VIDEO: See all the changes to Star Wars since 1977 - an Irish guy played Jabba
There's a new Star Wars out this December, in the extremely unlikely event you missed all the news about The Force Awakens. So now the perfect time to get reaquainted with the world of the original trilogy, released from 1977 to 1983 and pretty much single handedly reinventing sci-fi cinema for all time.
But one big question is which version do you watch? The original releases are hard to find, then there's the special editions and the later blu-ray releases. All are different in ways both sweeping and subtle, thanks to George Lucas' constant need to tinker with his creation. In fact, these changes go back as far as 1981 when the original Star Wars was re-released with the subtitle Episode IV - A New Hope to tie into the naming convention for Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back.
If you're starting to feel bamboozled, never fear, because YouTuber Marcelo Zuniga has combed through the original release and the 2011 blu-ray for a comprehensive comparison of each and every change. And he's sharing them with you in almost an hour of footage, complete with notes.
Behold - all the changes to the original Star Wars Trilogy! This is a playlist of all four videos, with two just for A New Hope.
There's an incredible amount to see here, from small additions to horrible extras like Jabba showing up in the first film - and played by Irish actor Declan Mulholland to boot! Even back in 1997 some of the CG additions looked horrible and while a few were cleaned up for the 2011 blu-rays it starts to feel like some of the most cartoonish elements of the prequel trilogy are leaking into these cherished classics.
Still these movies have endured for a reason and even with extra elements they're an enduring part of movie history. And you definitely have to check out the Han vs Greedo stuff, if only for the ridiculous way Han's head is shifted via CG. It looks like something out of the Exorcist and you can watch from here.
