Star Wars: The Complete Saga (Episodes I-VI) [Blu-ray]I'm a first-generation Star Wars fan since 1977, having seen the original versions of the original three films in the theater one time each as a child, then falling in love with them all over again on VHS in 1987. And I've been a huge fan ever since. The Star Wars Saga is the ultimate epic space opera and film series.
This isn't actually a review of the movies most of you reading this will have seen one or more versions of dozens of times, although this review will discuss some of the changes made to the films.
I actually own the six-film Star Wars Saga blu-ray set linked above, and I reviewed that. The movie discs in this product are 3 of the same discs from the larger Saga set, so I thought I would edit that review down to only discuss the prequel trilogy discs themselves and post it here. This is meant to be an overview with personal observations and select commentary thrown in.
DISC PHYSICAL QUALITIES
The discs themselves are heavy-duty, yet smooth and well-coated with scratch resistance the best available in retail products I've seen. The discs themselves do not have any images they are light grey with blue trimmings. The discs have the previously used logos of STAR WARS with the episode subtitle underneath, both on top of the episode number in the form of a large Roman numeral.
THE FILM DISCS
This is as good a place as any to mention that there are two audio commentary tracks for each of the films of blu-ray. There are the same ones from the previous DVD versions of these films, and then new commentaries compiled from "archival interviews with cast and crew". I don't enjoy listening to commentaries while watching adventure films, but I will force myself to listen to the new tracks once (as I did for the original DVD commentaries).
As I have only had one frame of reference for viewing the blu-ray films, I thought I should first specify what that is, in case my experiences are in any way relative to my equipment and viewing conditions. This may mean more to you than it does to me. My blu-ray player is a Sony BDP-S350. My HD TV is a Sony Bravia KDL-40V4100, a flat-screen LCD with a diagonal of a little over a meter. My blu-ray player and TV are both almost 3 years old. My line of vision is exactly 90° to the plane of the TV screen, and my eyes and ears are at a height equal to about 1/3 up from the bottom edge of the screen. I'm sitting such that the distance of my head to the TV screen is a little more than the width of the Death Star's thermal exhaust port.
The Films on Blu-ray
All three films sound and look awesome in HD! Even Revenge of the Sith, which had the least room for improvement, is substantially better. All three films sound and look awesome in HD! I fully appreciate all the effort that had to go into improving the resolution of over 6 hours of high-quality sci-fi entertainment, frame-by-frame. Coruscant from space is breathtakingly gorgeous!
There is one significant exception in the HD upgrade. A very logical and fitting artistic choice was made in the rendering of the holograms of characters. Throughout the all six movies, it looks like the holograms were not upgraded to HD, now looking somewhat pixilated compared to the surrounding "reality" they are projected into. This of course is easily explained in-universe as they are just not high-resolution transmissions, and I feel this actually works to improve the illusion of the entire scene seeming real. The holograms are now an intentional vestige of the analogue age, left behind to honor the origin and evolution of the Star Wars films themselves which began as motion picture projections but have now become the ultra-realistic-looking digital media. A very nice touch. And the hologram effects also seems more unified between the two trilogies now.)
A significant improvement that the HD upgrade also provides is a solution to a common criticism I have ran into since 1999. Over the years I have heard many Star Wars fans express that the addition of GC characters and objects into the films seems unrealistic, in not only the updated versions of the classic trilogy but even the prequels. Ironically, these fans seem to have no trouble accepting the un-reality of rubber muppet characters, but CG is somehow unacceptable in their vision of the Star Wars universe. Well, now muppets, rubber masks, human actors and CG characters can all exist in visual harmony together, thanks to the wonders of HD. The increase in resolution seems to have unified the apparent realities of them all. Now the real-world elements of the scenes have been "raised" to the same level of visual reality of the CG elements, resulting in the CG elements seeming to much more naturally blend in with their surroundings. This adds in a whole new level of visual realism to the films, perhaps being the greatest achievement of these new blu-ray versions of the films.
Now I'll go into more detail about some of the blu-ray enhancements and changes specific to each film.
Episode I: The Phantom Menace
The effect for the Jedi Knights speeding away from the droidekas on the Trade Federation ship has been improved. The original effects error of the two-headed pod race announcer's hand passing through his vest was fixed.
The big change that even the die hard purists don't seem to mind so much is the complete and utter removal of that awful imitation Yoda muppet. The TPM muppet bore a vague resemblance to the original muppet from the sequels, but I thought that the TMP muppet could at most pass for Yoda's crazy spice-addicted brother. I know some fans that feel the CG Yoda model from AotC and RotS was not as good as the original muppet, but even they would agree that the prequel CG model looks a lot more like the original muppet than the TMP muppet did. And in blu-ray the CG Yoda in all 3 prequels looks more realistic now, so I'm very happy with this change.
Episodes II: Attack of the Clones & Episodes II: Revenge of the Sith
These mostly only had minute editorial tweaks like the exact transition between scenes, moving a couple reaction shots and dialogue lines to a slightly different part of a scene. The only really somewhat significant change is adding a line of dialogue in AotC where Anakin is having a nightmare about his mother while staying on Naboo. Shmi Skywalker's voice is now heard pleading for Anakin's help with the echo effect (signifying it is a thought or dream in Anakin's mind). It does accomplish the addition of a little more urgency to the drama of the film.
FINAL WORDS
You may not agree with all the opinions I expressed here, but if you are reading this then you must be a Star Wars fan of some kind on some level. If so, then do yourself a favor and watch all six films on blu-ray at least once, even if you have no intention of ever owning them. You'll see much more than I could possibly ever hope to describe in words. And if you wish to criticize the blu-ray versions after viewing them, at least you'll then have an educated opinion for doing so.
In my first viewing of Star Wars: The Complete Saga, the rich Star Wars multiverse has deepened in a way I couldn't have even imagined before seeing the films on blu-ray. While still not perfect, my favorite films have just gotten an incredible amount better. As impossible as it previously seemed, I'm somehow now even more of a Star Wars fan than I was before. But this blu-ray release has also reminded me that EVERY version of any Star Wars film is awesome!
If you have any questions, please feel free the ask. If you have also seen the blu-rays and want to comment on them with respect to my review, please also feel free. May the Force be with you.
EXCELLENT!!
About a rush to market, snatching up media related to STAR WARS as soon as it hits the shelf. If you don't like the movies themselves or the packaging or the recording quality that is one thing. Whining about your own gullibility is quite another. Let me clue you in. If Lucas makes or includes special features, enhancements and the like ... he will not fail to promote that. Investigate the product before you buy. And to those of you who didn't even buy any products but are just looking for places to gripe, this is not the appropriate place.
This is the excellent product that I anticipated to the point of not buying any of the movies when they first released to video. It is as much as it promises to be. (I expect the same to be true of the other volume containing ep. 4-6.) If you like space saving box set bundles without a lot of extra bells and whistles, this is for you.
These sci-fi movie fantasy adventures, though a bit juvenile in their scripts and exhibitions, have become family classic adventure movies that inspire the imagination and adequately entertain a growing audience. A series of perennial favorites well on there way to becoming "timeless" classics.A good opportunity to get all three films at slightly less than buying them separately. There's nothing new here, so it's only good for those who don't own any of the three films already.For all the flaws that the Prequels may have, they're still highly enjoyable films, with just as many memorable scenes and quotes as the Original Trilogy. I think it's great that they're keeping the movies out there for any new generation to purchase (not that DVDs are that hard to come by of course), and really it's nice to have a convenient box set. So it's a good deal, if, you don't have the movies already. Otherwise, it's just another stepping stone in the journey towards the much wanted "Ultimate" box set with all six films. We can only hope!I really just want to take a few paragraphs to let you know what this product is.
Basically, each of these movies got a 2-disc release when they were released on DVD. This box set has taken those 2-disc sets, and packaged them into a smaller case so in order to minimize shelf space. The "Original Trilogy" (Episodes 4-6) slimset is a debatable purchase, because it doesn't include the bonus disc that came with an earlier deluxe set. But this "Prequel Trilogy" is a better deal if you're planning to buy these movies.
As for the extras:
* I love "The Phantom Menace" content, especially the 90-minute making-of documentary that shows everything from cast readings to sandstorm carnage to special effects meetings to George Lucas quietly beginning his "Episode II" writing. And say what you will about the quality of the movie, but Fox and LucasFilm did an excellent job of advertising this movie. Even its promotional extras are worth watching.
* "Attack of the Clones" is another solid batch of extras. They mostly focus on the special effects, but there are some good interviews and behind-the-scenes stuff with the cast. Another all-around strong package.
* I'm slightly disappointed with the "Revenge of the Sith" extras. The main documentary is producer Rick McCallum going through the different departments of the cast & crew. He even talks about the caterers! Now, this is a fascinating way to explore the making of a movie, but the problem is most of the content (especially the special effects clips) focuses on the Mustafar sequences. I would've loved to see more on the opening space battle, not to mention Kyshhykk (sp?) or General Grievious. The bonus disc is good enough, but a huge stepdown from the other two prequels' material.
So, if you want to buy the "Prequel Trilogy", this is the way to go. Sure, you can probably find some cheaper copies of the original releases, but why bother?
Oh by the way, "YES! I LIKE THE PREQUEL TRILOGY. I PREFER EPISODES 4-6, BUT 1-3 WERE QUITE ENTERTAINING FOR ME.
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