Lucas perfects 'Star Wars Trilogy' with new DVD release

Posted Tuesday, September 21, 2004 at 2:38 PM Central

by Tim Briscoe

Considering the tremendous success and lasting influence the films have had, it's hard for anyone to think of the Star Wars Trilogy as anything other than perfect. But until now, George Lucas has never considered his famous work perfect, or even finished for that matter.

"When Star Wars came out, I said it didn't turn out the way I wanted -- it [was] 25 percent of what I wanted it to be," the director said in a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly. To the Associated Press, Lucas added, "The special edition [trilogy, released theatrically in 1997] are the films I wanted to make. Anybody that makes films knows the film is never finished. It's abandoned or it's ripped out of your hands, and it's thrown into the marketplace, never finished."

With the technological advancements in special effects -- mostly from companies started by Lucas himself -- he was able to further improve upon the quality of the films he revised for 1997. The product of this work is the newly released Star Wars Trilogy DVD.

Case in point, the scene added to Episode IV: A New Hope (nee the original Star Wars) involving Han Solo's discussion with Jabba the Hut. The special edition version of Jabba was animated in a comparably rude manner. As one internet poster put it, "it looked like it was rendered on a Nintendo 64." The version you'll see on the DVD is much more advanced.

Furthermore, small sequences have been added to the original films to add continuity with the prequels. Like actor Ian McDiarmid's image and voice as the Emperor in The Empire Strikes Back hologram scene with Vader. Previously it was a rough, and disfigured, facsimile of what we know of the Emperor. One ghostly addition -- at the end of Return of the Jedi -- will make Star Wars purists shudder.

But why release these DVDs now? Lucas always said that the original Star Wars trilogy wouldn't available until all six movies were done. "A lot of people are getting very worried about piracy... It really just came down to, there may not be a market when I wanted to bring it out, which was like, three years from now," he stated t the AP. "So rather than just sit by and watch the whole thing fall apart, better to bring it out early and get it over with."

"Get it over with" seems an understatement when you see the new release. Lucas had already set a precedent for himself with the tremendous quality and wealth of supplemental material in the Episode I and II DVDs. This set furthers that reputation for a quality product.

The packaging of the set is standard fare. Each movie, and the fourth disc of bonus material, is individually packaged in its own case. The titles on the spine are similar to the prequel DVDs so they look nice aligned together in a library.

Each movie is presented in the pristine quality and sound you expect of DVD and Lucas' own THX digital mastering. Commentary by Lucas, actress Carrie Fisher, sound man Ben Burtt, and visual effects guy Dennis Muren is an option for each of the movies. Empire director Irvin Kershner is included in the commentary on that disc as well. The animated disc menus are a treat in themselves.

Disc Four is home to the goodies, the supplemental material. This is where the hardcore fans will migrate first. "Empire of Dreams", the two and a half hour documentary by filmmaker Kevin Burns is the keystone. The trailers and TV commercials from the films are also interesting. One in particular, the "Forbidden Love" ad for Star Wars which describes the burgeoning romance between Luke and Leia (whom we finally come to know as brother and sister) is pretty funny.

There aren't the deleted scenes that we know exist -- like Luke talking with friend Biggs on his home world of Tatooine or the stormtroopers mistakenly walking into the room of Wampa monsters on Hoth. Nor are there any of the previous "making of" documentaries. But what is included, is superb. The sneak peak into Episode III is small and leaves you dying to see the final film.

If ever there was a movie made for DVD, it's the Star Wars Trilogy. Just like the loyal droid C-3PO, the entire experience of this new digital release is truly golden.