4. "Reimagining" The Original Trilogy (After Pretty Much Decrying That Sort Of Thing)
In 1988, George Lucas testified in front of the U.S. Congress against the continued digitization, colorization and re-editing of black and white film classics. In his own words:
"In the future it will become even easier for old negatives to become lost and be 'replaced' by new altered negatives. This would be a great loss to our society. Our cultural history must not be allowed to be rewritten."
It would be foolish to deny the rights of creators to alter their works: Blade Runner would not be nearly as adored as it is now without Ridley Scott's Director's Cuts, and the original Star Trek remastering actually added to the creative vision of Roddenberry and Co, but the hypocrisy of George Lucas lies in the excess of his changes. Whole scenes were added that were rightfully cut in the first place, and worse still, many of ILM's original effects were replaced with new digital renderings (though credit to ILM for multiple, harmless uses of their signature "Praxis Effect") which erased much of the beat-up charm of the original. Contrary to what most would think, sometimes charmingly antiquated effects contribute to a picture that feels lived-in and helps with the suspension of disbelief, rather than hindering it. Or maybe all these new effects were a warm-up for one of Lucas' biggest excesses.
I am a writer and musician born and raised in Montana. I have done everything from fixing fences in Glacier National Park to curating the music library at KBGA Missoula. I am also a lazy jerk.
