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[n1's ICQ status]
"The original inspiration for bringing the film out again
was that the twentieth
anniversary of the original release of Star Wars was
approaching. Several years ago, we all began to wonder what we were going to do for the
twentieth anniversary. And I suggested that we try to release all the films as a trilogy,
one right after the other, so that people could experience them like the Saturday matinee
serials they were originally meant to be. I said that would be a very appropriate way of
celebrating the twentieth anniversary. "At the same time, I had an ulterior motive
which had been on my mind ever since the films were finished. There were various things,
especially in the original film, that I wasn't satisfied with: special effects shots that
were never really finished, and scenes I was unable to include due to lack of money and
time. A famous filmmaker said 'Films are never completed, they're only abandoned.' And,
rather than living with my abandoned movie, I really wanted to go back and complete it.
Working on the first film was such a good experience that I said, 'Well, we should go back
and finish the other two films, as well. "The film was deteriorating, so we've gone
back to the original negative, cleaned it up considerably, redid a lot of the optical
effects and improved the quality of the film. I wanted to preserve the Trilogy so that it
would continue to be a viable piece of entertainment into the twenty-first century. You'll
be seeing a brand new print that's actually better than the original release in terms of
just the technical quality of the film. It's less grainy, it's less dirty, and it's just a
better print. "I've added 
a few
scenes and, at the same time, I've taken a lot of the special effects shots that weren't
really as good as I'd hoped they would be, and I have been able to improve them. A lot of
work has gone into enhancing the entry into Mos Eisley, which, twenty years ago, I
couldn't make into the bustling spaceport it was supposed to be - in the original release
it looked like a little town because I only had half a street to shoot on, and no real
special effects or matte paintings to work with. Now we're able to travel through the
town, see how big it is, see that it's a spaceport, and make it a more interesting
experience. And I've added the Jabba the Hutt scene with Han Solo which had been cut due
to time and money constraints; I really wanted to put that back in there because it was
relevant to what happens to Han at the end of the [second] movie. And I really wanted to
be able to connect the first film with the third film, the way it was meant to be.
-George Lucas
We will have art galleries for each movie soon!!!!