Original Blu-Rays

[Dewannawonga]

Is there anywhere where I can buy the original trilogy on blu-Ray that hasn’t been tampered with? I have the original VHS tapes where Han shoots first, old Anakin, proper music in Jabbas palace/barge and Endor ending, no CGI silly background monsters etc. I’d like my son to watch the originals on blu-ray rather than dig out my old tapes.

[TK-7785]

Google 'The Despecialsed Edition'. Some clever bugger out there made some re-edits of the OT from a bunch of sources to bring us a digital copy of the films as they were when they were first released.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://originaltrilogy.com/topic/Harmys-STAR-WARS-Despecialized-Edition-HD-V27-MKV-IS-OUT-NOW/id/12713&ved=2ahUKEwi42qy3hfzfAhXWThUIHXAiByMQFjAeegQIBhAB&usg=AOvVaw2zdZ_dh6_px0Lx7gyKEQ0K&cshid=1547976418556

This the version watch almost exclusively now.

[Dewannawonga]

Thanks, I’ve checked them out they look great.

[grinchy]

I was looking last year for the despecialised editions, ended up buying them from ebay, if your not tech savy and have trouble finding them online it may be an option, I really enjoy these versions, with some great special features
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Original-Star-Wars-Despecialized-Trilogy-Deluxe-Edition-Blu-Ray-True-Classic/323527646327?hash=item4b53c01c77:g:qTkAAOSwrz9bVKTp:rk:2:pf:1&frcectupt=true

[theforceuk]

They look really cool. Maight have to purchase them soon, thanks for posting these.

[TK-7785]

I can't recommend them enough. They're far from your average bedroom fan edit, really well done. They're basically the original unfudged versions that fans have been asking for for decades.

[peekaygee73]

Please don't buy the despecialised editions. People have put years of effort into creating these fan edits and making them available to download for free, then scum come along and spend a couple of hours putting them onto blu-ray and knocking a couple of covers together and charge ridiculous amounts. To me the people doing this are no better than those creating repro weapons.

If you need any help in downloading them feel free to PM me.

[reddogblues]

Please don't buy the despecialised editions. People have put years of effort into creating these fan edits and making them available to download for free, then scum come along and spend a couple of hours putting them onto blu-ray and knocking a couple of covers together and charge ridiculous amounts. To me the people doing this are no better than those creating repro weapons.

If you need any help in downloading them feel free to PM me.

Agree 100%! The guy who does these is a personal friend of mine and makes no money whatsoever from this. He does it out or sheer love for the original versions. Please do not purchase or pay money for these. I can also help with links for download if needed

[The89thchris]

The 2008 DVD set is the most authentic experience in my opinion. The main problem is that it's a 4:3 with a 2.35:1 film in the middle of it. This leads to some serious viewing problems for people who don't understand what they're looking at.

When that squarish 4:3 window pops up on someones big 16:9 HD TV, they usually press some setting that stretches it end to end, this makes it wider than its supposed to be, and to top off the horror show, most tv's come with a setting broadly called "smooth motion" pre-activated. This basically creates extra frames which muddy up the image and make it look strange when you're dealing with such a low res source.

I've been thinking about capturing it, up-sampling it to 1080p, apply a little sharpening, then re-export it in a 16:9 window. That would be the best way, barring an official BLU-RAY or a 4K scan of an original print (which I hear exists for ANH but I'm not privy to the circles in which it's shared).