3D movies are popping up all over the place. Rather or not that’s a good thing remains to be seen. Shrek 4 turned in disappointing box office receipts, and many cite the high prices of 3D tickets. Either way, it looks like 3D is here to stay. The wild success of Avatar and Alice in Wonderland has lead many to wonder what new movies will come out in 3D…or what old ones. No stranger to seeking more money, George Lucas has plans to release his Star Wars movies yet again, this time in 3D.
George Lucas first announced his interest in releasing his movies in 3D shortly after Avatar swept up the Box Office records. He said back in January to Access Hollywood “Well, we’ve been looking for years and years and years at trying to put Star Wars in 3D, but the technology hasn’t been there and we’ve been struggling. I think this will be a new impetus to see if we can’t make that happen.”
Lucas is no stranger to re-releasing the Star Wars movies. The original Star Wars was released a slew of times in the late 1970’s and again in the early 1980’s to co-incide with the release of Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Then in 1997, he released Special Edition versions of the original 3 films to prepare for the release of the prequel trilogy, which started in 1999. The Star Wars movies also have several DVD releases.
Recutting films for re-release is a slippery slope. Which Star Wars are we supposed to remember? The one we loved so much and watched tons of times when we were kids, or the Special Edition version that altered the storyline. A 3D version is sure to add in a lot more of the computer technology that hurt the feel of the prequel trilogy. This doesn’t seem like a necessary venture outside of seeking more money, which is what everyone in the business is after any way. If Lucas releases these films in 3D, that could be the version the next generation remembers. The great quality of the original films at their first releases could be lost forever. That would be a real shame for fans of film history.
The other major issue is if 3D quality would be the same for a movie shot for that purpose as Avatar was. There is seemingly ilttle to gaine by adding 3D to those movies. There have already been voices outcrying against some more recent releases that have had 3D added to them, such as Up. Lucas has already taken a hit in reputation for the lower quality of the prequel and the horrendous 4th chapter in the Indiana Jones saga. Does he really want to hurt it even further by ruining one of the two trilogies that made him an icon?
