DVD Preview: The Star Wars Trilogy

May the Force Be With You...always. I was a big Star Wars fan when I was younger so I was delighted to be invited to a press day to launch the long-awaited DVD release of the first Trilogy (Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi). The press met at L.A.'s Silent Movie Theater to watch state-of-the-art previews of the 4 disc set. Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) himself was there along with "Empire's" director Irvin Kershner to tell us some interesting behind-the-scenes tales that even the most ardent fans had never heard.

Journalists were taken in small groups to a room that had been redressed as a 1970's bachelor pad (Star Wars was released in 1977). Lucasfilm V.P. of Marketing and Distribution Jim Ward said it reminded him of his basement pad when he was a kid. The Farrah Fawcett poster and long-play record collection was a fun contrast to the high tech digital, re-mastered, Dolby presentation of scenes from each film that just blew us away. The picture is crystal clear and clean..moreso than I remember on the big screen, and the sound is awesome. I heard dialogue from action sequences that I could never hear in the theaters! From the gleam in C-3PO's metal skin to the sparkle of tiny grains of sand, this DVD set promises to be the ultimate.

After watching our "clips", we left our blast-from-the-past 1970's pad to gather in the theater for more Special Features details (I'll review these another time but will say that there is an awesome two and a half hour documentary that chronicles George Lucas' struggles with the three films. All new interviews with all the stars and filmmakers are very interesting).There is also a preview of the upcoming Revenge of the Sith on the bonus disc. Then digital restoration and tech guys Rick Dean, John Lowry and Van Ling told us about restoration difficulties and the design of the many menus on the 4 discs.

"Empire" director Irvin Kershner, who wasn't a science fiction fan before directing the film, told us that he thought of the story as a "fable or fairy tale" rather than Sci Fi and he "stressed the characters, humor and fairy tale aspect". When told that "Empire" is the favorite of most fans, Kershner said that the film was full of symbolism and "they also love Yoda and the humor". The director talked about pre-digital, CGI effects that were state of the art at the time although he had never worked with them prior to "Empire". He could only hope that directing a puppet (Yoda) as a live character would work and credits Mark Hamill, the human actor on set with the latex character, with making us believe that Yoda was real.

Hamill took the stage to relate lots of humorous Star Wars memories, including his amusement with the various toys and marketing items like toilet paper that scrolled the opening titles as you pulled it off the roll. When Mark first read the script he "thought it would be a hit. It was funny and it would draw the college crowd". He envisioned it as a cult film at least but never expected the phenomenon it became. As for his eternal tie to his Skywalker role, Hamill admits that "it's great to be instantly liked". The "huge fraternity" of fans is like a family to him but the actor admits that he is lousy at Star Wars trivia contests. While shooting, the British crew just didn't get the film, calling it a "low rent Dr. Who".

Mark remembered the first time he heard the impressive, symphonic John Williams score for the film in a car. He was bowled over by the fantastic orchestration. Hamill loves the many Star Wars fan parodies, especially one starring Storm Troopers as "Cops". Bad Boy, Bad Boy whatcha gonna do? The actor recalls that he, Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford spent a good deal of time trying to cheer up the intense, overworked George Lucas on set. Seeing behind-the-scenes footage on the DVD reminded him of just how much fun the cast had together despite silly producer comments like "why doesn't the Wookie wear pants?"

Hamill enjoys working with kids and is producing "Fort Franny", a kid-friendly animation series with puppetry about "what our pets are up to when we aren't home". He credits his work with Yoda, operated by Frank Oz and all he learned from the Jim Henson shop and George Lucas for his ease working on his current project.

The first Star Wars films bowled over the filmgoing public to a degree never experienced in history and revolutionized how movies are made forever. Whether you have seen the trilogy on tape or your parents saw it in theaters, this new Star Wars Trilogy DVD collection is a must have for the whole family. It hits stores on September 21st along with a fun X-Box game called "Star Wars Battlefront".

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Lynn Barker is a Hollywood-based entertainment journalist and produced screenwriter.