Death of the Author- Star Wars franchise
What changes were made to Star Wars(77), Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi in 1997 and beyond?
- Han Shot first: In the original, Han shot Greedo first, in the 1997 re-release Greedo shoots first and misses, in 2004 it was changed again so they both shoot
- Jabba the Hutt was added into A New Hope, the shot was filmed for the '77 film but the stop motion version of Jabba could not be used due to time restrictions and was replaced with CGI for the '97 release
- When Darth Vader picks up The Emperor he shouts No twice, in the original he just picks up and throws him.
- Adding Prequel Anakin's ghost in the final scenes of Return of the Jedi
What developments allowed the films to be changed?
The main developments were CGI and computers. This allowed Lucas to add things that he could not do originally (such as Jabba the Hutt in A New Hope). Also the films were starting to make their way to homes where people could re watch them as many times as they liked, allowing people the chance to notice any errors such as the Stormtrooper getting his head hit on a door.
How did the changes effect the film(s) narrative and tonality?
Some of these changes added to the narrative, such as the friendship between Luke and a fighter pilot from a rebel base. These scenes were cut originally due to time constraints but not a scene where Luke reacted to this person's death, in which he was very strongly. Some of the scenes were readded to make Luke's reaction make sense. Some scenes and effects were added in order to make sense with the prequel story lines, such as Anikin's Force Ghost
What were the benefits of changing the film?
In Lucas' eyes, the changes were made to fully realise his vision for Star Wars. When he made the Original 3 there were a lot of restrictions on him technology wise and thus he could not make what he thought was the perfect version. However, it's arguable that he has gone too far with his changes in an attempt to make it perfect.
Did George Lucas own Star Wars (1977-84) as creator or did the audience who watched it?
It's arguable that it's a bit of both. Lucas did own the rights to the film legally, but it was the fans who created all this other lore for the film. Games, books, comic books and short stories were created based on the 3 original film and the 3 prequels, until the sale to Disney made all of this non cannon.
Should a film maker be able to edit his film post-release and replace the original?
They should be allowed to edit their films post release, but not replace the original. Sometimes mistakes are left in, scenes don't make any sense because of something you cut out or you simply missed something so you would need to make those changes to show the viewer the true experience of your film. Also, sometimes the original, faults and all, are still good films to watch and should be available to do so.
What about the special effects who worked on the original films?
Since a lot of the special effects were practical ones on the sets of the original 3, it would be safe to say that all the people that worked really hard to make these things happen were a bit annoyed when Lucas started to use more digital effects in his remasters. In films made after Star Wars, more and more CGI effects were being used as they are easier, sometimes cheaper and can look better than practical special effects.
What is the legacy of that first act (1997) of digitally changing a film so long after its release?
When Lucas started changing his film, he didn't really stop, there was always something else, one little detail that needed to be fixed. You could say that he was trying to make it perfect and more like his vision, using new technologies to achieve this.
Who owns the conceptual rights to a film once its in the public consciousness?
This is a pretty interesting question. On one hand the studio owns the rights to the film, and with copyright laws as they are no one could really do anything with the property. However, the fans are the ones who analyse the films, try and find clues to other things in the story and overall adding to the films in their own way. You only need google or search on youtube a certain film, tv show, comic book, anime or anything to find fan theories and explanations regarding the story or the characters. In short, I would say that its a balance: the maker owns the film in a legal sense and the fans own it in a cultural sense
- Han Shot first: In the original, Han shot Greedo first, in the 1997 re-release Greedo shoots first and misses, in 2004 it was changed again so they both shoot
- Jabba the Hutt was added into A New Hope, the shot was filmed for the '77 film but the stop motion version of Jabba could not be used due to time restrictions and was replaced with CGI for the '97 release
- When Darth Vader picks up The Emperor he shouts No twice, in the original he just picks up and throws him.
- Adding Prequel Anakin's ghost in the final scenes of Return of the Jedi
What developments allowed the films to be changed?
The main developments were CGI and computers. This allowed Lucas to add things that he could not do originally (such as Jabba the Hutt in A New Hope). Also the films were starting to make their way to homes where people could re watch them as many times as they liked, allowing people the chance to notice any errors such as the Stormtrooper getting his head hit on a door.
How did the changes effect the film(s) narrative and tonality?
Some of these changes added to the narrative, such as the friendship between Luke and a fighter pilot from a rebel base. These scenes were cut originally due to time constraints but not a scene where Luke reacted to this person's death, in which he was very strongly. Some of the scenes were readded to make Luke's reaction make sense. Some scenes and effects were added in order to make sense with the prequel story lines, such as Anikin's Force Ghost
What were the benefits of changing the film?
In Lucas' eyes, the changes were made to fully realise his vision for Star Wars. When he made the Original 3 there were a lot of restrictions on him technology wise and thus he could not make what he thought was the perfect version. However, it's arguable that he has gone too far with his changes in an attempt to make it perfect.
Did George Lucas own Star Wars (1977-84) as creator or did the audience who watched it?
It's arguable that it's a bit of both. Lucas did own the rights to the film legally, but it was the fans who created all this other lore for the film. Games, books, comic books and short stories were created based on the 3 original film and the 3 prequels, until the sale to Disney made all of this non cannon.
Should a film maker be able to edit his film post-release and replace the original?
They should be allowed to edit their films post release, but not replace the original. Sometimes mistakes are left in, scenes don't make any sense because of something you cut out or you simply missed something so you would need to make those changes to show the viewer the true experience of your film. Also, sometimes the original, faults and all, are still good films to watch and should be available to do so.
What about the special effects who worked on the original films?
Since a lot of the special effects were practical ones on the sets of the original 3, it would be safe to say that all the people that worked really hard to make these things happen were a bit annoyed when Lucas started to use more digital effects in his remasters. In films made after Star Wars, more and more CGI effects were being used as they are easier, sometimes cheaper and can look better than practical special effects.
What is the legacy of that first act (1997) of digitally changing a film so long after its release?
When Lucas started changing his film, he didn't really stop, there was always something else, one little detail that needed to be fixed. You could say that he was trying to make it perfect and more like his vision, using new technologies to achieve this.
Who owns the conceptual rights to a film once its in the public consciousness?
This is a pretty interesting question. On one hand the studio owns the rights to the film, and with copyright laws as they are no one could really do anything with the property. However, the fans are the ones who analyse the films, try and find clues to other things in the story and overall adding to the films in their own way. You only need google or search on youtube a certain film, tv show, comic book, anime or anything to find fan theories and explanations regarding the story or the characters. In short, I would say that its a balance: the maker owns the film in a legal sense and the fans own it in a cultural sense
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