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Home Theater Forum is hosting a Q&A with Dennis Muren and Matt Wood later this week



Here is the latest from Adam at Home Theatre Forum:

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I have some initial answers and will be putting together a full report which will take a few days after I finish digesting some of what I saw and heard. Please note that I won't be providing any additional info until I have a chance to write everythign up. In the meantime here is some info for you to digest:


They used the digital files from the 2004 release as a starting point for the Blu-ray release. They then made a lot of tweaks and fixes:

• Light sabers? Check.
• "Humdinger Glitch"? Check
• Color timing? Check
• Other effect cleanup? Check


The audio for all the films was tweaked. It was readily apparent that it was a labor of love for Matthew Wood who worked with Ben Burtt. Episode 4 got the most attention since originally it was a mono mix with no separation. He went back to the original masters to make the new mix. George Lucas and Ben Burtt were heavily involved in the entire process including balancing the score against the effects. There are a few places where Matthew found some snippets of background dialog that was never used on the masters and he put them in. I'll have additional details as part of our expanded coverage.


I had the opportunity to view some deleted scenes and WOW there is some good stuff there, some great deleted scenes and alternate takes. They have not been "restored" and quality varies clip by clip.


The packaging is very nice. The complete series set is a book with thick cardboard pages and great art (I have pics of each page that I will post with my complete write up. If you opt for either of the three film sets its a standard three disc Blu-ray case in a cardboard sleeve.


As to the original cuts? The company line is this is what George Lucas's vision for the films is. While its up to everyone to vote with their wallet, In my opinion if you boycott this release because of that you are going to be missing a otherwise fantastic release.

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Adam at Home Theater Forum says that: "... the Blu-ray release has about 8% more picture area than the previous DVD releases ..."

Interesting

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Wasn't he referring solely to TPM? I could be wrong

At first I thought he was, since he was answering a question about TPM, but he says "previous DVD releases," so I'm thinking he could mean all 6 or more than just the one movie.

Also said that "... pics of all the pages on the packaging, before and after shots showing the 8% increase in picture info, lightsaber fixes and more info will post later today ..."

And - Yes, they were only referring to TPM in regards to the 8% added info on the screen.

For Bandersnatch - I happened to check for this in that thread: ADAM AT HOME THEATER FORUM

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Wow. I never knew about the wampa puppeteer arm. I also find it very interesting that he was only given ESB to watch. Probably major changes in the other 5.

Thanks

Here are the links to the booklet art:







• Cover.jpg
• Episode I.jpg
• Episode II.jpg
• Episode III.jpg
• A New Hope.jpg
• The Empire Strikes Back.jpg
• Return Of The Jedi.jpg
• Special Features I.jpg
• Special Features II.jpg
• Special Features III.jpg
• Inlay.jpg

Q: Is the holiday special on there?

A: You’ll have to wait and see! The holiday special is a challenge, but look for some Easter Eggs – what’s a Star Wars release without a couple of Easter Eggs?!


Oh God, no. That is one Easter Egg I shall be avoiding

I think we're only getting the cartoon which aired with the Holiday Special.

Interesting to read that Ben Burtt was once again involved in this set. However, it seems that he was told to basically STFU about the mixing process since the audio for Star Wars (ANH) clearly has been restored to 1997 era. I don't know if the audio for the Prequels regarding the music were adjusted or not. I doubt it but it would have been nice if they boosted the music up a bit more. The low volume is atrocious to say the least.

With the films having 6.1 audio channels, I wonder if it means there will be a couple of channels devoted solely to music.



The look of the set is perfect for me. Those of you who seem disappointed, well no help to you and you guys just need to let go of the past I guess. I know I too want the OUT movies released in restored high def format. However, we can't always get what we want.

I'm sure there's a very good explanation to why Lucas really won't release those than what we've been given over the years. Perhaps it is legal reasons between him and his ex-wife (the bitch) why he won't go back to them.

The box art for the bonus discs might be hinting at some of the rumored easter eggs. Bonus disc 1 is the Boba Fett holiday special segment. Bonus disc 3 from the 1980's Droids toon. What, if anything, are they referencing with the artwork from Bonus Disc 2?

Who knows but it seems logical.

I noticed the way how they have the layout of the set, it's very similar to AVATAR (2009) for the Blu-Ray release on how it's set up. Personally I like that setup and I'm glad that Lucasfilm didn't go with making the case like how Universal did for their Back To The Future trilogy. Who ever from Universal made their Blu-Ray case for the BTTF Trilogy should be shot. I have never had a harder time taking out discs (and fear or breaking them!) like I have with this set.

The 2011 Star Wars Saga Blu-rays - First Insights - Bill Hunt

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The Supervising Sound Editor on the Blu-rays for Skywalker Sound, Matthew Wood, gave us a pretty detailed demonstration of the new 6.1 DTS-HD MA uncompressed audio mixes on these Blu-rays. (For those wondering why 6.1 and not 7.1, Matt said that 6.1 was chosen because it builds nicely on the 5.1 EX mixing work that was done for the Prequel films.)

The first scene he showed us was the beginning of the assault on the Death Star at the end of Episode IV. Now, I suspect he showed us this scene for exactly the thing I noticed immediately upon previewing it. Some of you may recall that on the 2004 DVD, when the X-Wings begin their dive down to the Death Star, the familiar John Williams trumpet fanfare was buried in the mix so you could barely hear it. No longer!

The trumpets ring true in the Blu-ray mix loud and clear. When I heard this, I couldn't help thrusting my arms up in the air in a bit of happy relief. I then turned to Matt, who as it happens was standing right next to me, and saw him give a little smile and nod - he knew exactly what I was reacting to. When I leaned over to thank him for fixing it, his simple reply made me smile as well: "Trust me, I read the blogs too..."

So the next obvious question is, how to the films look in HD based on what we say on Friday morning? The answer is very good indeed.

Do they look better than the 2004 DVDs? Absolutely. Do they look better than recent 1080p HD cable and satellite broadcasts? Again, yes - not just for the fixes to problem A/V issues that have been done but also because of the added video and audio data rate afforded by the Blu-ray format, and the fact that each film comes on its own BD-50 disc.

And don't forget that Episodes I, II and III should look fantastic simply for having been mastered directly from the digital production files.

Cool! Thanks, quad!

Return of the Ewok?

That definitely is a nice article. Glad to know they actually corrected the rear channel audio error for Star Wars (ANH).

So when in fact when they said it was a "Deliberate Creative Decision" they meant it.


I'm a bit surprised they didn't ask the question about the end of ROTJ if old Anakin was put back in the film or not. Guess we'll have to wait and see. Either way I can't wait to own this set. I'll be viewing all six films in a row when I get it starting with Star Wars (ANH), then going to Empire Strikes Back, then Return Of The Jedi then watch the Prequels in order.

Well ... I think it´s pretty obvious that we will see young anakin in ROTJ. Why would Lucas want to change back?

Another Blu Ray Preview Report

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Nice to see Bill Hunt from TheDigitalBits stop his whining and crying about the O-OT for 5 seconds and have some positive things to say about Star Wars.

Ya that's as bad as Neil S. Bulk ranting and bitching about the changes to Star Wars (ANH) and expecting everyone else to like that and ONLY that.

I mean I'm with those that would love the OUT touched up and released in a high def format, but at the same time it really annoys me when someone like Neil or Bill wanting to shove that down other people's throats. I mean those (like myself) that actually most of the changes for the film find it just annoying when someone says, "It aint the real Star Wras" film.

It's like those that say "Buy a Mac!". I would but Apple charges way to fucking much for their computers. For what they charge for their computers I could build me 2 custom computers for the same price and will be bigger (in terms of hard drive space) and faster (CPU). I would love to get a Mac but they're way out of my price range. Every time someone tells me "Buy a Mac!" I wanna shoot them.

I fucking called it! I knew that's why we're getting a 6.1 audio track with this release. Can't wait to get my hands on this set. Bring on the 16th.

I don't think it's like that. I always appreciated the "purist" view of things. It's fascinating how much the movies have changed, and there's nothing wrong with preferring one version to another.

With some people it is, especially Neil. I don't think you've ever had conversations with Neil about the OUT movies like I have.

It's not just the colour correction and other visual fixes that are important to me; it's the sound mix. I've given up hope that the score will be corrected in the PT and in spots in the OT, but what I can hope is that they'll restore some of the original sound fx, which for some reason they decided to fuck with on the DVDs.

Some examples:

Ben Kenobi's Krayt dragon squeal? stupid. Change it back.

When Luke ignites his saber in the carbon freeze chamber confrontation, it makes the "Sith" crackle as opposed to the sleeker "Jedi" ignite sound that was in the original mix. This silly DVD 'fix' is so obviously out of place and bugs me every time.

Do I think it'll be fixed? No, but I hope I'm wrong.

I recall Matt Wood at some point saying that the Krayt call had been changed again.

I agree with all that you said.

I too doubt they'll go back and fix the score for the Prequels and spots in the OT. All though from the US version of the clip from the opening of Star Wars (ANH), it seems the audio is back to what it was in the 97' Special Edition version.



Hopefully it's not as retarded as the 2004 version, hopefully that I agree with CoGro they changed it back.

Regarding the whole "Han Shot First" bit, I mean it's very possible that they did change it back to the original, especially with Lucas wearing that shirt. It's possible Lucas wore that just to piss fans off, but you never know.

One big change that I hope they made was the added Jabba scene in Star Wars (ANH) before the group takes off from Tatooine. The rendition of Jabba that they did in the 97' version as well as the 2004 just looks plain UGLY. The Phantom Menace version was perfect and I wished they had used that, hopefully that will be changed to look better as well.

That was the TPM Jabba in 2004. It still doesn't look anything like Jabba, and although the model is better than the 97 version, the animation is worse with no appreciable weight to the character. Since the scene is almost word for word a duplication of the Greedo scene, and whatever other info was there to be conveyed has been truncated, AND it looks like ass it should be relegated to the deleted scenes.

I'll also say that from what Wood has said so far I actually have higher hopes for the audio than anything else. It sounds as if he's gone back to the original tracks, is aware of the differences between the mono, stereo, and re-release ANH audio.

What Wood says about duplicating the original just feels right and it would be the same for any of us who know that audio track. That is you could edit by feel and just [i]tell if something was off, so what he's saying rings true to me.

Did you guys read the interview with Matt Wood about remastering the sound in ANH?

It's pretty interesting. He and Ben Burtt pretty much dissected the entire sound and music tracks. "Forensics" as Wood calls it:

I hope we get some cleaner dialogue is in this mix, considering how Wood went back to the original tapes. The exchange between Leia and Tarkin comes to mind for potential improvement. I'd also love to listen to those alternate takes!

And here's that Krayt quote, taken during a Forcecast interview:

Can't say I've ever noticed that before. Is there some hard fast rule that says that a Sith saber crackles and a Jedi saber sounds sleeker? Is that really a "mistake" that needs to be "fixed?" I can't imagine.

BELOW: Go to :40. Listen how this feels "tacked on."

- It blatantly feels like it's not part of the original mix - like some kid actually edited this:


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[flash width=640 height=385]http://www.youtube.com/v/7hsAybFZgdk&fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&hd=1[/flash]
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[flash width=640 height=385]http://www.youtube.com/v/frCIQfpMOyo&fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&hd=1[/flash]
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ABOVE: Now the original.

- It's more seamless and certainly not as distracting





There's very clearly a difference between Jedi and Sith saber noises. Ben Burtt even talked about it on a few documentaries. There are exceptions, but they're usually done poetically (i.e. Luke's saber in ROTJ crackles like a Sith saber, signifying that he's still in limbo between choosing his path).

In any case, the 2004 change is stupid and was unnecessary - not to mention the fact that it kills the dramatic contrast between Luke igniting his saber and Vader his. Remember, this is the first time in the trilogy where you hear Vader ignite his lightsaber. It sounds evil.

you nerds crack me up sometimes. "de herm, the sith crackle of saber ignition shouldn't be used for Luke at this particular moment, even though Luke isn't anywhere close to being a Jedi, a Jedi saber ignition would be more appropriate."

It's 2011 and we are in the era of HI-DEFINITION sound and video where previously obscure defects become major ones. Given that many have already spent thousands of dollars on equipment to just to play the previous VHS releases, Laser Disc releases, DVD releases, and now for HD releases - one can make the case for anal.


Then again you will probably pirate them instead of buying them - which could probably be justified if one of the previous dozen format releases were already purchased. However what about those of us who plan to both pirate and purchase?

one can ALWAYS make the case for anal and my computer can't play HD so I'm fucked both ways

Normally I'd agree with you, but what pisses me off isn't just the changes themselves, it's the pure idiocy and laziness that has contributed to the lack of a quality product.

Your mind tells you: "who cares, it's a small detail that doesn't affect my enjoyment of the movie."

My mind says: "someone stupid thought this was a good idea and now wants my money for a shit product."

It's the principle of the whole thing, especially considering they know there's a rabid fanbase ready to pounce on every element they tinker with. Just leave well enough alone.

im checking every 2 seconds for a leak! and buying like theres no 2mrw! i just need it NOW! i went to london to see probably 5mins of footage thats how desperate i am

Wait ... Isn't Luke's saber his father's (Vader's) old saber?

Maybe it's still prone to "crackle" from time to time.

just heard on forcecast that Jabba will be a new CGI model in TPM

see, now there's a change I can get behind. what ya want to bet he's been changed in EP4 as well?

Maybe it's just me, but that doesn't look like a new mesh to me. Better colour timing on the film? Yes. Jabba looks the same to me - besides the overall squinty look of his face, there's a few bumps at the back of his head visible in both screenshots which line up perfectly.

the blu-ray jabba seems to be a bit fatter actually. I thinks its a remake.

He does look a little wider, but it's also a wider shot, as opposed to the "Phantom (v1)" pic, which is cropped.

Nope, don't buy it. It's not the same frame, and the extra width I think you're perceiving is just due to his head being slightly more turned away from camera as well as a different expression and having his mouth open in the first example.

As far as I can see every detail from the first frame (both the mesh and the texture) lines up with the second. Frankly I think it would be a totally irrelevent change anyways, which would piss me off if it took development time away from fixing some stuff that actually needs it.

Now, what I would like is if they had gone back and re-animated Jabba for ANH; Steve Williams' work on the SE, albeit on a mesh that frankly I'd forgotten how hillariously terrible it looked, is far superior to the weightless animation on the DVD release.

Jabba 2011 - A New Hope 2011 (source: moments.starwars.com)


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Jabba 2011 - The Phantom Menace (source: moments.starwars.com)

Still looks like shit. I wonder why they couldn't have completely redone the animation for Jabba for Star Wars (ANH) to make it look like it does in Return Of The Jedi, or similar or even closely resembles The Phantom Menace version. Hell at least The Phantom Menace version looks very similar to the Return Of The Jedi version.

As I said in the other thread, I wish they had cut that scene back out of the film and kept it as a deleted scene special and not actually part of the film.

It's the same scene as the Greedo scene. Totally unnecessary.

I said as much in the other thread where the pic was posted. Other than "damn, that's redundant" I didn't think much about it until now, but the other thing that subconsciously has been bugging me about this scene in ANH is that it takes away from the buildup to Jabba in RotJ.

In the OUT he's a motivating, unseen problem; Han does what he does in helping the heroes because of the big bad in the background - he needs to get some money together in the near future, or there's going to be trouble. But he's got time to make things right.

Then in Empire Jabba is a much more immediate menace (time has passed, and Han has to get the fuck over to Jabba NOW to settle his debt or he's going to end up very dead, very soon). Also, things unfold as they do (the Falcon wouldn't have been ready to get them out of Hoth if Han wasn't worried about getting out to pay Jabba back as soon as possible, and BAM! They're all captured on Hoth) in large part becuase Jabba is a more immediate threat than in ANH.

The whole time he's an unseen force, which is infinietly more threatening than if you show him, driving Han's story forward until WHAM you come face to face with the monster in his lair in RotJ and he's revealed. Much more interesting and more in line with a mythological style of storytelling.

The gradual linear ramping up of Jabba as a threat is also more satisfying than presenting him in person up front, having him invisible in ESB, then back in RotJ - it's almost akin to the shark's theme in Jaws, starting low languid, then gradually ramping up to a pounding intensity as the thing gets closer to striking.

Couldn't have said it better myself.

That was my main argument way back when they released the SE Jabba. Unnecessary and even a little detractive when it comes to the overall story. GL did it solely to test whether an entire CG character could work in a scene in preparation for the prequels. Even if the initial character design was weird, I think it proved his point (at least better than the damn rontos). Still, not worth it to have that scene in ANH.

All true. Except the problem now is, Jabba shows up in TPM ... so his "buildup" is a moot point -- if you're watching the saga in a linear fashion, that is.

Yeah, well, you're not seeing me argue for the brilliance or necessity of ANY of the details in the PT, are you? I think the approach to watching the movies (and I am having to think about it as I'll be marathoner them in September with my kids, who haven't seen RotS yet) is going to be 4,5,1,2,6,3.

That's the problem with prequels to anything, isn't it? While the story may be fascinating (and I will defend the story and ideas at work in the PT to the very end. People who say they were nonsensical, illogical, or inane have not looked at the structure of the PT and are judging them on the direction and performances.

Which, while valid criticisms of the PT as movies, have nothing to do with what Lucas was saying, or the brilliant way in which the Republic, and Anakin, are transformed), there is virtually no way to make the narrative work, unless you go WAY back in time. If you're dealing with characters who are around for the original material, and you see where they all end up, you are inherrantly working with a handicap

Jabba had no place in the prequels. Even showing the Hutt race should have stayed in the OT.