Original Trilogy DVDs - the changes

[Buzz Bumble]

DVD Changes to Original Trilogy

Bootlegs of the Original Trilogy DVDs are already appearing on the Internet, and the first change noted has been the switch from Sebastian Shaw to Hayden Christensen as the Jedi Ghost of Anakin Skywalker at the end of Return of the Jedi.

You can check out the changed scene in the movie clips at either AVI (1.1meg) or Quicktime (1.4meg)

 

[Buzz Bumble]

More reported changes ...

The Empire Strikes Back
- Emperor's hologram (JPEG image)
- New dialog for Emperor's hologram scene (MP3)
- Temuera Morrison voicing Boba Fett (MP3)

Retun of the Jedi
- Hayden replacing Shaw as Jedi Ghost (PNG Image)
- Jedi Temple added to celebration on Coruscant (PNG image)
- Naboo scenes added to the galactic final celebration (PNG image)
​

 

[imperialoutpost]

What do you all think about this? Personally I'm just wondering how far is Lucas going to take it... Are we going to see extra special editions in 10 years time?

 

[Buzz Bumble]

Once LucasFilm and ILM has finished Episode III and it's DVD, there probably will be a six-movie collectors' DVD Box Set which likely will have more tweaks.

Changing Sebastian Shaw to Hayden is plain silly since Luke would have no idea who the young guy is, except perhaps by guessing or sensing it through the Force. But Obi-Wan is still the older version, so it makes even less sense to change Anakin.

 

[AmShak]

Changing Sebastian Shaw to Hayden is plain silly since Luke would have no idea who the young guy is, except perhaps by guessing or sensing it through the Force. But Obi-Wan is still the older version, so it makes even less sense to change Anakin.

totally agree

 

[Buzz Bumble]

There's an idea floating around that it's because the younger Anakin is from before he turned to the Dark Side, but then that just makes a mockery of the whole "redeeming Anakin" part of RotJ and still doesn't make sense.

 

[Darth Boru]

Makes no sense whatsoever, I completely agree.

Some things are best left alone.

Having just viewed this alleged scene, it looks pretty patchy, so I think I'll wai and see if the official version really has these changes.

 

[jfrog2002]

I'm pretty dissapointed about the changes. I want to be able to see the movie I saw as kid. Even when I sit down to watch them now I tend to grab the original versions to watch and not the special editions. Unfortunately, all my tape sets are pan and scan.

I had been looking at lazer disks on Ebay but the price has shot up a lot and I'd need to get a player just to watch them. Hopfully when all 6 movies are done we might be able to get an original version again. Another marketing ploy to get us to buy the 6 pack after alreadying buying so many version of the trilogy.

 

[Buzz Bumble]

I wouldn't hold your breath. The original Original Trilogy is long dead and will never officially see the light of day again. Any future releases will be the Special Editions (or further tweaked Super-Special Editions).

 

[imperialoutpost]

I can't understand why Lucas seems so dead against everything the fans want. We're the reason why he never has to worry about money again. The fans want the original movie versions back, but we get special-special-editions on the DVD with changes made just for the sake of changing something.

And if he really had all these movies planned out in his head from day one, why do they make so little sense when viewed together?

 

[Carl Waterworth]

Interesting point Andy! However I welcome the changes if it brings better continuity ove the 6 films!

 

[imperialoutpost]

Yeah - if it improves it. I'm quite pleased that the Emperor in ESB is been changed because that always looked poor and the Jabba sequence in ANH could never look any worse, but it surprises me that Lucas seems to be very close to a 5 year kid that shouts it's my football and I'm going home! Would it kill him to listen to fans suggestions once in a while? Greedo shooting first for example...

 

[Zepp]

Re: Short bus Trilogy DVDs - the changes

I can understand cleaning them up, however there are some major gripes:

• Greedo shooting first demeans both Greedo and Solo. If Greedo can't hit Solo from across a table is he really a threat? no Then does Solo have any reason to kill him other than he's bored? no
• The Hutt scene just doesn't work. It breaks the pace of the movie, it was not well constructed. It had no point, with all the allusions already in place.
• Replacing the voice of Jason Wingreen is not only rude, it also decreases the impact of the scene. The same can be said for Hayden replacing Shaw.

I'm sure there are some other things that annoy me, but I haven't watched the Special Ed. version for a while, and so I can't remember what was changed...

 

[Buzz Bumble]

Re: Short bus Trilogy DVDs - the changes

I can understand cleaning them up, however there are some major gripes:

• Greedo shooting first demeans both Greedo and Solo. If Greedo can't hit Solo from across a table is he really a threat? no Then does Solo have any reason to kill him other than he's bored? no

• 
  So Han is supposed to sit there and wait for Greedo to try a second time, or a third time, until he succeeds?
  
  Greedo shooting first does work (in theory, if not in the re-working of the actual film footage) since Han would give him a chance to walk away, rather than just shoot him - it's the old "Han is honourable" change, similar to the "Jedi don't do revenge" one.
  
  
  I want the "Yub Yub" song put back in ... that was the best musical in the whole saga.

 

[Zepp]

Han doesn't have to wait for Greedo to miss at point blank range to give him a chance to walk away, it makes him look stupid, not honourable

 

[Buzz Bumble]

Up until Greedo actually shoots there's always a change he would walk away (Han perhaps knows Greedo is a lousy shot). Once Greedo shoots, "all bets are off" and Han can defend himself - the old "self defence" strategy. Han shooting first makes him look like a baddie, which is of course why George Lucas changed it.

 

[Borsk]

What's wrong with making him look like a "baddie"? At that point in the movie you don't know what his position is and it makes it more interesting to cast him as a potential bad guy. Making everything black and white does not make it more interesting.

 

[Buzz Bumble]

I don't know about "more interesting", but those that read the EU material (in timeline order?) would already know that Han is not a baddie since he rescued Chewie, etc. That would mean Han goes from good to bad and back to good again - some people are confused enough because Naboo isn't in the Original Trilogy.

 

[Borsk]

more interesting

I'm saying that it makes a story better if there are characters that aren't exactly good or bad. In the first 2 prequel movies, basically everyone is either a good guy or a bad guy. There's no grey. There's no mystery about what motivates a character. The only character who comes to mind (in the prequels) who was kinda grey was Watto (and he's one of the best).

Portraying Han as an absolutely good character who always does the "right thing" diminishes his character.

 

[Buzz Bumble]

Han doesn't always do the right thing - he is a smuggler.

I never said the change was the best thing to do, but it does make sense, unlike switching the Ankin Ghost Jedi actor.



The DVD for A New Hope reportedly only has minor changes of fixing some of the lightsabres and blaster shots, but does include replacing the dodgy Jabba with the one from Episode I (who wasn't that great either, but was better than their first attempt).