FanEdit Reviews - Post Your Reviews Here — Page 7

Shazam: Origin (The Adentures Of Captain Marvel) - Billy Batson

Overview - Editing the possibly whitest bread of all serials, “The Adventures Of Captain Marvel”, must have been a labor of love for Mr. Batson. Indeed, for those familiar with this show, this was doubtless irresistible. For those unfamiliar, this was a very good Republic effort, the sort they excelled at.

Video - 1920 X 1080 AVC. The print of this is sharp, really sharp, superior to my Laserdisc. Transitions between scenes are well done. I wondered about this, since cliffhangers are notorious for “cheats”. The editor has worked through all those, hurrying from worrisome moment to reaction and follow-thru by characters.

Audio - 125 kbps, AAC 2-Channel stereo. No subs (unnecessary). The sound is reflective of 1941 Hollywood. Dialogue crystal clear, if looped it was professional. Music compressed, mayhem easily identifiable.

Narrative - The series remains bookended in Siam, near Burma. Ha ha. This Siam appears to be the Khyber Pass between Pakistan and Afghanistan. The terrain, the attire of the riders. The youthful audience of the 40’s would never know, and modern viewers must take this section in stride and understand. Afterward, the story plays out as the sinister Scorpion and his henchmen acquire the deadly lenses, one by one.

Enjoyment - I liked this a lot. Despite prevailing habits, serials were never meant to be binged. They are too busy, and much of the fighting grows repetitive. I watched in three 40” chunks. The plot cleverly keeps you guessing about the identity of Mr. Scorpion.

This was entertaining, and I can recommend this to families with children. It is black and white, however, and there are deaths. Not to the level of current television fare.

Split Unbreakable Glass by Wraith

When I returned to fanedit forums about four years ago after being gone for several, I noticed that several of the editors that I considered to be the masters (geniuses some) of their craft had disappeared. They had moved on to another forum (no names), got banned from a forum (sometimes you have to follow rules, m.), or disappeared entirely. Sure, fanediting geniuses like Q2 and TM2YC stuck around, fortunately. And a lot of new masters arose. Much to my dismay, one of the disappeared ones was Wraith.

About three years later…Guess who returns? Wraith. With a great big bag of fanedits to share. I guess it’s obvious what he was doing for those six years. I always thought of him as a frustrated genius who didn’t always execute his ideas in a manner that would please all of his critics. Amazing ideas. I just don’t think everyone gets him.

I’ve watched so many fanedits lately, its difficult to keep up with my promises to review them. So I held off on requesting this edit. Even though I respect Wraiths edits…I didn’t really care for the movies it is derived from. I liked Unbreakable, but bought the others out of curiosity, watched them and put them in the chest. Then the edit was recommended to me by a prolific editor whose opinion I respect. And then another. And another. And another. So I checked it out.

Quite honestly, I wasn’t really prepared for this edit. I couldn’t make his description make sense. Then I watched it…the first time. My initial reaction was…WTF? So I watched it again. Same reaction. Then I pulled out the originals and watched them. I scratched my head. I wasn’t quite sure I grasped what Wraith had accomplished with this narrative structure. Then I watched the edit again. That time I was blown away. Split Unbreakable Glass is a very deep, multilayered masterpiece in narrative restructuring.

I felt a compulsion to understand what I had watched. Wraith and I began a long discourse in which I learned what was in his mind as he compiled this amazing edit. Wraith was very transparent with me. I learned so much about the creative process that goes into such a masterpiece. There were so many “how the hell did he do that?” moments that were answered. I am still amazed at things most viewers won’t even notice.

The order of scenes from the films themselves are all over the place if they are laid out the way that they appear in the edit. However, that was to fit the narrative structure of the edit. If they are played chronologically, you find many gaps. However, in the context they were placed in, the viewer fills in the gaps.

Wraith sustains the viewers attention by presenting self contained packages of information, which are very digestible, at the same time leaving an element of “I want more”…That keeps people engaged.

The edit is presented in three acts which are very thematically disciplined. Scenes are shifted into other chapters or acts to maintain that discipline in order to ensure viewer investment.

Most of Split is gone because it contained far too much of a horror element. Had it not been watered down, it would distract from the intended pacing and unbalance a very carefully planned build up. Keeping that low in emotional tone overall had the unexpected effect (on me at least) to both significantly lift the conclusion from Glass and conclude with the best ending.

Musical motifs were only cross fertilized where they served the character or emotional moments…Long takes where preseved where they were best needed rather than trimming for trimming sake.

Glass is used to frame the early scenes. Dr Staple is not a new character. There is a reason why the film opens with her. She is in the first and last shots deliberately. This edit is about The Coalition of Evil…we just don’t realize it. Having her open completely changes the first scene and Glass still frames Elijah, which is vital.

I hope enough people watch this for the revelations that can still be fleshed out, even though we think we know these movies well. Each time I watch it I learn something new.

Even though the edit seems long, its really not. There is just enough room to breathe and for the viewer to absorb and go on the journey…and the journey is what this edit is about.

I love fanedits and the creative process. I am so grateful for the many hours that Wraith spent with me to let me into his mind regarding this edit. I will treasure that memory for a long time.

This will be Wraith’s opus. Hell, it will be one for fanediting in general. It shows just how creative you can get.

The sad thing is…history has proven that far too many creative geniuses burn a fire so bright that it burns them out. Then they disappear. It’s up to us as fans to keep them encouraged with positive feedback so that they stay with us a bit longer and share their wonderful gift.

A masterpiece that must be seen by all who appreciate a good movie/fanedit/art.

Two very enthusiastic thumbs held as high as I can hold them!

Yeah, Wraith, it was a thesis!

oojason said:

Vultural said:

By and large, fanediting is a thankless endeavor. Many beg to view, few say thank you.

A shame to see this seemingly become more prevalent too.

Unfortunately even fewer people leave feedback, constructive criticism - suggestions for improvements, or reviews.

They simply move on and make another public request for a link - not attempting to join in with the community - or even in other discussion topics on here.
 

Hopefully we’ll see this either reversed or remedied - soon.
 

I’m seriously considering releasing my further edits only for people who gave some valuable feedback (or review) to my or others editors previous work.

Hate to say this, but you might exclude too many.
I have exchanged PMs across numerous forums, discussing the demise of reviews and / or constructive criticism.
Boiled down, writing either seems like homework, or ability has gone dormant, or fear of exposure.
When I first got active on forum boards in 2006 there were easily 10-12 movie reviewers per site.
I patterned my style after two or three individuals.
Ten years on, most surviving forums (boards are a dying breed) were down to had one or two reviewers.
For some, a review is “Awesome!! 10/10” or “Mikey Hits It Outta The Park!!” or “Sucks! -10/10”
Colorful, but lacks details.
For myself, I’d like a general idea before I DL, then give a film / edit an evening I won’t get back.
You should not limit your edits to feedback types. It ain’t gonna happen.
One of the editors (Don Kamino ? maybe) was pretty upfront with “If you see my film, I want a review.”
That attitude irritated me, so I never watched his edit. Truth to tell, it was another Star Wars thing and I was sick to death of watching one tweaked version after another. Editors, be bold!
Sorry for the wall of text. I usually try to keep a low profile on OT.

No apologies needed, Vultural (that’s not a wall of text - you should see many of my overlong meandering posts on here! 😉)

Both you and Vilgefortz are correct - it’d be a shame to exclude people from seeing your quality work, Vilgefortz. Perhaps encouraging new/low-posting members to leave reviews etc rather than excluding them? Yet certainly ask for feedback on any glitches or technical issues. Though if anyone is being entitled - or being an idiot… then exclude or ignore them, for sure (or let the site staff know).

Personally, I’d like for newer members to have made 15 or so posts on here before being able send a PM - in a bid to give them time to look around the place, see how it works and how it doesn’t. Maybe even find the ‘Welcome’, ‘Project Index & Help’ and ‘How Do I Do This?’ sections, and join in with the community here - before requesting links… though unfortunately the site software doesn’t currently allow for it.

I don’t say it nearly enough as I should… a massive thank you to the few that do post up reviews in here (and also in the project threads) - they are very much appreciated. They are not only a big asset to the site - but also to the projects themselves. 👍
 

Thirst (Raw - 2016) - Maniac

This gory, cannibalistic shocker is tightened and pushed to carnivore maximum.

Filesize = 4.5 GB. Video = 1980 X 1080p mp4. Audio = 317 kbps, 2-Channel AAC. Subtitled throughout. Hardsubs.

The gurgling narrative is boiled down to its essence of meat and ravening hunger.
Odd conflicts and personal dramas are gone from this.
Instead, Justine’s first year at vet school doesn’t mess around. She does, though.
Yet her ride is plunging down a descending roller coaster, one permanently in the twisting tunnel.
One of the surprising joys of this cut is how funny this film is.
That is Maniac’s droll gift, highlighting the gruesome humor throughout.
Much of the over the top antics are laugh out loud. (Perhaps that says more about me.)
Editors, check out opening and closing credits.
Warning! If you are new to Maniac’s edits, this is NOT the one to begin with.
And this, like others, may be an acquired taste. Ha, sorry.

Hitler: Memories Of The Past (Triumph Of The Will) - Maniac

I reviewed this several years ago at another site.
At the time, I voiced serious issues I had with the result. Insufficient subtitles.
Maniac overhauled his edit and delivers a superior second version.

Filesize = 4.32 GB. Video = 1920 X 1080p AVC. Audio = 192 kbps 2-Channel stereo AC-3. Subtitled throughout.

The image for Riefenstahl’s 1934 film is sharp, the quality for “Night And Fog” less so, and “Memory Of The Camps” runs fair to poor. This is source material so do not blame the editor.
One watches the 1934 Nuremberg rally unfold, and then the narrative shifts to the camps.
This is jarring, and well done. The blunt juxtaposition of pomp and pageantry, and atrocity. Words vs. deeds.
The speeches are now subtitled, which vastly improves the contradictions of “the coming Reich” and “what the Reich became.”
Music additions were mixed for me. I thought the opening, aerial sequences worked, and the score for the closing was haunting.
At barely an hour, this ought to be mandatory viewing.

Note: The original V1 is available at another fanedit place. Don’t get that one. Go to Maniac’s own site.

Blue Steel 44 (Blue Steel 1990) - Maniac

Rookie cop Megan interrupts a convenience store holdup, and accidentally awakens a germinating serial killer.

Filesize = 7 GB. Video = 1920 X 1080 AVC. Audio = 1536 kbps 5.1 DTS. No subs.

Straight off, this is not Megan’s story, so much as it is that of an increasingly violent exchange broker (an intense Ron Silver).
This edit is stripped to that narrative, it is extremely tight and works throughout.
Note should be made to the audio specs. The DTS is a beast.
Maniac has tweaked the gunfire which explodes from your speakers.
If you are watching this with the volume turned up, your neighbors will know.
This is an editor who continues to learn and up his game.

Home Invasion (Don’t Breath 1 and 2) - Maniac

Excellent combination of two thrillers, with perfect segue from the first one to the second.

Filesize = 11 GB. Video = 1920 X 1080 AVC. Audio = 1536 kbps 5.1 DTS. No subs.

Continuing a trend within the community, the filesize is a whopping 11 GB.
(For me, I simply can’t burn a copy which I regret.)
The first film, better, fresher, is a hardboiled caper gone to hell.
As always with this editor, DB1 is trimmed to bare essentials. Not that viewers care about the “intruders” except to see how they will be dispatched.
The second effort launches with new ward, Phoenix, who has target stamped on her head.
Baddies are more lethal and Mr. Lang absorbs enough abuse to kill an elephant.
Early on, a news alert drops the hint about a missing medico. That should have been removed.
The sound mix in both films will satisfy you and annoy your roomies. The tiniest sounds are picked up, and when it roars, brace for complaints.
That said, the dialogue in the DB2 was always murky, and is no better here. Most of the villains mumble and seem incomprehensible. This is the sound designer, loading layers of audio yet forgetting to maximize dialogue. Being a source issue, don’t blame the faneditor.
The ending felt like quitting time. The original wasn’t much better.
Maniac wisely cut Phoenix, though the bit with the dog might have been a better outro.

The Stranger (Eyes Of A Stranger) - Maniac

Excellent, concise version of a middling slasher / stalker flick.
A serial killer prowls Miami streets, primarily at night.
The police are … what police? Only a perky TV newscaster seems interested.
Especially after she hones in on a suspect.

Filesize = 7.3 GB. Video = 1920 X 1080p AVC. Audio = 1536 kbps 5.1 DTS. No subs.

The image in this is pretty good, especially during night sequences.
Slashers were never demo time for crisp imaging.
The cuts boil the narrative down to bones and pulp, omitting several superfluous characters.
To be honest, most of the characters could have been jettisoned, all served as props to push plot.
The DTS is very strong, in fact, it is better than this film deserves.
At barely an hour, this dark thriller might conclude while you have a few cans left of your sixpack.

Black Lagoon: S01 Recut - Common-Eye

Filesize = 124 MB (yes). Video = 854 X 480p HEVC. Audio = 129 kbps AAC, 2-Channel stereo.

Heavy cut of Season 1 of this action anime. Somewhat too close to the bone for me.
The first section, the kidnapping, is truncated almost to incoherence.
The essentials are there, but little else. In fact, this edit bounds along until the U-boat section.
Mission is explained, tactics, actions, twists.
The last section is pretty good, as well, though more of a shooter game.
What is missing from this, aside from Roberta, is the dialogue.
The conversations, observations, philosophies, are one of the quiet strengths of this series.
I suspect the editor found these too much “My Dinner With Andre.”
Too bad, for these lulls are what elevated this series above most screaming fighting anime.
(Closing credits display hardsubbed lyrics. Those should be masked or cropped,)

Jaws 2: Extended Integral - RidgeShark

How many times have I viewed Jaws 2? Five? A dozen? I live with two shark obsessed females, which means I get to see good shark flicks and a school of bad ones. And to me, Jaws 2 is a bad one.

Filesize = 13.4 GB. Video = 1920 X 1080 HEVC. Audio = kbps AAC 2-Channel stereo. Subs, well sorta.

This is too much of a good thing. Every single lost or cut scene is reinserted. For finatics, this is great.
Some bits are 4 X 3, and I sorta wished the editor had mildly cropped top and bottom, as well as increased contrast and sharpness. The contrast and sharpness for other lost bits, too. Such might defeat the editor’s vision.

This remains and unsatisfying film for me (mind you, the two I watched this edit with were ecstatic).
Regular film, extended edition, the kids ought to have died. All of ’em.

Finally, 13 GB struck me as big for h265.

Blade Runner - The Nexus-7 Cut - Krausfadr

Replicants loose in downtown Los Angeles, near future (anyone who thinks we will be offworld by 2049 is myopic). Anyway, replicants roaming free, who ya gonna call?

Video - 3400 X 1600p AVC. Holy moly, I know where the filesize is here! How much did I pay for my disc at Az? $30.00. This is better looking! Period.

Audio - 640 kbps, 5.1 AC3. 2 tracks, one without narration, both 5.1. I saw this theatrically 3-4 times, and was always comfortable with Decker’s Noirish commentary. Here, Krausfadr has pruned much of it.

Narrative - This is fix and not a mix, so nothing is changed. The ending is somewhat unresolved, and the unicorn abides. Unless you are deeply into Blade Runner, the unicorn is an enigma.

Enjoyment - The video on this is breathtaking. I don’t even have a 4K screen, but even on my plasm it is remarkable. I was truly concerned that Krausfadr might have overly brightened the image, resulting in seeing too much. All sorts of props and sets that Scott hid with shadows and smoke.
I appreciate the Krausfadr kept part of the narration on a separate track. I viewed this several times when it originally screened, and that was the version I was accustomed to. The editor kept narration that explains points, removed narration that restates the obvious. Excellent choices, by the way.

This ain’t at FE! What the hell?

Film World War - Gaith

Overview - An interesting sweep of World War II, as viewed through the lens of film, no documentaries or newsreels. About ten minutes of historical background (mankind’s deep rooted bloodlust), which could have been excised. Following WWII, an afterword which fitted well.

Audio = 128 kbps AAC, 2-Channel stereo. No subs. There is intermittent voiceover.

Narrative - Gaith provides year by year signposts (1940-1941-1942). Viewers who did not snooze during History 101 will tag along fine. Nevertheless, this is, by design, jumpy. In addition, there are few recurring characters to hold onto. There is a chronological timetable, but no narrative.

Enjoyment - To be honest, I watched this, dumbfounded at first, thereafter curious. What the hell was Gaith going to do next, I wondered.

This is a mix of histories, timelines, figures, anecdotes, and sheer fiction.
The first warning came when The Mummy’s Imhotop was referenced.
Followed by the Rocketeer, Indiana Jones, Sherlock Holmes, you get the idea.
Historically accurate? Well, no.
On the other hand, as one gets older, we realize “history” is ofttimes a blend of fact and myth.
This is what Gaith delivered.
Who is to say the Thermians interpretation of Earth history is any better or worse than Gaith’s WWII?
In many ways, this seems like the stepchild to Brother, Can You Spare A Dime (1975).

For whatever reason, this is not on FE (as of today’s date).
Curious to view? PM Gaith direct, or check his thread at FE.

Journey To The Planet Of Gods (Prometheus) - Agent 9

“Prometheus” retro gem will remind some of Rogue-theX abandoned (?) “Star Wars” deconstruct.
Here, the good ship and crew, deciphering the roadmap left by creators, arrive at the home world.
The reception committee is not the Welcome Wagon.

Filesize = 250 MB. Video = 640 X 262p AVC. Audio = 112 kbps AAC 2-Channel Stereo.

Massive amounts of plot, character development, and dialogue are jettisoned.
In their place are sequences from 1977’s “The War In Space” (惑星大戦争).
Audio and video are degraded, in keeping with a lost film, recently found.
(Indeed, the quality resembles film stock found in Dawson City in 1978.)
This is a highly entertaining mess, and those who are weary of the seriousness of the original, and who have a taste for flipbook movies should chuckle away.
Maybe pour a stiff one first.

Vultural said:

Blade Runner - The Nexus-7 Cut - Krausfadr

Narrative - This is fix and not a mix, so nothing is changed. The ending is somewhat unresolved, and the unicorn abides. Unless you are deeply into Blade Runner, the unicorn is an enigma.

This ain’t at FE! What the hell?

It’s awesome when I see something of mine reviewed. Thanks for watching.

The main narrative change of N-7 is completely removing Zhora’s dossier so a first time viewer would be unsure if Deckard retired a human, that is, until Bryant comes along and calls her a skin job.

As far as FE goes, I’d love to have some of my edits approved over there, but FE does not seem to have the resources to incorporate new faneditors into their “approved” ranks, at least not within what most people would consider a reasonable amount of time. An edit of mine was in the FE queue for four months pending review, then unfortunately after that wait I got very sick and had to remove it from consideration. It would be nice if they made the process a bit easier (and thus faster) for new editors.

EDIT: I have learned FE will still look at an approved editor’s new release if any errors/glitches/glaring problems are pointed out by the viewers. They should be brought to attention in the user reviews section. People may be apprehensive to give critical reviews but this is important.