I know Hal already mentioned this, but I think it would be good to put some of our brains together and see if we can hammer out the whispering dagger stuff, and decide if we can pull it off or not. I know Sherlock has already made a lot of examples for how many of those scenes can be altered.

Just a refresher, the main changes that needed to be figured out were:

Cutting 3PO’s line about knowing exactly where the Wayfinder is. He can just know it was the clue Luke was looking for.
Dubbing red-eyed 3PO with a new dagger translation than makes it clear that Rey must tap into the dark side to be “guided” to the Wayfinder. (I think clarity is the key word here. Just a reminder, he can’t mention Endor because the dagger should theoretically find the Wayfinder no matter where it is.) I know Faraday may provide the voice dub for this.
I think the interaction on the Destroyer when Poe asks Rey why they need the dagger should be trimmed, since they would clearly still need it based off the new translation.
When Rey finds the dagger in Kylo’s quarters, she immediately picks it up, and we get a brief glimpse of the Death Star ruins. (I think priority should making this feel like it could’ve been in the theatrical film. I would suggest editing it like Rey/Kylo’s vision at the beginning of the film, but with literally just one or two shots of the Death Star. Really quick.)
When Rey and Finn are back on the Falcon, have Finn say all or part of his line, “The Endor system? Where the last war ended?” Implying that Rey told them what the Wayfinder showed her. (If it has trouble fitting, perhaps we could regrade a shot of BB-8 on the Falcon to imply he is nearby, listening in. This same technique was actually used during Finn and Rey’s conversation on Ochi’s ship.)
On Kef-Bir, cough, I mean Endor, cut Jannah saying they received a message from Babu Frik.

I think that covers it. And like I said before, I know Sherlock and others have made versions of most, if not all, of these changes, but it would be to good to go back and review them with fresh eyes. Perhaps Sherlock, or someone else, could collect the most recent versions of those tests that we’re shared into to a new post for us to revisit.

While I originally proposed this idea, I’m not necessarily adamant about keeping it or not. If it can work, great. If not, fine by me. I also did want to remind us of what I found to be valid criticism from Jar Jar Bricks. Basically, he worried that the audience wouldn’t understand why Rey was given a vision the second time she picked it up on the Destroyer, but not the first time she did in the Pasaana caves. Because, visually, the movie doesn’t show Rey doing anything different between the two moments she is holding the dagger.

I wonder if we could change Rey saying “No” to “Show me”. Not sure if that could be achieved by starting the vision as she is saying “me”, or more technical mouth movement effects, but it might address this concern. Or we could hear her thinking “Show me” with some other sound effects before we see the vision. (And to reiterate, I say vision, but I think it should be basically a flash. A quick glimpse.) I also think it would be good if she didn’t hear any whispers in the Pasaana caves.

I know some lamented the loss of 3PO’s Babu Frik line, which the version would require removing, so if we did go through with this change, it would be nice to find a new place for this line somewhere else in the film, either with the stormtrooper or maybe with R2 back on Ajan Kloss.

Another compromise might be to have the translation still say that the Wayfinder is where the last Death Star fell, but mention that only this blade tells those who tap into the dark side where to find it. I originally wanted to implement the more drastic changes because I felt it was easier to understand if the dagger was an ancient Sith artifact rather than a modern one Ochi apparently inscribed himself for some reason, but I think the main benefit to this whole idea is that it could contribute to Rey’s dark side temptations if we know that she is actively tapping into it in order to be led to the Wayfinder. Then again, maybe that is already clear enough with how it is presented in the film, and trying to spell it it out for the audience might be overkill.

If we decide not to go through with these changes and leave it as V1 basically has it, perhaps we could rejig axlanian’s recent suggestion of adding more Sith voices to the climax, but instead add Sith voices to the whispers Rey follows, but they could actual whisper little things that the audience can understand. Instead of the whispers only being vague jibberish, we could hear some whispers say, “Closer” “This way”, etc… Not only that, but we could throw in some whispers that contribute to that temptation idea. It could all be subtle stuff, but enough to understand that they’re not only leading her to the Wayfinder, but they’re also trying to tell her how she needs power of the dark side.

With all that being said, maybe it is not worth the amount of work that is required for this change. We might be able to iron out some dumb plot choices, but maybe that effort could be put toward more substantial changes. For example, I would like to see 3PO not get his memory back, so at least some sacrifices in this film have consequences. Then again, maybe it’s time to start closing the door on new ideas.
Anyway, just wanted to start the conversation and gauge people’s thoughts.