction/detraction/joke. Like adding color to later releases of Hitchcock movies is more defensible (but still controversial to many). The feel of Eps 4-6 is of a raw, gritty, lived-in universe (apart from the sterile, polished, but oppressive imperial settings). The sharp and artificial CG fillers add no value and really hurt the mood of some scenes (like the stupid alien band in Return of the Jedi playing a kiddie song while the green slave girl was eaten). The low-IQ response to innovation/improvement is "let's just add more stuff." A shot with so much irrelevant and unimportant noise going on doesn't benefit the film, and is too much for the typical viewer to process/appreciate anyway (example from Ep 2). It's sad that so many artists had to work long hours to deliver such garbage that no one will remember. Whereas Sir Alec Guinness probably just needed a couple takes to deliver a 10-second line that became film immortality: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hFWz145aJc .
Much worse are the "continuity changes", where the Eps 1-3 are clearly to blame. Vader has to yell "Nooooo!" the same way in 2 movies (even though it is not authentic and ruins both scenes). Hayden Christiansen has to have a cameo in a film that was made before he was born. Why? To give Eps 1-3 more legitimacy at the expense of the far better Eps 4-6? If Lucas thinks his audience is so dumb that they need to hear the same line or see the same face to make the mental connection across 2 movies, well that shows his respect for the audience.
Say all that is true, and the special edition is Lucas' "true vision" for how he wanted the trilogy to look and feel. So he really believed that CG mini-Jabba, a rock in front of R2-D2, and Han shooting 2nd made the movie complete? If he "did it right" the first time in 1977, then SW would have become an even bigger hit? I call BS. He just used the special edition as an excuse to invest in more tech, showcase ILM effects, and sell more DVDs. Seriously, the changes are as if Lucas asked his 12-year-old child for advice. First off, you don't need to change what is fine, or in fact nearly perfect. Second, if you do decide to change what is already fine, then your change should at least be an IMPROVEMENT and not a distraction/detraction/joke. Like adding color to later releases of Hitchcock movies is more defensible (but still controversial to many). The feel of Eps 4-6 is of a raw, gritty, lived-in universe (apart from the sterile, polished, but oppressive imperial settings). The sharp and artificial CG fillers add no value and really hurt the mood of some scenes (like the stupid alien band in Return of the Jedi playing a kiddie song while the green slave girl was eaten). The low-IQ response to innovation/improvement is "let's just add more stuff." A shot with so much irrelevant and unimportant noise going on doesn't benefit the film, and is too much for the typical viewer to process/appreciate anyway (example from Ep 2). It's sad that so many artists had to work long hours to deliver such garbage that no one will remember. Whereas Sir Alec Guinness probably just needed a couple takes to deliver a 10-second line that became film immortality: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
Much worse are the "continuity changes", where the Eps 1-3 are clearly to blame. Vader has to yell "Nooooo!" the same way in 2 movies (even though it is not authentic and ruins both scenes). Hayden Christiansen has to have a cameo in a film that was made before he was born. Why? To give Eps 1-3 more legitimacy at the expense of the far better Eps 4-6? If Lucas thinks his audience is so dumb that they need to hear the same line or see the same face to make the mental connection across 2 movies, well that shows his respect for the audience.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
But going back to Eps 4-6... you don't love your partner because they're perfect or in spite of their flaws, you love that their flaws make them who they are. Most fans never lamented about a certain SW mistake, or wished a new effect was included in the films (partly because the existing effects were already so dazzling). It's fine that the stormtrooper hits his head on the door, or that the Death Star has a totally illogical vulnerability. They are barely relevant to the larger story arc, feelings, and themes, which is what stays with you years after you've seen the film. I wish modern Hollywood would stop fixating on getting everything so perfectly stunning visually, and instead invest that much effort on the truly critical parts of a good film (the mental-emotional parts!). Otherwise we will keep getting more Eps 1-3. Lucas was lucky that he leveraged the SW brand to make those crap films into huge financial successes, but not everyone can be so fortunate. Disney of all studios should know this, after John Carter and Lone Ranger. Also, what happened to "know the customer"? Aren't filmmakers in the business of pleasing audiences? It seems that too many egomaniac directors and producers just hijack films/franchises and warp them into their selfish, narrow vision. If they have a good vision, then maybe it's fine. But so many of them don't. Some films are too important to society/history to let one rich and powerful A-hole mess them up for future generations. In that sense, it's ironic that Lucas has really become the dark side emperor of the Star Wars franchise.
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Agreed, it's inspirational. Totally funny that the poor,
underground fans acting as the true custodians of the SW material are
like the Rebels, and GL and his mighty LucasFilm are the empire. Life
imitates art. It's even more impressive that many of them were born
after the original trilogy, yet still came to love it (shows how
timeless the movies are, and they live on because of the human elements,
not the effects which are clearly dated by now). And as you said, their
heroic efforts would be totally unnecessary if Lucas and his henchmen
acted with a shred of heart. As we all know, if Lucas had full control
on Eps 4-6, they would have been pretty terrible (Han with green skin,
Luke and Leia as midgets, etc.). I give GL credit for the creative spark
and taking chances, but he is terrible at execution (apart from some
effects).
The guy is just an out of touch, egocentric douche, so this is
what we get. If you watch behind the scenes clips of him directing Eps
1-3, it's really like a senile person or child at work (or worse, a smug
prick who just doesn't give a shit), but all the yes-men around him
just go along with it. And can you imagine - the BTS shots that they
released are the GOOD moments of his direction - I wonder how bad the
bad moments were! Lucas must really hire hacks at ILM as you said. In
their defense, maybe those workers are just uber fanboys who are so
desperate to work on any new SW material (like a crack addict), so they
will go along with any of GL's horrible ideas. In their gut they know
it's wrong and bad for the franchise, but I guess they'd rather toil on a
shitty project than no project at all. This is the problem when GL
finances the movies himself too, there's no one else to hold him to
account. At least the suits at Fox probably shot down all of GL's zany
ideas during the first trilogy. I just can't believe anyone at ILM didn't have the sack to speak out about all the superfluous scenes, shit dialogue, Jar-Jar, Noooooo!, etc. I know they must have felt it in their guts, but self-censored. You'd think some cocky kid would have spoken out, and then got canned by a miffed GL. Then he tells all to the media about how bad it is to work at ILM and how stupid GL is. But I haven't heard anything like that, have you? Or at least Portman, Neeson, or MacGregor have the clout to speak out (or are they in denial too, wanting to believe that they worked on something of value?). Maybe ILM has a strict NDA or Lucas will sue the shit out of you?
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