Imperishable, changes or no changes

Rating: Null/10 (5 October 2004)

Like millions of people, I've bought the DVD boxed set of the "original" trilogy (of course, these are the 1997 "Special Edition" versions, with additional modifications for the DVD set). I don't need to tell you that George Lucas' decision (for now) to issue only the updated versions on digital video has caused quite a stir.
While I can understand the viewpoint of the purists who have clamored for the original cuts and are now incensed that these are not available on DVD, this longtime "Star Wars" fan thinks they're throwing the baby out with the bathwater by dwelling on the revisions Lucas has made.
"Star Wars," the first and lowest-budget of the 1977-83 trilogy, has been subjected to the most extensive cosmetic surgery, some of which enhances the movie (the more turbulent motions of the Rebel X-wings in the climactic battle, the restored exchange between Luke and his friend Biggs just before that battle), some of which detracts from the flow (the clumsily inserted confrontation between Han and Jabba the Hut--although Jabba himself looks more convincing than he did in the "Special Edition" release), and some which is neither here nor there (a CGI panorama of the desert outside Obi-Wan's home, the X-wings taking off from the base on Yavin in the foreground now rather than in the distance as they did in 1977). But to my mind, none of this detracts from the movie's essential appeal, or alters the story that it tells. Luke is still a callow farmboy who "take[s] [his] first step into a larger world," Darth Vader is still a (literally) towering figure of evil, John Williams' heraldic score remains that way, and so on.
Lucas is not the first creator to revise his works after they've been seen by the public, and he won't be the last. Just to cite the DVD situation with three Steven Spielberg blockbusters that are roughly contemporary with the '77-'83 "Star Wars" trilogy: "Jaws" now has a new surround-sound mix with some cheesy sound effects that weren't in the '75 original, "E.T." got the "special edition" treatment with updated special effects (although the DVD also contains the original cut), and as far as I know, the version of "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" that became a worldwide smash six months after "Star Wars" has never made it to home video in any format. What's on DVD now is a composite of at least three different cuts. Funny, but Spielberg hasn't been subjected to anywhere near the level of name-calling that Lucas has incurred.
Nor should either filmmaker be raked over the coals for his post-release second thoughts.