Lucas Debut Re-Released

No, we're not talking about an interesting new development in theatre surround sound. George Lucas named the THX system after his 1971 debut feature film, THX 1138, which is now to be re-released in a new director's cut. The film, produced by Francis Ford Coppola and starring Robert Duvall, is set in a dystopian future where workers are identified by numbers rather than names and fed drugs to prevent any human emotions. When worker THX-1138 stops taking the drugs he is thrown in prison, and together with his new girlfriend and a fellow prisoner he begins to plot his escape from the oppressive regime. The film will be re-released in cinemas in some of the biggest cities across the US, but it is unclear if we are likely to see it on the big screen in this country. What is likely, however, is that we will get the planned DVD release, with surround sound (of course), an audio-only track which showcases the work of revolutionary sound designer Walter Murch, documentaries, commentary and George Lucas' original student short, Electronic Labyrinth THX 1138 4EB. The DVD is due out in September, just before that of a certain science fiction trilogy with which Mr Lucas has a more-than-passing connection.