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Star Wars Episode III: Labyrinth Of Evil (Released) — Page 39

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Thanks, Mala! I will get the lossless audio up there soon. Your list sounds good!

And I have no idea when the FE.org listings will return; I haven’t heard back after reaching out to multiple people.

My stance on revising fan edits.

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Lossless audio on its way up.

You got me double checking the Vader scream, as I was worried I’d made a mistake. However, as planned, the alternate ending version has the Russian version.

My stance on revising fan edits.

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Hal 9000 said:
You got me double checking the Vader scream, as I was worried I’d made a mistake. However, as planned, the alternate ending version has the Russian version.

LOL you’re right, I don’t know why I misheard it 😃

Thanks for the uncompressed audio, getting them right now 😉

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I just finished watching the recent edit and I like the movie overall with all your choices!

The only “issue” i had is the scene we first see Yoda on Kashyyk in which Chewbacca was painted out. Once Yoda gets intel and is talking with Gree you hear two different wookie sounds essentially having a conversation in the background. I remember some pages back it wasn’t possible to isolate and remove some of that, but it does stick out to me.

Other than that, once again a fabulous and high quality edit that I enjoyed all your decisions and the work that was done! It is pretty much impossible to watch the vanilla prequels when we have these fantastic edits!

“Because you are a PalpaWalker?”

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MalàStrana said:

Hal, are you also going to release the uncompressed tracks ? I’ve just finished to sync the alternate track for TAS v6 (thanks again to Ash for rendering the file in dts quality 😉), I could do the same for LoE v6 (alternate ending version included, since I think it will be my go version and the Vader’s scream is the original one, I do prefer the less terrible russian one).

Btw, great work on v6. I really like you put back a few thinks I’m kinda fond of, but the most important thing for me is the Anakin shot inside the Temple while the Jedi are getting killed by the Clones. It’s just perfect that way. It’s very close to be the perfect edit of EpIII for me ( just miss the apartment scenes and maybe the “Sergio Leone” close up on Grievous, but they might have been tricky to incorporate in this new and better flow of the sequences). Impressive work on removing Chewie (I’m neutralto that change, but if I stay true to myself and to what I don’t like about the Sequels, I must admit that Chewie in EpIII was just dumb fanservice) and the droids (again neutral to that change, but the job is seamless).

Here his the alternate audio changelist I could try to make for v6 (considering previous v5 audio changes have been implemented in v6):

  • Added clone trooper’s “General Kenobi. General Skywalker.” (with added radio effect) from TCW tvseries (C1-C3)

  • Replaced Grievous “Ahhhhhh!” with “The negociator!” (C3 only)

  • When the firemen ships come to help Anakin, added a clone trooper’s “General Skywalker?” (with native and ressourced radio effect) from TCW tvseries (C3 only)

  • Added Palpatine’s deleted dialogue line to Anakin appointment scene (C1-C2-C3)
    (You fought many battles the Jedi Council thought were lost. And… you saved my life.)

  • Added Anakin chuckling (C3 only)

  • When Anakin marches on the Jedi Temple, replaced the recycled cue with Vader’s theme variation from Joel McNeely’s “Shadows of the Empire’s Main Title” (All Channels)

  • Added a “No…” before Vader’s infamous “No!”
    (well, not sure about that one… I need fresh ears)

(it’s kinda the “Clone Wars canon cut” alternate track 😄)

These sound amazing! The clone trooper one in particular would be fun.

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MalàStrana said:

Hal, are you also going to release the uncompressed tracks ? I’ve just finished to sync the alternate track for TAS v6 (thanks again to Ash for rendering the file in dts quality 😉), I could do the same for LoE v6 (alternate ending version included, since I think it will be my go version and the Vader’s scream is the original one, I do prefer the less terrible russian one).

Btw, great work on v6. I really like you put back a few thinks I’m kinda fond of, but the most important thing for me is the Anakin shot inside the Temple while the Jedi are getting killed by the Clones. It’s just perfect that way. It’s very close to be the perfect edit of EpIII for me ( just miss the apartment scenes and maybe the “Sergio Leone” close up on Grievous, but they might have been tricky to incorporate in this new and better flow of the sequences). Impressive work on removing Chewie (I’m neutralto that change, but if I stay true to myself and to what I don’t like about the Sequels, I must admit that Chewie in EpIII was just dumb fanservice) and the droids (again neutral to that change, but the job is seamless).

Here his the alternate audio changelist I could try to make for v6 (considering previous v5 audio changes have been implemented in v6):

  • Added clone trooper’s “General Kenobi. General Skywalker.” (with added radio effect) from TCW tvseries (C1-C3)

  • Replaced Grievous “Ahhhhhh!” with “The negociator!” (C3 only)

  • When the firemen ships come to help Anakin, added a clone trooper’s “General Skywalker?” (with native and ressourced radio effect) from TCW tvseries (C3 only)

  • Added Palpatine’s deleted dialogue line to Anakin appointment scene (C1-C2-C3)
    (You fought many battles the Jedi Council thought were lost. And… you saved my life.)

  • Added Anakin chuckling (C3 only)

  • When Anakin marches on the Jedi Temple, replaced the recycled cue with Vader’s theme variation from Joel McNeely’s “Shadows of the Empire’s Main Title” (All Channels)

  • Added a “No…” before Vader’s infamous "No!"
    (well, not sure about that one… I need fresh ears)

(it’s kinda the “Clone Wars canon cut” alternate track 😄)

Is it the “No…” in the RotJ 2011 Blu-ray?

The unfortunate reality of the Star Wars prequel and Disney trilogies is that they will always be around. Forever. They will never go away. It can never be undone.

I also prefer to be referred to as “TNT”, not “Freezing”.

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I played with replacing the “Noo” with the one from 2011 ROTJ, but it couldn’t be isolated and probably would’ve made it worse anyway.

Thanks for the kind words, jarbear! Helps me feel that doing a V6 has been worthwhile. I suppose the Wookiee noises could be happening offscreen, but I do see what you mean. At least Chewie and Yoda don’t get to add to the implausibility of the story.

My stance on revising fan edits.

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The droids are removed from the birthing scene perfectly, but you can still see R2 in the reflection on the window. A small nitpick to an otherwise great change!

The Skywalker Saga:
I · II · III · IV · V · VI · VII · VIII · IX
This is the way.

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Am I doing something wrong or does the Alternate Ending file have subtitles hardcoded (As in I cannot disable them)?

Love your work by the way

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Hal 9000 said:

Not hardcoded; does your player not have an option to turn them off?

ok that’s a relief to hear. My player (MPC classic) does indeed have the option to turn off subtitles, but there are still white subtitles on it even when the subtitles are turned off, like it’s hardcoded. I’ve never had this issue with any other files. If I turn them on, then my normal subtitle setting appear on top of the white subtitles.

I’ll just need to try some other players.

Edit- When I tried it in VLC there were no subtitles, so the problem is definitely on my end. Sorry for not checking before raising the issue. It’s totally fine now.

Anyway I’ll just take this opportunity to thank you again for creating such a fantastic edit. I know you’ve heard this hundreds if not thousands of times, but it is definitely my “Go To” version of the movie 😃 … it’s fun to make prequel haters watch this version and then hear them say they enjoyed it.

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So I know these versions are “final”, but I figured I’d type up a quick review of sorts for LOE (alternate ending), specifically from the perspectives of two women who haven’t seen any Star Wars films/the prequels.

COD and TAS were very well received by both the two aforementioned women and some of my friends who have seen the prequels dozens of times. There were a few complaints about pacing issues, but I’d argue that those exist in the theatrical versions as well.

LOE was definitely received a little less positively - some of that was because many of the Palpatine moments you removed are also fan-favourite moments (despite being ridiculous and cheesy). That’s not a big deal though. The two issues that everyone seemed to have were in regards to Anakin motivation to turn evil, and Palpatine’s deformation. Without the scene that follows Anakin’s dream of Padme, both of the prequel newbies didn’t understand that Padme was dying. They just thought that she was crying/in pain from giving birth and didn’t understand why Anakin was suddenly so paranoid about losing her. If I remember correctly, TOS removes Anakin’s dream of his mom - perhaps if that had been included it would have been easier to connect the two moments from each movie? And in regards to Palpatine, the newbies didn’t understand why he was suddenly so deformed. The theatrical version doesn’t do a good job of explaining this either, but it’s less sudden and perhaps makes a little more sense.

Everyone LOVED the additional deleted scenes. They appreciated how it gave Padme more to do in the film and planted the seeds of the rebellion. Many initially wished the killing of the younglings hadn’t been cut, but after seeing the newbies’ responses to Anakin killing in the holograms, they agree that it was a powerful edit. The Chewbacca and droid edits were seamless and people didn’t even realize they were changed.

This got long - Sorry! Very well done overall. We’re all excited to start the OT next weekend. Thanks again for all your hard work!

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Thank you for sharing that; I’d have liked to be a fly on the wall.
That’s a good point about the nightmare and lack of spelling it out. I would think it’d still be comprehensible, given the following scene’s discussion of saving people from death. In TAS Anakin doesn’t dream that his mother will die, just that she’s suffering. Dreaming the dream we see of Padmé in LOE may actually be more resonant with that, though kept in subtext and not spelled out with exposition.
And yeah, these edits aren’t beholden to ‘memes,’ and suppose that they were what was released in an alternate universe; pretending this is the case isn’t always going to work effectively. Palpatine’s antics might just be the biggest difference between LOE and ROTS in actuality, and that’s a fair thing to miss. When I exhibited these a few years ago, Yoda’s missing saber duel was everyone’s main/only critique of Ep2. On this and similar points I’d more value the newbies’ take.
I wish you a happy OT viewing next weekend, also.

EDIT: Maybe it’d be fun to load up both versions of LOE and either randomly pick one or have someone else who doesn’t know the difference flip a coin and click on it. You wouldn’t know what happens with Padme until it does at the end.

My stance on revising fan edits.

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I’m curious, can anyone report any viewing experiences they have had with Star Wars newbies, specifically on the question of Padme and Leia living on Alderaan.
I think what’s in LOE gives the viewer enough information to infer what’s taken place when they get to the OT. (However, even if this isn’t the case, I would argue that the PT rarely considers the saga from a first-time chronological viewer anyway.) It’s not made explicit in dialogue that Padme and Leia are going to Bail’s planet to live, though the design is different from Naboo and his ship takes them there, with Leia being aboard ‘her’ very similar ship at the start of ANH.

The ending has less exposition than ROTS does, but given how the PT assumes familiarity with what came before, I feel it does enough of what is needed. However, I’m just wondering if anyone has any data about first-time viewers. I’m glad I did the alternate ending version while I had all the footage laid out so that it’ll always be there as an option.

My stance on revising fan edits.

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Hal 9000 said:

Thank you for sharing that; I’d have liked to be a fly on the wall.
That’s a good point about the nightmare and lack of spelling it out. I would think it’d still be comprehensible, given the following scene’s discussion of saving people from death. In TAS Anakin doesn’t dream that his mother will die, just that she’s suffering. Dreaming the dream we see of Padmé in LOE may actually be more resonant with that, though kept in subtext and not spelled out with exposition.
And yeah, these edits aren’t beholden to ‘memes,’ and suppose that they were what was released in an alternate universe; pretending this is the case isn’t always going to work effectively. Palpatine’s antics might just be the biggest difference between LOE and ROTS in actuality, and that’s a fair thing to miss. When I exhibited these a few years ago, Yoda’s missing saber duel was everyone’s main/only critique of Ep2. On this and similar points I’d more value the newbies’ take.
I wish you a happy OT viewing next weekend, also.

EDIT: Maybe it’d be fun to load up both versions of LOE and either randomly pick one or have someone else who doesn’t know the difference flip a coin and click on it. You wouldn’t know what happens with Padme until it does at the end.

Thanks for the response! Yeah, Yoda not using a lightsaber in LOE and TAS was another big complaint from Star Wars veterans, but after going back afterwards to watch those moments on YouTube, they agreed it was a little silly and realized they only appreciated it for nostalgic purposes.

And in case it wasn’t clear enough in my original post, the following are critiques exclusive to the newbies:

  • Confusion surrounding Anakin’s dream of Padme and him trying to save her life (as mentioned in the previous post)
  • Anakin and Padme spending so little time actually interacting with each other until the end (as a result of removing the balcony and dream exposition scenes which they were unaware were cut)
  • How Palpatine became deformed so quickly
  • Finally, there were comments made about how Yoda was underwhelming - “he’s hyped up to be a ‘grand master’ and yet doesn’t ever do much.”
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I will be showing all your edits to a star wars newbie, however that will still be about a month or so in the future so I’ll report back then.

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I admit it is hard to look at it in the eyes of a newbie, since a lot of the changes you’ve made are good and help improve on the movie.

The hardest part is the whole Palpatine deform thing. We can logically say he is “unleashing” his dark side … or his “true” form in a sense. But when you watch it, I understand it does feel kind of random. I think I am kinda ok with it, but I do understand that is a bit harder to logically explain it, since originally he was getting deformed by his own lightning …

Also, I get the confusion maybe from the jump of Anakin has the dream, gets up and walks out and then goes to Palpatine and basically says “You summoned me?” I kind of pause at that too and say “wait … what?”

Granted Hal, that is some minor critiques from me because over all, I love it.

“Because you are a PalpaWalker?”

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I must confess, this is why I hope Octoroxx will someday complete his conservative edit take on EpIII.

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jarbear said:

The hardest part is the whole Palpatine deform thing. We can logically say he is “unleashing” his dark side … or his “true” form in a sense. But when you watch it, I understand it does feel kind of random. I think I am kinda ok with it, but I do understand that is a bit harder to logically explain it, since originally he was getting deformed by his own lightning …

In my mind the easiest argument is that him deforming himself with his own lightning doesn’t logically make any sense either. So no matter what, you’re left with a confusing scene, but one option is stupid and the other isn’t.

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DominicCobb said:

jarbear said:

The hardest part is the whole Palpatine deform thing. We can logically say he is “unleashing” his dark side … or his “true” form in a sense. But when you watch it, I understand it does feel kind of random. I think I am kinda ok with it, but I do understand that is a bit harder to logically explain it, since originally he was getting deformed by his own lightning …

In my mind the easiest argument is that him deforming himself with his own lightning doesn’t logically make any sense either. So no matter what, you’re left with a confusing scene, but one option is stupid and the other isn’t.

+1

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Yeah, ROTS does not feature Palpatine reacting in any way to his change of appearance (or voice). As a subtler piece of the puzzle, his gradual descent into monster-face seen in AOTC was totally reversed for ROTS.

And though the movie doesn’t depict Palpatine calling Anakin, having him summon Anakin to the opera further implies that Palpatine is responsible for planting the nightmare and later profiting from the lie.

I think all these could have been done better were they decided upon during the actual production of the film, and so I feel good about LOE despite a few pieces of missing crystal clear exposition. Were it a different sort of movie without conditioning the audience to expect such exposition, I think these things would work better.

Thanks for indulging me, you guys.

My stance on revising fan edits.

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 (Edited)

The only idea I can think of to help support the ‘mask’ approach would be to change his appearance anytime Palpatine is disguised as Darth Sidious before the transformation. So when we see him with Maul on Coruscant in TPM, or with Dooku in AOTC, you could either desaturate his skin to be similar to his deformed look, or use deepfake technology to replace his regular face with the deformed face. It would be harder to implement this with hologram appearance (like his conversation with Grievous in ROTS or with Nute Gunray in TPM. Maybe you could obscure his entire face in darkness, or do something similar to what Ady did for ESB:R), but this idea could help make it clearer that Palpatine has always looked like that, but has just hid his true form with his ‘unlimited power’. But for LOE, I think it works fine and is still better than the theatrical, like Dom said. Might be something to consider in future edits though.