Rumors have been floating around about it for quite some time, but it appears that all systems are go for the entire Star Wars franchise to be re-released in the 3D format. DreamWorks Animations CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg confirmed the details in a recent interview with Comingsoon.net saying "Lucas is excited about it" and "He isn't going to put a product out, I think, that isn't anything other than first rate."
Apparently, the cost of converting a traditional 2-D movie into 3D is between $50,000 and $100,000 per minute. I'm sure that Lucasfilm will make their money back and then some, but is it really worth it? Does anyone care to see this or is it just another case of Lucas screwing around too much with the franchise?
Gizmodo doesn't seem to excited about the prospect of these upcoming releases, and who can blame them really? Lucas has been known for milking every penny he can from the Star Wars franchise and this is no exception.
That doesn't mean that I'm not totally excited about it though!
I'm sure we'll all hear a lot of moaning from fans about this, just as they did for all the other re-releases that have happened over the last 30 odd years, but I imagine when they come to theaters, all those moaners will be lined up beside me excitedly waiting for our first chance to truly be apart of our favourite films. Yes, yes, they're going to start at the beginning of the saga, as in Episode I
, but I'm just fine with that. Unlike most Star Wars fan, I do truly love them all.
, but I'm just fine with that. Unlike most Star Wars fan, I do truly love them all. Of course seeing the originals in 3-D is going to be spectacular, but I can wait, and boy will it be worth it.
I'm making no attempts to squelch your optimism, but they're going to have to work REALLY HARD to make the 3D worth watching. You know as well as I do that, for 99% of movies, the 3D component is a meaningless gimmick because 3D is only applied to those portions that are computer generated. Since Star Wars was made 30 years ago, with cameras from 30 years ago, Lucasarts will need to invest a boatload of money to not only do justice to the 3D, but also to not devalue the film if the 3D turns out to be bad.
ReplyDeleteHere's hoping that they do it the right way! :)
don't worry, my optimism isn't squelched at all. I do realize that, I'm actually quite aware of that. I honestly think that 3-D isn't really that great of a gimmick and I really don't find it very impressive unless done correctly. The only movie I've ever seen worthy of 3-D was Journey To The Center Of The Earth, which was fantastic in 3-D but lackluster without it.
ReplyDeleteI really don't think that any film that can stand up on it's own needs to be in 3-D at all.
I guess what I'm truly excited about is the fact that I will finally be able to see the original trilogy in theaters, as I never have before.