It’s an event that seems to happen in the “Star Wars” world about as often as Wookiees celebrate Life Day, and which fans await with just as much dread. New versions of George Lucas’s space-fantasy films are released, and with them come changes to the movies – alterations to audio and video, characters’ actions and even dialogue that is very different from what fans remember seeing in theaters a long time ago and far, far away.
So it goes for the latest editions of the six “Star Wars” live-action features that are being prepared for a Blu-ray home video release on Sept. 16. Previously, it was reported that the version of “Star Wars – Episode I: The Phantom Menace” included in this release would replace the puppet version of the Yoda character with a computer-generated creation. Then on Tuesday, an online report by Devin Faraci suggested a revelation almost as troubling as the news that Luke and Leia had been brother and sister all along: in a climactic scene from “Return of the Jedi,” when Darth Vader hurls the evil Emperor to his demise on the Death Star, he would now shout “No!” (In all previous versions of “Jedi,” Vader has committed this crucial deed in silence.)
On Wednesday, a press representative for Lucasfilm confirmed that this change will be included in the Blu-ray release, writing in an e-mail: “Yes — Darth says NO.”
Though it may sound like a minor detail among the millions in the “Star Wars” movies, this alteration has not sat well with many admirers of the film franchise. Among the angered fans is Simon Pegg, the “Shaun of the Dead” star and geek-culture icon, who wrote on his Twitter account that he always “loved Vader’s wordless self sacrifice” and called the change a “clueless revision.”
Oh and Ewoks blink now, too.
The angry mobs are especially bitter because Lucas isn't releasing the original cuts of the films alongside the tweaked versions
With the capacity of BR I don't see why the originals couldn't be placed on there just as well. I guess he's disowned those versions so wants to pretend they don't exist.. Which I guess they don't now!
A quick search of the yarr sites says that they still do exist, actually.
"There is at least as much need to curb the cruel greed and arrogance of part of the world of capital, to curb the cruel greed and violence of part of the world of labor, as to check a cruel and unhealthy militarism in international relationships." -Theodore Roosevelt
It's pretty much a moot point now that Lucas is a terrible film maker who hates his core audience. He got very, very lucky with the first 3 Star Wars movies and hasn't created anything worth mentioning since. The sad part is that everyone who is pissed off about these stupid changes that make the movies worse are going to buy them all on blu-ray anyway.
Lucas' contribution on the technical side of movie making cannot be understated. Industrial Light and Magic and THX has done so much for films that I will always respect him. However he's a shitty director and makes shitty decisions about his movies. Episodes 1-3 are shit and everything he's done to 4-6 since they came out are shit. He consistently removes everything that makes characters great and it is fucking sad as hell.
I don't care about changes to the Ep1-3 garbage. He already destroyed the media versions of the originals...except maybe the laser disc versions, which I believe were pre-editing-asshattery.
I pass on it all. Lucas is doing 3D versions of all the Star Wars movies too, starting with Episode 1 (easily the worst in the series). So, there will be 3D versions of all those movies too! I will take my kids to see the original 3 Star Wars at the theatre though, 3D or not!
Let's think the unthinkable, let's do the undoable, let's prepare to grapple with the ineffable itself, and see if we may not eff it after all. - Douglas Adams
