Variety is reporting that live-action Star Wars is returning to theaters in 2012… but it isn’t what you may think.
Lucas has been threatening since 2005 to release all 6 films in 3D, but no one really took him serious as the technology for 2D to 3D conversion wasn’t very advanced back then. Flash forward 5 years and things have changed. While films like Clash of the Titans (a terrible example, I admit) have shown that it’s possible to make the conversion a reality, Lucas has said several times that he was done with the franchise after the debut of Revenge of the Sith.
Yet here he is tinkering again.
ILM effects supervisor John Knoll, who is in charge of the project, also worked on Avatar and the Star Wars prequels, so he knows both the 3D platform and the LucasFilm material. Honestly, there aren’t many people better qualified to work on this than Knoll, so perhaps his involvement is a bright spot.
The films are to be released in chronological order, starting with The Phantom Menace in 2012. This might turn many people off (if they aren’t already), but really there’s no sense in getting worked up about it. By now there’s nothing GL can do that he hasn’t already done, in terms of infuriating people with each entry, and this includes the bland animated material. With the 3D stuff it’s terribly obvious he’s kicking the daylights out of the proverbial dead horse, but he’s already proven he doesn’t care what anyone else thinks, so why bother hating it?
If these 3D films turn out great, fantastic. If they turn out horrid, what’s new? We still have the original trilogy… if you can find them, that is.
16 comments
"Variety is reporting that live-action Star Wars is returning to theaters in 2012… but it isn't what you may think."—No, it's pretty much EXACTLY what we were thinking. Bad intro to an otherwise fine article.
George Lucas is the nega-Midas. Everyone time he touches Star Wars, some gold vanishes. As of now, I don't think there's any left. Won't be seeing these.
Someone tell me the difference between Lucas and the other studios? Anyone? Because I don't hear the usual bullshit cries of "rape!" and "He wants our money!" when other studios endlessly re-release supposed "collectors editions" and "special editions" and "uncut versions". Anyone shouting that to Universal about the re-release of Back to the Future? I thought not. Bunch of spoiled brats. No one is holding a gun to your head to make you buy them again. Grow up.
Meesa gonna be in Three-Dee? Oh Sa Meesa soo Happee meesa make poo doo in my trousers!
The 6 Star Wars films in 3D – Great, I'm there. If you don't like the idea then don't go see ''em. If you only want to see the original trilogy in 3D then pick and choose. But as long as these are shit-hot conversions (that still means 'dead good' right?) then I'm there for all 6 – and so will many others be.
George Lucas is the Gene Simmons of movies!
Hey now – 'bland animated material'? I think not. The Clone Wars rocks. It's the only good thing to come out of the whole prequel period, and I love it. Hell, I wish I could erase episodes 1-3 from my mind, and only have the Clone Wars cartoons as my memory of all things pre-Episode 4. Then the whole franchise would be awesome to me again.
Welcome, Steve.
Maybe he can re-tinker with the prequells enough so that they make sense, or are entertaining.
Bad strategic move to release Phantom Menace first. The low box office for that and II and III will diminish enthusiasm for the OT releases. They'd have been better to start with IV and get a big bang with the original movies.
I don't see how anything not originally filmed in 3D can be 'converted' without it becoming a pop-up-book kind of affair. I haven't seen any 'conversions' yet, just Up and Avatar, so I wonder how this could yield brilliant results 3D-wise?
No one's taking you "serious" as long as you write like that, Steven.
"Someone tell me the difference between Lucas and the other studios? Anyone?" Because he does to movies all by himself what it usually takes a committee of coked-up sociopathic power-douche studio execs and clueless marketing department rock-apes to do. His whole position on going independent in the first place was he didn't want other people's hands "ruining" his vision". Turns out, they were fixing it. Every time he changes and fucks with the OT, he makes it harder to get back to the magic they bottled with those movies. But hey, he'll sell more toys and burgers and shit. He IS a rich motherfucker, I'll give him that.
Yes, we have the original trilogy…on laserdisc and non-anamorphic DVD.
I'm praying that Lucas' critics are right, and that he's just in it for the money at this point. If that's the case, then some day he won't be able to say no to a full-blown restoration and video release of the original originals (not the special editions).
Glad he's using the prequels for practice.
the only reason ill be going to see phantom is to see the best lightsaber fight in the franchise in 3D.
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