Star Wars: The Diffs

by Chris August 30, 2006

1977 and the 2004 DVD releases? What’s the diff? Check out the diffs here…

(starwars.com) On September 12, the original theatrical version of Star Wars will be available on DVD, bundled as a bonus disc to the 2004 Special Edition of the movie, which will be available for the first time ever as an individual movie DVD.

Sharp-eyed fans can easily rattle off the most significant changes to the evolving film, but now with the 1977 incarnation preserved on DVD, they’ll be able to more easily witness and compare the differences between the earliest and latest editions of the movie that started it all.
To better prepare yourself as the ultimate authority of the changes, starwars.com presents this shot-by-shot guide to the visual differences between the 1977 film and the 2004 DVD.

This guide does not address any changes to audio mixes, but it does a pretty thorough sweep of the visual updates. Sure, you know about rontos and Han shooting first, but did you notice the compositing improvements on the pyrotechnic shots and the desert sky replacements over the Dune Sea? Test your knowledge and sharp eyes by starting your tour here: http://starwars.com/episode-iv/release/video/f20060825/index.html