There is not much that can be said about Star Wars that has not already been said – a landmark film that means so much to a generation and a franchise that gives as much as it takes away; a simple story told with verve and one that still manages to capture the imagination. Showcase scenes: The skiff chase in the Pasaana desert not only provides sharp visuals but fantastic directional audio that will use every speaker in your system or make your soundbar work overtime. I first saw Star Wars on the second week of its first UK theatrical run, it was a cold, grey day in early January 1978 and my dad drove the family up to London. My first overriding memory of this trip was seeing two Stormtroopers in the window of a shoe shop. I remember queuing outside Odeon Leicester Square, standing at the doorway entrance looking at the lobby cards proudly displaying tantalising images of what was to come. I remember being amazed at the size of the cinema (we were sat in the circle, towards the left quarter as you view the screen), never before had I seen a screen so big, and the theatre was so ornate with plush red seats. Then the lights went down and that iconic score from John Williams started, prefacing the opening crawl and that giant Star Destroyer coming from overhead. I was sold. And so too was a generation.

4K Blu-ray Box Sets of 2020 | AVForums Top Ten 4K Blu-ray Box Sets of 2020 | AVForums

Studiocanal's UK 4K release of Flash Gordon is a stunning, 5-disc set, with a superb 4K presentation - and Dolby Vision too - that works wonders with the lavish source material, a stomping score, and a boat-load of extras to just about justify the hefty price tag. It comes highly recommended. Star Wars was shot using a combination of Arriflex 35-III, Panavision PSR R-200, Panavision Panaflex X and Panavision Panaflex cameras on 35mm film, and has been newly scanned with 4K resolution for this release. It should be noted that the latest ‘Special Edition edit’ has been the source for this scan, it therefore contains much of the colouring inherent to that release. The disc presents a native 3840 x 2160p resolution image in the widescreen 2.39:1 aspect ratio, and uses 10-bit video depth, High Dynamic Range, and is encoded using the HEVC (H.265) codec for HDR10. We reviewed the Region free UK Ultra HD Blu-ray release of Star Wars on a Panasonic 65DX902B Ultra HD 4K TV with a Panasonic DMP-UB400 Ultra HD Blu-ray player. And while there may be the same 4K resolution you don’t get the same depth of colour, the same brightness or the same sharpness around objects and finer details like hair and skin texture.Colours are rich, vivid and bold, and graded with perfection, lasers are a good shade of red, light sabres glow, flesh tones remain natural, while the greens of the Death Star lasers are punchy. Of course, we do have to contend with the recolouring given to the last Blu-ray, so while the purple of the sunset over Tatooine, with Luke looking into the distance as the music swells might be gorgeous, it is still the wrong colour …. But what was also amazing was how much the HDR improved the image and showed off shapes and objects in the shadows we normally would have missed. Blu-ray (top) v 4K Conversations: Creating a Universe – 8 minute feature, new for this release, with Joe Johnston (from ILM) and Roger Christian (a Star Wars set dresser and a second unit director) who meet and discuss their time on the franchise at the Skywalker Ranch. Firstly, they offer a repeatable high quality experience regardless of the speed of your internet connection. The ninth and final Star War film in the Skywalker saga – The Rise of Skywalker – has been released on 4K UHD but an equally exciting release on 4K disc is the original and prequel trilogies for the very first time.

Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope 4K Blu-ray Review Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope 4K Blu-ray Review

With all that in mind here’s our take on the best scenes in the Star Wars films that will make you appreciate the quality you can enjoy from the 4K disc. The Return of the Jedi forest speeder chase is a standout with a lot of detail revealed in the trees and darker areas of the screen on 4K and HDR.The opening battle in Revenge of the Sith also looks pristine and makes all of your speakers work over time. Being the first in the trilogy, with the most direct and together storyline, The Fellowship of the Ring, is a near masterpiece with everything coming together to form a perfect whole; casting, score, effects, characterisation and editing, all making for a truly magnificent film that just gets better with time. Deleted/Extended Scenes – Excised scene titled: Tosche Station, Old Woman on Tatooine, Aunt Beru's Blue Milk, The Search for R2-D2, Cantina Rough-Cut, Stormtrooper Search, Darth Vader Widens the Search, and Alternate Biggs and Luke Reunion. Much has been said and written about George Lucus’ most successful film, so it’s somewhat difficult to bring something fresh to a review. So, instead of going down tried and tested routes, I thought I’d bring something unique: my own Star Wars Secondly the bit rate (the number of bits to provide the video and audio quality) is much higher off a disc than a streaming service.