Many fans were upset when Lucas revised the original STAR WARS trilogy for re-release in 1997 (part of the campaign to generate interest for the prequel trilogy, which resulted in A PHANTOM MENACE, ATTACK OF THE CLONES, and the upcoming  REVENGE OF THE SITH). Those purists now have even more to complain about, thanks to the new DVD versions released today, which include additional alterations.

You can find a side-by-side comparison here at Digital Bits.

In honor of this dubious event, I am posting my assesment of the original films, along with a look at how the changes have impacted them. This is updated from an article I wrote for Cinefantastique in 1997, analyzing the Special Edition release versions. The new changes for DVD seem to continue the trend of the Special Edition, which was to revise the films to make them fit together as a multi-part saga. Unfortunately, since the excitement of STAR WARS and its first sequel THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, a lot of the inspiration has drained out of the films, and reconfiguring the old ones to make them more like the new ones only degrades, instead of enhancing the quality (in my humble opinion of course).

Not that I believe filmmakers should never be allowed to go back and revise their work, but they should realize that "revisions" do not always equate with "improvements." This is especially true in this case. The first STAR WARS is fun and unpretentious, obviously inspired by the science-fiction genre and by old movie serials like FLASH GORDON. But ever since Bill Moyers interviewed Joseph Campbell for PBS, Lucas has been trying to hard to live up to their assesment of the film as the modern equivalent of classic mythology. Also, he has been busy trying to convince us that he had a master design in his head from the very beginning for the entire series of films, even though inconsistencies and contradictions abound, forcing him to revise the older films to make them fit into the alleged Master Plan.

I still have the original versions of STAR WARS and EMPIRE STIKES BACK on laserdisc, and I still enjoy them immensely. I just don't think the subsequent films have lived up to those first two, and I hate to see changes that make those films more like the later, disappointing ones.

Call me a grouch...

Anyway, the article is here.