The yavin battle focused much more on the individual pilots, probably partially due to budgetary constraints, but it had the effect of ramping up the stakes and tension. Pretty much every SW dogfight after this and ESB focused more on spectacle and numbers, which is no bad thing but just an observation. I love the yavin battle, it's just such a classic sequence, but my personal favourites are the DS2 battle and Rogue one.
There is a roughness to this film, that I think is one of it's charms.. like you can tell they just barely finished it.
JJ Abrams asked Lucasfilm about doing a new release of the original theatrical versions of the original trilogy, and they said no. Apparently it still goes back to Lucas not wanting the original versions to be released again.
I have watched it again this afternoon, even after 200 plus viewings, I still never tire of this movie. It is just magical from start to finish. As excellent as ESB is (and it really is and betters ANH in several areas) I just can't award it top spot over this, but it's VERY close. The perceived 'roughness' you speak of is one of the films best aspects, it's fairly raw in places and as a result it just adds to the film's atmosphere with the 'lived in' look. No other SW film feels quite as believable a setting as this one. People slate the tatooine bits as slow - pfft - they are excellent - grounded and realistic. Just the visuals on the twin suns alone (let alone the music) blew me away when I was a kid, it looked 100 percent real and still does now. The film was made by the seat of it's pants, but it was pulled off spectacularly well. A stone cold masterpiece.
I totally agree. And those slow scenes on Tatooine, filmed in what feels like a real home where the background can be just out of focus if it needs to be, is one of the main reasons that film feels the most real. You have articulated very well what I've beem thinking about for years. The film is incredible verisimilitude.. even the shade of blue on artoo-detoo just is perfect if it had been any different it would take you out of the film. Every single camera angle every single shot just accentuates how real this world feels
No surprise there. He regards the originals rather poorly and does not have the love that many others do for it. They are incredible movies, especially ANH. I'll never tire of that one. But, I cannot fault Lucas in the slightest and fully respect his choice.
I'll fault him, his position is absurd. He put out a movie that made history, then wants to erase it from history. But even he can't stop it, eventually the original will take its proper place. The more time that goes by, the more value the original will hold. People will want to see the movie that changed filmmaking in 1977, in the same way as has happened with every other historic "lost" film. The special editions will be a footnote.
Luckily I've procured a couple of versions of the movies I can live with. I suppose maybe Lucas was deeply disturbed that people would see Jabba's palace with Lapti Nek instead of Jedi Rocks and cartoony CGI close-ups but I like what I grew up with. I can understand fixing some FX flaws but I think the movie will always be a part of its time no matter how much polish is applied. Who'da thunk he'd still be tweaking the Greedo scene, though? I'm probably too close to the material, it being a part of my childhood and all, to be truly objective but I can't imagine seeing Star Wars as a bad film even if one was luke warm to it. That said, I was never able to get my nephew to really take a shine to it so maybe its appeal isn't forever timeless. He was however impressed seeing Scarlett Johanssen as Princess Leia
I've been reading old Starlogs on Internet Archive, and back in issue 25 from 1979 they interview Ray Bradbury. I find this text very interesting. I wish George Lucas would understand this perspective: Bradbury was 26 when he began The Martian Chronicles stories, and 29 when they were completed — years before NASA sent out the first Martian probes. Would he have changed the stories if he were aware of the scientific knowledge to be gathered in the years ahead? Without hesitation, he answers that he would not have altered a word. As if talking about someone else, he says, "I have to respect the young man who wrote it, don't I?"
Proper place? It's not some lost arthouse film that we can never see again. Star Wars already has its proper place in history. What's absurd is the flagrant disregard for Lucas and his feelings regarding his art.
Art is, first and foremost, about honesty. The special editions are dishonest. Lucas's "feelings" are perpetuating a lie.
I get what you mean but I still think it's a good movie. Add scene 38 to it and you've got an even better one.
Yeah but he's awesome. He doesn't really appear a lot in the novels which is a shame. He could have been a fun one to go into more detail in.
Lucas's feelings also matter. He made the art available and we were entertained by it. There is no further obligation.
they are his films hhe can add whatever he wants. and I worship the guy but in this particular case tweking the films is fine on its own but is dishonest wehn you make the original versions difficult to acquire in an acceptible format. It was the originals that were the source of the innovations is pushing technology forward.. the originals that won oscars etc. It's particularly hypocritical when he said the following back in 1988: