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Post by mouser on May 31, 2024 10:12:50 GMT -6
I'm starting this thread because of Falconer's amazing idea to look at Star Wars stuff in a Book Club-type spirit. I will start some various threads, hopefully, along the lines of what Falconer is doing with his Star Wars Club. I just want to say that this forum (ODD74) made me want to become a member because of (among other things) the many interesting discussions here about Star Wars. The one that really grabbed me was about how viewers of Star Wars (1977) envisioned the future of Star Wars AT THAT TIME, meaning of course before Empire Strikes Back and everything that followed. I remember the time: I was but a child and the wait between Star Wars and Empire seemed like an eternity. So there was a long period in between, where we were playing with our action figures and reading things like the Star Wars Storybook, Splinter of the Mind's Eye, and trying to get our hands on copies of Bantha Tracks (the fanzine). Anyway, the plan is to get everyone reading this thread to look at the original cut of Star Wars and discuss it here, on this very thread I am writing. How can I watch the original cut? Well, there is a site called Project 4K77 that can get you pointed in the right direction. So, I write this on May 31, 2024. But that's irrelevant, because you may be reading this thread long after that. So, whenever you get a chance to see the original cut, post your thoughts here!! Here are some questions to think about... 1. Were there moments that made you go, "Aha! Yeah, now I remember that!" (i.e. Things that may have been altered in later cuts.)
2. Seeing the original version, are there threads and implications of what Star Wars was at that time that ended up not being explored in the later "canon" ?
3. Any other tangents inspired by viewing?
Helpful link: www.thestarwarstrilogy.com/project-4k77/ |
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thecube
Newly-Registered User 
Posts: 18
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Post by thecube on May 31, 2024 22:05:15 GMT -6
I'm occasionally somewhere where I smell patchoulli and it acts like a madeleine cake to me because there was a Masters of the Universe action figure called Stinkor that was made with patchoulli oil. So suddenly in my mind I'm eight years old in my bedroom playing with He-Man figures. It's very vivid.
I get the same experience with an original cut of Star Wars. It doesn't happen with the special edition, but if I watch Harmy's Despecialized Edition suddenly I'm a small kid watching Star Wars on TV with my family. The whole experience comes flooding back.
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Post by asaki on Jun 1, 2024 12:13:29 GMT -6
lol, I don't even know how long I've been a part of the OT forums for. Way too long, it seems like, and it's amazing that we finally have these movies in HD. 4K77 v1 is fantastic. I know a lot of people prefer other versions of the film, but I just love the Technicolor look. 4K83 v2 is also awesome. Actually spent last night looking at the current state of ESB, now that I have more hard drive space. Seems like every HD preservation either has too many flaws that distract from the experience, or the colors are too flat (I like my Hoth to have a little blue to it, and it seems like most people want it blindingly white like it was on VHS). Going to sit down with a few different Grindhouses and Edits and see what I think. The '97 preservation is pretty great IMO...until you get to Cloud City... Yes, I know I'm going off topic  |
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Post by captainjapan on Jun 1, 2024 12:30:38 GMT -6
asaki, To your knowledge, are there any other restorations/re-edits on originaltrilogy.com that were actually completed. I'm thinking of titles besides Star Wars. It can be difficult trying to sift through the discussions of on-going projects for completed movies. Also, I must agree, the nostalgia of watching pre-computer effects Star Wars is a joy. I started with Harmy and moved on to some other fairly massive edits (maybe the ones you're talking about). Excellent quality on my projector. That's a real fan community - one that comes together and takes matters into their own hands.
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Post by mouser on Jun 1, 2024 13:12:53 GMT -6
Yes, I know I'm going off topic I dunno, I'd say you're exactly on topic! : ) |
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Post by Attronarch on Jun 1, 2024 15:11:17 GMT -6
Amazing, didn't know something like this exists!
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Post by asaki on Jun 2, 2024 13:17:19 GMT -6
To your knowledge, are there any other restorations/re-edits on originaltrilogy.com that were actually completed. I'm thinking of titles besides Star Wars. It can be difficult trying to sift through the discussions of on-going projects for completed movies. Umm...it depends on how you define "complete". Even stuff like 4K77 is constantly undergoing rescanning and revisions. Seems like a lot of projects start out small, "I'm going to release a pristine German print of X", but then quickly snowball into "I'm going to remove every single scratch and speck of dust" and before you know it, five years have gone by with nothing to show. That's why I like Grindhouse releases so much. Quick and dirty. Just give me a decent color correction to mitigate the fade, maybe some stabilization if it needs it, a good stereo soundtrack and I'm happy. Even the Puggo 16mm releases are pretty enjoyable to me. I haven't really been on the board much since Silver Screen came out, so I'm a bit out of date, but some of my favorite non-SW releases are the THX-1138 and Jurassic Park 35mm preservations. There's been a LOT of 35mm releases lately, I don't know exactly where they're coming from, but now that I've got HDD space I'm going to have to check at least a few out. There's an open matte copy of Dawn of the Dead that's screaming my name. I started with Harmy and moved on to some other fairly massive edits (maybe the ones you're talking about). Let me check, the edit I'm eyeballing right now is called "THX 1997/4K80 Hybrid Restoration". It's basically like Adywan's old edit of the official DVD, but with a German 1997 print of ESB as the base, and then using clips from betas of 4K80 to fill in the more offending CGI shots (mostly just Cloud City). His ESB SE release looks pretty fantastic, I love the colors, and it's incredibly sharp, so I think it might be a good "for now" option. A lot of shots from 4K80 v1 have this really distracting grain issue going on, so I'll have to watch it and see. I'm sure there will be some good stuff coming soon, though. There are two 70mm preservations that need color correction and some small repairs (missing frames), and they recently tracked down a Technicolor print. I dunno, I'd say you're exactly on topic! : ) Well, if you say so  It sounded like you wanted the discussion to revolve around the movies themselves. |
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Post by mouser on Jun 2, 2024 17:45:04 GMT -6
I dunno, I'd say you're exactly on topic! : ) Well, if you say so It sounded like you wanted the discussion to revolve around the movies themselves. I guess I think of it as "other tangents inspired by viewing" LOL I wanted the subject line to be as non-specific as possible, but still orbiting around the original cut. |
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Post by asaki on Jun 3, 2024 17:57:39 GMT -6
I guess I think of it as "other tangents inspired by viewing" LOL Well I am a pro at tangents. "THX 1997/4K80 Hybrid Restoration" was good, but he used AI upscaling on the replacement shots from 4K80, so they have a weird look to them that's a little distracting. Not nearly as distracting as the CGI was, though. "Poita's 35mm Das Imperium Schlagt Zuruck" is pretty nice so far, but it's quite pink overall, much like the home video releases were. I might have to remux it with English audio and watch it some more. I think my current top non-edits are still the two Fuji Grindhouses (#2 would have a slight edge, except that weird grain issue that isn't in #1). 70mm A looks very nice, it's not as blue as I'd like but it doesn't look bad. If I had to choose one to watch with friends...it's really a tossup between Fuji 1, 70mm A, and THX Hybrid. I'm not sure, they all have pros and cons. |
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Post by geoffrey on Jun 3, 2024 21:35:31 GMT -6
(I own the three Despecialized Editions of SW, TESB, and ROTJ.)
The 1977 Star Wars film instantly became my favorite movie when I first saw it with my parents at 7 years old back in June 1977. This remained unchanged until 2021, when Denis Villeneuve's Dune (2021, 2024) became my favorite movie. Even though the 1977 Star Wars is now my second favorite film, I actually like it more than I ever have. Dune suffused the Tatooine scenes (from the time the two droids land to Han blasting off from Mos Eisley--perhaps 40 minutes in total) with an additional magic that it didn't have for me before.
I have several times watched only that 40-minute Tatooine chunk all by itself. How I wish that we had a dozen movies just like that chunk, all shot on location all over the Sahara: Ancient ruins, monsters (cf. the skeleton C-3PO saw), secrets of the Jedi (a very light touch on that), warlords, bounty hunters, malfunctioning droids, dark canyons, eerie jawas, dangerous sand people, hidden bases, etc.
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It sounded like you wanted the discussion to revolve around the movies themselves.
