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FanEdit Reviews - Post Your Reviews Here — Page 8

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 (Edited)

War Of The Stars II: The Future In Motion (Empire / Jedi) - TMBTM

Fan-edited film.
Outstanding, highly inventive reworking of the path of Luke Skywalker by TMBTM.
Edit uses approximately 75% ESB and 25% ROTJ, but oh, what choices have been made.
Luke’s path now considerably darker.
The emotional problems that imperiled his father, are more pronounced in him.
The Ewoks are minimized, and there is more splatter.
Vader’s character is bent, whereas Boba Fett - man - his screen time and importance is doubled.
Deleted footage used, along with clever insertion of sequences from other films.
Music also modified, most notably the use of Holst’s “The Planets.”
Well worth hunting down for Star Wars fans who have “seen it all.”
Definitely the road not taken.
This - this - is an amazing example of how an inspired editor can utterly modify a film.

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 (Edited)

The Cleaner - By Maniac
(an edit of The Professional a.k.a. Leon)

Maniac has definite style. He hits his edits with both a scalpel and a sledgehammer. In this version you will not find much of the chit chat which effectively eliminates the stereotypical racist tropes Luc Besson can’t help but add to his films. While I still prefer the original version, if you want the fast and dirty romp this is the way to go.

Not all the cuts are completely smooth, and the audio sounds a little muddy, like it’s been normalized, squashed and all sorts of processed. The sound is not completely terrible but not as clean as the original. Also gone is the ending music by Sting but in it’s place a kind of similar sounding soft track. Given the other changes made, such as our favorite hitman smiling giddily while watching the bloody shootout in Scarface, I would have bet on more hardcore outgoing music. Alas we got an odd tropical farewell.

Maniac has no time for mickey mouse bullshit, including end credits. 3 out of 5 stars.

heil Palpatine!

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The Crow: The O’Barr Edit - Suicidal Wombat Productions (2007 ?)

“It’s not death if you refuse it”

An interesting edit which focuses The Crow on Eric’s assassinations, largely cutting out the subplots inovolving the kid and the cop and greatly simplifying the story, so that the film more closely follows the comics. Suicidal Wombat Productions also adds a bunch of text (I’m assuming from the comics), renders the whole thing in B&W - which adds to the noir feel of the film, and is also faithful to the comics - and breaks the edit into “books”. Only problem here really is Brandon Lee’s cringy line delivery. Still a fun watch if you enjoy the original, and only 45 minutes long. There’s also a rescored flashback sequence which is quite well executed.

Editing is fairly sloppy, in particular when transitioning between the books, but also throughout. It’s not so bad as to ruin the edit, still definitely worth a watch if you want a version more faithful to the comics and with less filler.

If anyone’s interested in this let me know, I’ve got no clue where I got it from but I’d be happy to upload.

Technical details: It’s an old edit so the video quality is fairly low, and the video is letterboxed and pillarboxed. 2.77 GB file size. 7.3 mb/s video bitrate (variable), 480p, 29.97 fps (CFR). 192 kb/s audio bitrate (variable), 2.0 audio.

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Star Wars: Abridged I The Republic - subjectzero edit of Star Wars Episodes 1-3 Phantom Menace, Attack of Clones, Revenge of Sith,

This is one of the better 3 in one edits of the prequels I’ve seen. It does a good job of knowing which scenes to leave in and which to cut out from both of the movies. The transition between Clones and Revenge is perfect and I was surprised at how well editing Attack of the Clones into 40 minutes worked. I really liked how you edited out the climax of Clones it worked really well. One more thing I loved about this edit is the text that appears on-screen letting us know which planet we’re on. It’s implemented really well and helps with establishing where we are. There was another narrative change in Attack of the Clones that I thought worked perfectly centered around Kamino and Geonosis, which makes me excited to check out the other two edits.

While the new narrative works pretty well, but I do have some critiques for it. First off I like the idea of the opening scene being Anakin leaving his mom but the execution wasn’t quite there. Also, I love using the deleted scenes of Padme and her family, but the quality of the image is noticeably less good. This isn’t really a problem in the close-up shots and mid-shots, where the quality is not significantly lower, but it’s a huge problem in the wide shots where the quality looks way too blurry. The narrative improvement is worth the lower quality though but it has to be mentioned. There is also a really obvious edit in the Naboo scenes where the music cuts out way too soon after we see Anakin and Padme start their relationship, and again the cut right before they leave Naboo is too abrupt. However, that those are really my only issues with the edit is remarkable considering the amount of material that needs to be cut. The Revenge of The Sith portion of the edit is edited near perfectly, and I’d recommend it to anyone.

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 (Edited)

Jigsaw II: Endgame (Saw, 2004-10) - Maniac, Zagadka (2021)

The follow-up to “A History of Desperation”, this one does not dissapoint. Combining multiple different plotpoints from the 3rd and 4th films, as well as another film (which I won’t spoil), this tells a completely unique story from some of the highlights of the series. Incredibly well edited, with flashbacks being inserted continuously with great skill. A/V quality is great, and the pace is insanely high - it plays out like an hour and a half triller film rather than your typical horror. Despite the major narrative changes, “Endgame” remains faithful to the Saw template and themes, even more so than the writers of the later films do. The amount of vision and planning that has gone into making this is incredible, virtually every scene you see in this edit has been re-arranged and modified. I can’t imagine what the timeline looks like.

This is a must watch for fans of the series, and even if you’re not a horror fan it’s just a great edit which avoids the gore and torture porn of its source. The final sequence alone is worth giving this edit a watch. Another Maniac/Zagadka masterpiece.

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The Dark Chronology: Chapter 1 (Dark: Seasons 1-3) - Dizzy_108 (2020)

This is an interesting take on Dark which seeks to reorder the series chronologically. A very bold goal considering how interwoven time travel is in the series’ plotlines. I watched part of the first chapter and enjoyed it. Of course, you have to have watched the original show to make sense of things. The A/V quality is good and it’s well edited to the point I watched.

My main critique would be that the titlecards are frequent and break the flow of the show - would’ve been much better as a subtitle in the corner of the screen.

For now, I don’t think I can watch the rest of this as the framerate is wrong, which makes watching the footage difficult. The framerate most likely should be at 23.976 fps, but it’s as 25 fps. Stuttering is constantly noticable as a result. If Dizzy_108 can fix the framerate in the future I’d definitely watch the rest of the episodes.

More info here:
https://www.reddit.com/r/fanedits/comments/hoove2/the_dark_chronology_dark_netflix_fanedit/

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Plan 2001 (2001) - Adabisi

My initial notion of Plan 2001 was Dracula, face cloaked by cape, stalking the white concourse of Discovery. How is Adabisi going to carry this off? How will the Count elude HAL?

Instead, this edit pulls the pants down on Kubrick’s film, exposing pomposity and pretentiousness. No monkeys, scant elitist classical music, and no symbolism. Rather, vent after vent of flatulence. Any run down Wal-Mart location would be proud to stock this 2001.

Video = 704p, mp4. Audio = 2 Channel Stereo, 256 Kbps.

Video editing is crisp and hard, think hatchet. Highly effective with dramatic plot jumps that explode out of nowhere. The descent into Jupiter is trimmed (minimizing that star gate stuff), which heightens the lava lamp plumes. Good bender there.

The film opens with astronaut Frank Poole running and shadow boxing to “Eye Of The Tiger,” one of the cheesiest inspirational tunes ever, typical of the 80s. Songs range from imbecilic to infantile to predictably clichéd. When that ole Moon hopper starts jumping to “I Put A Spell On You" I knowed them folks on this Moon were a lot happier than on Stanley K’s Moon. Using Floyd‘s “Echoes” for the Jupiter sequences is genius! Screaming Jay Hawkins, couple of robot tunes, shoot, the only thing missing is Bill Shatner crooning.

The original narrative can be a glacially paced snoozer. Yawn – zzzzzzzzzz. Tightening was needed and Adabisi provided the chainsaw. Great example of this was when Dave is about to reenter Discovery and give crafty HAL a lobotomy, only ka-boom, they are entering Jupiter already. One second, Dave is helmetless, next second, it’s on. How? Magic.

As Adabisi noted in the forum thread, his intention was to take the piss out of the original. By adding his own piss instead, he created something akin to sour lemonade. Mind you, this ain’t gonna be the first choice for Movie Appreciation 101, but the way this world is going, I reckon it will be.

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2001: Recut - Steven Soderbergh

I’ve watched Kubrick’s “2001” several times over the years. I’ve always found the director’s films chilly, with scant human warmth. As far as this particular editor goes, I’ve always felt the FE site gives him a free pass. Still, someone (Elbarto? Col Hutty? Ric Olie?) suggested I give this reedit a whirl.

Video = 1280 X 720p AVC. Audio = 160 kbps AAC. 2 Channel Stereo.

Hate saying this, but this looks better than my DVD. Most of the editing is fine. I have never had many issues with this editor’s visual work.
Soundwise, this opens with ambiant droning that Soderbergh is so fond of. I feared he had wiped the soundtrack as he had on Raiders. No. Audio returned to the original track. Dialogue clear.

The narrative has been altered. Updated, if you prefer. Much has been cut, some I noticed, some I did not. While streamlined, the pace still plods. Not necessarily in a bad way. This captures the ennui of lengthy isolation of deep space travel. HAL has a stronger role in this, and often seems a witness of pre-dawn man continuing to the star child. Is this edit better? I don’t know. It is over sooner, so that may be a plus for many.

As far as enjoyment, about as much as before. Whenever this airs at a local theater, I attend. I have a Wow reaction as often as I walk out annoyed. I applaud Soderbergh’s video restoration work on this, as well as ditching redundant or unnecessary sections. I enjoyed this more than most of his edits.

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American Businessman (American Psycho) - verifypassword__ (2022)

This edit by u/verifypassword__ takes the psycho out of American Psycho. This is very well edited throughout - seamless. If I didnt know the original so well I’d think that the scenes originally played out that way, and mostly without voiceovers too. Audio work is very skillful.

Nice editing when Patrick removes his mask, rescore there is well done. Also good job removing the screaming during the skipping.
Cracked up at “I have all the characteristics of a human being.”, and Patrick sprinting from his date with Jean to dinner with the investigator.
Tracks for the rescore were well chosen, including the ending track.

This is truly a hilarious butchering of American Psycho - great job OP. The editing particularly is impressive, did not notice any issues whilst watching on desktop.

Original post: https://www.reddit.com/r/fanedits/comments/sdaky3/american_businessman_edit_of_american_psycho/

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 (Edited)

Another fanedit that deserves your attention

Godzilla King of The Monsters The Dramatic Cut INIGHTMARES

The so-called Monsterverse is a confusing concept for me. Who’s in it? Godzilla? King Kong? Their respective nemeses? Lost somewhere between being heroes or villains, superhero or horror they don’t seem to belong in any sub-genre.

To begin with…what an awesome trailer and an even more awesome teaser! That teaser made my skin crawl.

If you had

One chance

Or one opportunity

To create an edit that was everything you ever wanted

Out of a movie that you wanted to love but just couldnt

One chance

Or one opportunity to create a perfect edit

Would you do it?

INIGHTMARES did.

When I first learned about INightmares’ Godzilla King of The Monsters edit, I was very interested. I felt that they had an impressive goal. Cut out all of the cheesy unnecessary jokes and make the edit dramatic, as it should have been.

I previewed the edit and was rocked by the opening sequence. The edit was an almost completely different animal than the movie. It was dark and ominous. That jump scene was a genius idea. I made several suggestions that would further their goal. They were very responsive to ALL input.

Everything looked very hopeful and was on a positive track and then real life happened and it looked like the edit would not get completed. Very depressing, that.

A few weeks later INightmares informed us that they would resume their efforts to bring this deliciously wicked beast to fruition. A few of us got involved in previewing the edit.

They took our ideas and came up with even better ideas of their own. The entire experience was very kinetic and rewarding. The result is above and beyond what any of us expected it could be. I’m not sure that INightmares even realizes the classic monsterverse masterpiece that they have created.

It’s a nonstop thrill ride. Literally unrelenting action with huge beasts fighting and killing each other with puny humans trying to manipulate outcomes.

By rearranging and cutting a few scenes, Emma becomes an eco-terrorist villain. We don’t like her. Even when she martyrs herself to save Godzilla, we want to blame her for the whole debacle. In this edit, she truly becomes the real monster and I loved that!

King Ghidora may be the coolest CGI creature ever created. The final showdown between Godzilla and King Ghidora is one to rival any gunfight in the old west. Godzilla breathed atomic breath through his disembodied head right after totally kicking his ass. That’s unreal! and made far more dramatic in this edit.

When all else is stripped away, it becomes apparent that the original movie’s pulpit point is that humans are an infection that has disrupted the natural cycles of the planet. This sets up a complex angle about figuring out how we reconcile the Titans with our own need for expansion and consumption. That’s why this edit is so important. It’s an allegorical statement for the state of destruction of the earth that we have created and the necessary cleansing that needs to eventually take place. All of the unnecessary garbage has been stripped away to drive that point home. And does it ever.

I was rocked. Few edits have that effect on me.

This is edit is the movie that should have been released. I concur with Wraith, it is one of the best fanedits to be released and is a gamechanger in its scope. I for one completely feel honored to have been a small part of this edit coming to life.

I also concur with Stromboli Bones when they said that they chose to remember this edit as the movie that they saw in the theatre.

Thanks for giving us that!

Highly recommended!

Forever in search of that one movie experience…

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Comorbid (Lords Of Salem) - steFANedit

Ingenious reworking of Rob Zombie’s misbegotten Lords Of Salem into a moody silent movie. Zombie’s attempt was laughably pretentious, but steFAN has crafted something between arthouse and indie. A serious blood curse that takes generations to flower.

Video editing solid throughout. Most of the transitions are iris wipes and more consistency would be preferred. Closures are too swift, then there is a lag between opening the next scene. Not a major problem, but this could be smoothed. Also, once or twice only one half of the iris wipe is used.

Fine 2.0 stereo, well thought out musical track. Most of the ambiant cues deftly channel the unsettling tone. No subs, of course, but there are inter-titles. As mentioned by That One Guy, and in the forum thread, there are several misspelled words and grammar errors. These could easily be corrected. Very imaginative fonts are used, a script font as well as a blocky type. The script could be a little bit larger. Neither font is especially difficult to read, yet both require a second or two additional time to visually “decode.” Consequently, most of the inter-titles ought to remain visible on screen a beat or two longer.

One title card in particular goes on far too long, however. The apartment sequence with Heidi and the “three witches” seems to go on and on and on. This really needs to be cut into three edited cards, broken up with facial closeups or hands or clock … The classic rule - show, don’t tell applies.

Cohesive storyline, though the ending was utterly baffling. Perhaps a touch of color during the finale would have clarified Heidi’s fate.

As for enjoyment, know your limitations. Black n white - Silent - a measured pace. This edit is rich in imagery, the tempo is best described as lingering. Passing familiarity with the works of L’Herbier, Duvivier, or especially Dreyer (though Mr Zombie is NOT among that group) will help the curious grasp steFANedit’s conception and execution. Overall, an excellent edit.

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The Cave (The Descent / The Descent 2) - Maniac

Elsewhere, Mikedrew87 offers an extended version of the first film.
Here, Maniac combines 1 & 2 and cleverly continues the narrative.
Claustrophobes, steer clear.

Filesize = 6.5 GB, Video = 1920 X 1080p AVC, Audio = 192 kbps 2 Channel Stereo AC3, no subs.

Both films have their problems, though #2 suffers less characters (meals), who also tend to get snuffed quicker. This should have been “Aliens”, instead it was send in the subs.
Video quality is fine. Shadows and blacks stayed that way.
Audio, I couldn’t understand half of what the characters said, unless I was barking at the screen myself, urging them to be quiet. Subs might have been useful, unless the dialogue proves inane.
What is missing is the surround ambiance in those resonant tunnels.
Maniac has removed a lot of dialogue and down time, #2 does take awhile to get going, though.
Nevertheless, this is a furious ride and a must for cavers and red meat hounds.

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Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me: Teresa Banks and the Last Seven Days of Laura Palmer - Q2

I am NOT a Lynch fan. I watched S01 when it initially aired 20+ years ago, and was infuriated with Lynch because he did not (or could not) deliver the promised resolution. S02 was longer and messier, which led all but the hard core to believe his concept was rudderless. Ratings dipped, show was canceled, and the subsequent Fire Walk With Me was judged incomprehensible.

Later, internet forums offered explanations for everything, Twin Peaks reputation not only survives, but stubbornly ascends.

Q2 has refashioned FWWM with deleted scenes, outtakes, to better follow Lynch’s vision. Maybe. With Lynch, one never knows.

Video editing really good here. Jump cuts and fades. Some material was never remastered, so do not judge against that.

Audio - Anything by Lynch is worth “listening” to. No exception here. Sound design in FWWM is dazzling. From tiny sounds to noise to the hypnotic roadhouse band. Also solid editing. No quick fade-outs or mid drops. Masterful use of layering music to link new material. I listened on headphones, I cranked the main speakers. Both ways - great.

Narrative - What in the hell …
I am convinced there is a tight story in here, but an extended version just pumps more fog into the confusion. FBI subplots seem meaningless to the plot. Just Lynch ridiculing the Feds. I would have dropped references to all agents. Blasphemy, yes, but keep the focus on Laura. Weave the Lodge, especially BOB.

The extended narrative wanders aimlessly for over an hour, then it locks in and grows inspired. The sound mix, the brooding tone, the fatalistic dread. A one-way Noir ticket to Hell.

End of the film, there was more here I liked than disliked. I will also be the first to admit hard core Twin Peaks fans will revel in this extended edition.

Did I enjoy this? No. Did I watch it repeatedly? Yes, twice already, and I may rewatch again.
Do I like Lynch’s work in general? No. Aside from Mulholland Drive, not at all. His whole ouvre is baffling, incomprehensible, self-indulgent, and seems lost in a thicket of brilliant ideas yet incapable of reining them into cohesion. Of course this also helps to explain its enduring popularity.
On the other hand, I watch, and rewatch his movies.

Should you watch Q2’s edit? Absolutely! This is a must!
Yet it you have never watched any season of Twin Peaks, do yourself a favor and watch those first.
Rest assured, if you get confused there are piles of websites and boards to offer answers or suggestions to any questions or puzzles. Maybe. With Twin Peaks, nothing is certain, nothing is as it appears.
One way or another, we are still adrift.

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Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me: Extended Blue Rose - igorleoni

Filesize = 7.2 GB, Video = 1920 X 1036p AVC, Audio = 317 kbps 2 Channel Stereo AAC, no subs.

This is the second edit I have watched, which attempts to reinsert missing footage into Lynch’s “feature”.
With this director, I am never sure of anything. I find him more maddening than Herzog.
Anyway, the first section of this play out like amateur, community theatre. I don’t know if these performers cannot act, or of they have been directed to emulate drunken cacti.
Once Laura Palmer appears, the acting turns professional, although the story continues to meander somewhat. Just hold on and bear with it.
The truckstop sequence is unforgettable.
The image quality if this is excellent, the audio adequate. Subtitles are unnecessary.
I still suffer enjoyment / appreciate issues with this film. Indeed with this director’s oeuvre, or the director himself, whom I’ve always equated with the unclothed emperor.

Several years ago, Q2 also crafted an extended version of this.
In many ways, it is quite similar, and my comments from 2014 mirror my thoughts toward this edit.
For convenience, I posted my review of Q2’s version before this one.
For Twin Peaks fans, and Lynch believers, both versions are strongly recommended.

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Bruce Wayne: Depths Of Darkness - Infodroid

Batman Consecution-short.
An outstanding, albeit dark, take on guilt and self-destruction.
Elements from Batman mixed with various Bale movies to create a new dimension to Wayne.
Video editing terrific.
Audio, much less so. Gain should have been increased on material from The Machinist.
This felt like an oversight to me, and ought to have been corrected before inclusion.
Narrative itself holds together well, remarkable in light of the diverse source material utilized.
Enjoyed this one a lot, though not what one would term happy viewing.

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Mark 13 (Hardware) - Maniac

Filesize = 8.2 GB, Video = 1920 X 1080p AVC, Audio = 1536 kbps 5.1 DTS, no subs.

My guilty pleasure, cyberpunk fave. A plot that flirts with incoherence throughout, and the style is a cross between an extended MTV video and an erotic thriller. Fans of the 1980’s at their most excessive, this is for you!
The video work in this is great. From blurry to crystalline, murky to oversaturated.
The audio mix is equally superb, from the swirling sound mix to the cheesy musical score.
The original was hardly a great film, but was an enjoyable, if bizarre, SciFi thriller.
Maniac has kept the best elements, the wild excess, perverse exuberance.
Get a big bag of chips, your favorite beverage and crank the volume.

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FvJ (Freddy’s Dead & Long Night At Camp Blood & Freddy Vs Jason) - NegaJuice (AKA: juice4z0 & Neglify)

Two of the weaker movies from two franchises, as well as what ought to have been a decent bow-out. Of course, franchises being money generators, the killing forces of nature stagger on and on. Rather than releasing these three edits separately, Juice4z0 and Neglify have placed all three in one release, suggesting viewers to watch in proper sequence. Good advice, as the shows progress from lame to enjoyable.

The audio is well defined and clear. Freddy’s Dead and Long Night At Camp Blood were both 6 channel, Freddy Vs Jason 2 channel. I watched on three separate nights so this was not discernable. Binge viewers might pick up on that, however. Dialogue was clean throughout, and all three movies range from whisper to deafening. No subs. The editors provided an audio commentary for each film. Mixed joy there.

For me, each film is independent and stands alone. If one assumes they will stitch together, they do not. Structure is episodic. Freddy’s Dead remains poorly constructed. Final Chapter is definitely better than the original - more gore, more sex! FvJ helped by reducing Freddy and adding more Jason.

Thoughts about the audio commentaries. By turns informative, entertaining, irritating. Both editors sound blotto. I wish they had sat on these a bit, gave them another listen, then an edit or an overhaul. For every insight, they counter that with an asinine comment or bout of giggles. Bummer.

Listening to the audio commentary, however, I realized the editors had been tempted to include excessive nudity and more sex. Guys, next time push that pedal down. Go for it. As usual, tempo in the 13th series better than Elm. Real improvement is in the final FvJ. This edit kicks, and makes one dismiss the original damn quick. If you see no other film in this trilogy, be sure to give this a watch. Special note: Closing credits were a gem. Labor of love that kept me going, “Wait! That’s from … wait a minute!” Awesome treat.

I reviewed this back in 2015. Since then, the FE team has redacted this from the FEDB, although there are still active links on Info.
Good luck out there.

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Per Sempre - 1988 (Until Death) - Dr. Sapirstein

Filesize = 1.9 GB, Video = 1920 X 1080p AVC Audio = 128 kbps 2 Channel Stereo AAC, subs yes.

Fine Giallo of betrayal and murder, laced with the supernatural.
Linda, along with lover Carlo, murder her husband, then dispose of the body.
Eight years on, the duo are still together, though love has gone stale
Enter the handsome stranger. Penniless, yet will do handyman chores.
Audio remains so-so, though provided subtitles appear superior to readily available ones.
Video restoration is restrained, but levels are consistent throughout.
This is a good looking print and the story will satisfy mystery buffs.

Subs = https://subscene.com/subtitles/brivido-giallo-first-season/english/2700085

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Mayhem & Mistletoe - ThrowgnCpr

Batman Consecution short.
What a great little Christmas card this makes for your favorite Batman fan!
Wonderfully decolorized except for the gold, and the red.
And oh, those red cat lips.
Goes without saying, I liked the video work.
Audio was nice 2 channel, as well.
Best of all, the narrative held together.
Very satisfying appetizer.

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Pussy Control - Mollo

Short from the Batman Consecution.
A solid short, yet suffers in comparison with Mayhem & Mistletoe.
Unfortunately, whoever organized this consecution placed this immediately after ThrowgnCpr’s edit.
This is virtually the exact story, yet without the black n white style, nor the haiku brevity.
Plays out a bit longer, though the extra time adds little to the story.
Funny moments outweighed the lulls.
Absolutely worth a look, but do yourself and Mollo a favor and space these two Catwoman stories apart.

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The Grasshopper Lies Heavy (The Man In The High Castle) - Heavysyde

Filesize = 2 GB, Video = 1280 X 720p AVC, Audio = 128 kbps 2 Channel Stereo mp4a, no subs

Heavysyde wisely hones in on one storyline, that of Julianna and Joe.
This is wise, as theirs has the most momentum in a series long on windy promises, short on delivery.
Nonetheless, the resultant edit is still 4 hours long. Me, I watched in installments.
By and large, this is a satisfying version, with fine audio.
Video is solid. This is a darkish series, and this was a first-time edit, so I wondered about that.

For me, this is an improvement over the series, which was a colossal disappointment.
I watched three quarters of S02 before quitting. Spotnitz should have dialed Morgan and Wong.
Heavysyde mentions his edit is best for those who don’t want to delve too deep in this series.
Correcto mundo.

Links at Info.

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Doom: The Possessed Re-Cut - CBB

I never played the game. Disliked the movie (bought from the $2.00 junk pile)
Per the editor’s intentions: Is this darker?
Yes, the film was darker. Jokes excised, the mood stayed grim throughout.
Scarier? Maybe. There was greater tension, though I never cared for a single character so I was never fearful or concerned for them.
More sinister? No, I never thought that. Sinister would imply an evil agenda, and the narrative skirted this, rather than pushing it closer to the fore.

Audio editing was top shelf. No glitches, nothing weird. Listened through headphones.

Video equally fine. Seamless, nothing jarring, no artifacts or sloppy work.

The bonus extras I could have done without.
The shooter POV is direct homage to the popular game. I am betting there are a percentage of guys who loved that bit, and sighed during the bonus, “My favoritest part.”
And the lame flirt scene between Duke & Samantha? Should never have been included. That was the last thing I saw, and it left a sour taste.

The quality of the edit was great, and CBB’s work is holding up, ten years out.

Note: Boon’s edits are still on Info, though most links appear to be UseNet.

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A Cena Col Vampiro - 1989 (Dinner With A Vampire) - Dr. Sapirstein

Filesize = 2 GB, Video = 1920 X 1080p AVC, Audio = 127 kbps 2-Channel Stereo AAC, subs yes.,

Expert restoration of a silly vampire spoof from the 1980’s.
Four actors are invited to a lavish castle for dinner, only to discover their host is a 4000 year old Mesopotamian vampire!
Viewers who anticipate screaming, running, inferior acting, might enjoy despite deficiencies.
For one thing, the image work is jaw-dropping.

Other prints I had previously seen were grainy, washed out, damaged.
The clarity is sharp here, the colors sumptuous.

The castle is the real highlight in this, though the Count’s challenge makes a good puzzle.
This was made for television, so don’t expect gratuitous … anything.

English subs = https://subscene.com/subtitles/brivido-giallo-first-season/english/2700109

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Jigsaw Endgame a fanedit by Maniac and Zagadka

Blood, Gore and More Blood and Gore

Maniac and Zagadka have been at it again with a new collaboration from their twisted minds. These two need serious therapy.

Jigsaw Endgame seems to literally pickup where A History of Desperation left off. Bringing together scenes from both Saw III and Saw IV seamlessly, we are presented with Kramer’s endgame.

Jigsaw and his apprentices plan the final game teaching people to appreciate their lives as two FBI profilers help detectives suit through Jigsaw’s test and piece together the mortal puzzle.

I didn’t care for these movies when they were released. I did see a bit of genius in the writing. I think most people don’t get past the obese amount of gore that these movies throw at you to see the existential underpinnings. However, if I am to be force-fed existentialism, I’ll open my crate and get out my Skinner books and read them again.

The most depressing thing about this series is not the myriad of ways to torture but the bleak view of human nature, specifically our talent for ruining the present to avenge the past.

A point that is driven home in this edit that is quite intligent screenwriting is that Saw IV takes place during the events of Saw III (which you don’t realise until the very end). Amazingly, you learn through this edit and these two installments that the SAW timeline us literally all over the place. Minor characters return years later, and Jigsaw himself actually dies in Saw III, but that doesn’t stop him from coming back each time, without supernatural elements involved.

There are more dirty rooms, rotting flesh and elaborate torture. This time the masked sadist whose fondness for men in chains continues unabated, has decided to play marriage counselor to a couple whose young son has been killed in a car accident.

He creates a protégé in Amanda, a whack job who slices her own thighs when no one else’s are handy. Amanda probably spent a lot of time in her teens writing to men on death row.

Some new devices include a rack that twists one’s extremities until the bones pop out, and an abattoir-inspired scenario involving deliquescent pigs is enough to make you long for the stench of rotting corpses.

We are immediately given a reveal that the new games may not have been the work of Jigsaw. His point of giving his victims some chance of survival wasn’t followed here. The person being tortured would have died no matter what.

The tension that the first film had and to a lesser degree the second, is completely absent here. However, gore is definitely a big part of this movie and it utilizes it quite well. It’s used mostly in the torture storyline which continues to be the most interesting part of this franchise. We are to feel for our main character as he goes through each test and while it isn’t as emotional it could have been, it’s a decent study of grief, even when it feels a bit over the top. The driving force of this storyline also continues to be the anticipation of our character’s decisions which is interesting and captivating.

The good news is that, while not able to completely redeem the source material, Jigsaw Endgame is far more enjoyable than it’s parts. It is a far more character-driven affair than the SAW franchise as a whole, which often seems like an exercise in gore just for the sake of it. This is the most human that we’ve seen Jigsaw. John Kramer is now an ordinary man with extraordinary skills who, due to tragic events in his life, finally snaps. Jigsaw ends up being the most sympathetic character in the edit, which is no small accomplishment when you consider that he’s also the source of all the film’s violence.

It’s amazing how Zagadka and Maniac were able to come up with ideas to maximize on the little that was actually good about these films and bring them together into and edit that’s far more enjoyable and easy digested.

Much of the movies’ plots in this franchise rely on characters making completely arbitrary decisions. If someone opted to go left instead of right then Jigsaw’s entire plan could have fallen apart. It’s inconceivable to think that even a puppet master as ingenious as Jigsaw could have foreseen and prepared for every possible decision that his subjects would make. The edit highlights this arbitrary nature of the story’s construction. The ending that will frustrate as many viewers as it impresses.

Despite the flaws of the source material, Jigsaw Endgame is a gripping, fast paced thriller that will keep you engaged throughout. You may be somewhat confused avout what it all meant and how things played out, but you’ll also leave with a better understanding of Jigsaw as a character. If you liked the franchise or specifically, these two insane editors’ previous edit, Jigsaw A History of Desperation, you will love this edit.

Great work!

Forever in search of that one movie experience…

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The Rise of Skywalker Resurgence (2021) by Krausfadr

WARNING: The following will contain spoilers for Resurgence and The Rise of Skywalker. If you haven’t seen either movie and wish not to be spoiled then please stop reading now and do so. You have been warned.

Once again returning to the world of fanedits revolving around Star Wars and it’s a revisit in many more ways than one since this is an edit I’ve already spoken about in detail that had gotten an update that for a good while I was fairly certain wasn’t gonna happen. Resurgence is a very interesting attempt at reediting this movie. While some projects opt to just chop out just about everything to squeeze this into an hour and a half and others opt to play it like Ascendant and instead treat it as if The Rise of Skywalker in its current form just went through a second pass in the editing room, Resurgence aims for a restructure that attempts to push the controversial Palpatine revival towards being the middle of the movie while refocusing everything to be more on Ben and Rey’s story and maintaining consistency with both of the previous entries and the previous version did that I’d say very well though it was certainly not without its hiccups. Some of these problems included the seams being pretty noticeable overall in terms of how scenes were shuffled around, the sentence mixing to craft some of the new lines was a little wonky, there was a bit too much humor chopped out of it and the fanservice got a little out of hand. Though like I said, it was done well with some scenes, ideas and lines being so great that in some ways it comes even closer to being that ideal take on this movie than Ascendant was and with both receiving updates? I thought it was worth taking some time to revisit these and see how these enhance not just the original movie but also how they improve upon things from the previous edit. This also gives me an opportunity to review this a bit differently from how I did things the last time since rather than going over general thoughts and listing positives and negatives? I want to go through each act and cover what I liked and disliked which means, I’m spoiling this edit rotten so as the disclaimer noted? I’d like to ask that people please watch the original movie and the edit first before continuing on.

Act One

The first act in the original TROS is by far one of the biggest hurdles to get through when it comes to that movie. From the moment the crawl begins to at least when we get to Ochi’s ship? This is where it is very clear that the film was rushed to get to that December release date as the pacing is simply far too fast with very little room being left for anything to breathe. To be fair this was a criticism levied at TFA too but a watch of both I feel shows a very clear difference in how both are crafted. TFA feels like a thrill ride, one deliberately designed in a way that keeps things moving while making only the most necessary stops and pauses. It tries very hard to not waste any time on elements that would just drag the pace down and would be unimportant to the story. This was a return to form for the series and they make that very clear. TROS is a spice addict rushing to get their next fix who is currently on their seventh cup of coffee because they also happened to stay up for two days straight.

And it is with this act that I unfortunately have to begin with negatives. I never like being negative when it comes to fanedits because these are labors of love that have to deal with a lot of limitation. Editing a movie already sounds like one of those very challenging tasks to engage in in the first place but to do so with a fully finished movie where you are limited in terms of scene counts, dialogue, what has been put in trailers, what deleted scenes are available (And most importantly, the state they’re in when they were released.) among others is truly insane and these editors deserve nothing in that department but applause for undergoing a task like this which I’m certain for most people would just be way too tedious to endure, especially when it’s being done with a movie as messy as The Rise of Skywalker so let me be clear right now that all criticisms I make is not done from any place of malice or unfair expectations. Before we get to those though, there are positive elements I do want to point out here to be as fair as possible. For one thing, the crawl is very well done, it fills us right in on how things have been, it keeps it to the most relevant of information and is just overall a lot better than the original which just dumped on us that Palpatine is back with no build-up. I also really love the idea of restructuring the movie so that the reforging of Kylo’s helmet and the conference scene happen at the very beginning. Restructures are always so tricky in that you have to be mindful of more than just what scenes you choose. You also have to keep in mind that the flow of certain scenes are in part determined by their position in the movie which is reflected in their pacing and how they’re scored and so in terms of choices for what scene could be at the beginning? It makes the most sense to have it be these two scenes. I also really like the idea of changing out the destruction of Kjimi with the destruction of Corellia. It not only is a nice way of bringing in Kylo’s “let the past die” mentality but if one considers the first five Star Wars movies under Disney’s ownership to be the equivalent to Phase One of the MCU? It’s a great way of tying Solo into this and making this feel like a cohesive package. I also really like the focus on making Rey’s struggles with the Dark Side more pronounced like with her interaction with the serpent on Pasaana where unlike in the original movie, it is not her healing it that makes it go away but rather it senses the growing darkness in her and it leaves from fear which comes complete with a nice usage of the Imperial March and stunned silence from everyone else. I also generally like the idea of Palpatine’s reveal being moved towards the middle and the way the interaction between Kylo and Palpatine plays out is well done and sells not just how tense this meeting is but also the alliance is not simply Kylo being Palpatine’s puppet but rather a case of him using Palpatine for his own means which of course the man can also manipulate because he has seen this song and dance before. I also like how it keeps some of the more insane elements of TROS like the lightspeed skipping which I always felt was a very fun action beat in the original and I really missed it when watching Ascendant which just stripped it out entirely and finally, the fact it gives the Knights of Ren voices is awesome. I especially like hearing the mention of how their bond will never be broken during the reforging scene and the very grim comment about Chewie when they come across him. It’s not much but it really does wonders in selling these guys as genuine characters and not just a pack of Darth Mauls where you are required to read EU material to give them the gravitas and impact they need.

That being said? Notice how I pointed out more that I liked the ideas behind the the first act and haven’t really mentioned the execution that much. That’s because in terms of that aspect? It pains me to say that feel it is significantly sloppier here than it was in the previous edit, starting with the pacing which is way too fast. So many little scenes and dialogue exchanges have been cut to try and trim the fat which in of itself is not a bad idea but the problem is so much fat has been cut that it starts digging into the meat. Case in point, while the opening is a very nice idea? The problem is that we really don’t get many opportunities to breathe during these opening scenes and a lot of the cuts here feel they were done a lot more haphazardly than in the previous version or Ascendant. In particular I noticed how a lot of the cuts were to simply remove bits of humor and fun dialogue exchanges, sometimes to the point where portions of a scene get cut and there’s a jarring transition to some other location. Now on the one hand I get it, there are a good portion of people who really aren’t that big on the humor in these modern Star Wars films or even the MCU as there is this sentiment that it’s a little much or that it’s kind of cringe-inducing. But for me personally, I really like when Star Wars is quippy and fun for it not only feels reflective of those pulp action serials that George Lucas took inspiration from for his original films but also I feel like it helps give Star Wars its personality and while maybe a snip or two was needed with TROS? This feels like such an overcorrection that harms the film more than it helps it.

Though that’s not the only issue the snipping causes. For instance, in the conference scene where we have talking with a board filled with high ranking FO officers? We get mentions of Exegol, those that are living on the planet and the fleet as if the FO already been to the planet and has them already which is compounded further when we see the Star Destroyer fly up to Corellia and we see it both has the red markings and the red clad engineers. This is frustrating for a few reasons. First to nitpick the movie a bit, Kylo Ren at this point has had his helmet reforged and the whole point of the destruction of Corellia is to emphasize that this is the man committing to killing the past which is fantastic… though the problem is that reforging the mask in a way is kind of a symbol that Kylo isn’t aiming to kill the past. Now I genuinely am not sure how this could’ve been feasibly avoided because the movie really doesn’t offer much wiggle room but it still kind of bugged me. As for other complaints? This introduces a small continuity gaffe where we get the impression that Kylo and the First Order have obtained the fleet already only for them to then be introduced to it by Palpatine later in the movie with the music and all the framing of those scenes indicating this is supposed to be a reveal when now it just kind of isn’t and it makes previous lines that implied they knew about Exegol before seem kind of ludicrous since it meant they somehow missed Palpatine while getting this fleet.

Moving on, Kylo’s dialogue when Palpatine talks to him is also kind of wonky and while it’s cool to see where the Mustafar scene was moved and how it now has that gorgeous shot of Fortress Vader? Because we see the scene where TIEs are flying around Mustafar’s orbit? It makes the later scene where that is flipped way too obvious. Now being a fanedit, I also want to mention that I’m aware this is made in part for people who have seen TROS already and therefore they know Exegol and the fleet already. That being said, bear in mind if you think about this from the perspective of being Episode IX, at this point we have not seen Exegol and unlike other instances in Star Wars movies where events are mentioned but never seen? It’s a very big deal here and while we know there is a time-skip? Even movies that do that tend to try and ease the audience into the new stuff and unfortunately structure-wise this hurts the edit considerably. It results in the feeling that I either accidentally bumped the skip button on my remote and went back again or that the movie itself is skipping and unfortunately it just keeps that feeling the whole way through this act.

Act Two

Thankfully once we hit the second act? The movie finds its footing and keeps on a pretty steady pace overall. Granted this is nothing new since the same went for the original TROS where while the first act was way too fast and pretty clumsily done? The second and third acts are considerably better paced and here? I think there are a lot more positives such as how scenes are cut which feels so much more natural and like it’s done in service of the story. This is also where a great deal of changes are made in regards to certain twists that this movie has with the most pressing matter being Rey’s heritage. Now speaking on the original movie, I generally didn’t mind the reveal that Rey was a Palpatine… somewhat. Idea-wise? It reeks to me of a rushed attempt at giving the film the illusion of having more depth than it actually does by contriving a twist that tries to simultaneously respect TLJ’s decision to have Rey be a nobody while appeasing those who did not accept that explanation and it effectively pleases no one. Of course TROS has the reveal scene itself and simply cutting it out I have a feeling would’ve created more problems with me not really even being able to see how one could’ve edited around this so a reveal needs to be here and the twist that was implemented here is chilling, plays well into what has been seen in all the movies and it has been built up to very effectively.

In the first act through Rey’s visions, we already get the idea that there is a growing darkness within her and a worry of her becoming a Sith. We then get an effective showcase of how understandable those fears are when Rey scares away the serpent with the clear implication being it senses the Dark Side within her. We then get an effective mid-point climax to that when the Force struggle between her and Kylo over the ship happens and she ends up shooting out Force Lightning that’s strong enough to destroy the vessel, showing just how powerful this darkness is. Then we get Rey’s Force duel with Kylo and here is where I have to say the dialogue mixing here is solid across the board as it takes it from being Kylo simply teasing the audience about Rey being a Palpatine and turns it into Kylo poking and prodding her about an aspect of the truth he heard back on the Supremacy a year ago that he has discovered, an aspect she knows about and in turn something that has caught Palpatine’s interest. Then it gets to that encounter just before they’re ready to escape and we get the reveal. Her parents did sell her for drinking money and in her anger and sadness at that moment? She had killed them. Now this is a moment that was present in the previous version of this edit and it was only held back a tad by wonky sentence-mixing which the editor would inform me was an issue that occurred during the final rendering. Here though? While my ear was trained enough to pick up on the oddities? It is so negligible because overall it sounds so natural but even if it didn’t? This twist works so well. One could argue maybe that there didn’t need to be another layer but to me? This properly builds off Rey being a nobody while in turn adding more weight to the very real concern that Rey could turn which is an issue we saw beginning in TLJ and now we get its fever pitch here. It also works because it is something Kylo could feasibly tell Rey that would be a surprise. Keep in mind, Rey knows about the Force but she only truthfully knows about it in terms of stories and it was her training with Luke that helped set her on the path of truly understanding it beyond just the idea of lifting rocks and influencing the weak-minded. It also gives Luke’s fear over her heading straight to the Dark Side in the previous movie more weight because now we get an idea of how the Dark Side is in a sense kind of ingrained in her and it helps to inform why she’d eventually come to the conclusion that she’d need to exile herself like Luke did because at first of course she’d consider the idea that she’d need to take down Palpatine and how that’s all that matters but once her darker side just keeps coming out, it makes sense then that she’d come to fear what she could do and decide that it’d be safer if she’s out of the equation.

Another thing I want to point out here is that with all the natural cuts comes some really good choices in the form of cutting a great deal of Maz Kanata’s dialogue and most specifically her line regarding Leia knowing what she has to do with the scene instead being cut to where we can infer what she’s doing purely through her actions. Now look I love Maz but if there is one problem I had with the ST as a whole? I personally feel Maz as a character served her purpose in TFA and that she was fine as a cameo in TLJ and that is where it should’ve stayed. Maybe, just maybe the film if it was reworked more extensively could’ve given her a larger role but honestly I feel she should’ve just been relegated to a cameo, maybe at the end when everyone is celebrating the fall of the First Order because she just was not needed here. At most she provided very useless exposition here and some very unneeded fanservice so less of her is honestly a good thing and as a result? It improves upon Leia’s death because the edit also chops out her line to Leia which I thought I was going to end up disliking but the scene is now more poignant. Hell on this watch my eyes actually started watering a little. I also have to note here that by cutting out Rey using Force Heal for the first time with the serpent? It makes the moment in which she uses it on Ben have in a way a lot more impact. Now there is a small issue with this one could bring up and that’s how in the original film the first time it’s used does a good job of introducing us to the ability and its concept while here it comes kind of out of nowhere but honestly I think it still works. For one thing, Force Heal has been a thing in so much Star Wars media that it’s pretty easy to accept it. As an ability it just makes sense for the Jedi to have and visually the idea of it allowing the user to give some of their life-force to another is still conveyed and in a way, one could consider how it works now comes in parts since we see Rey heal Ben and later we see Palpatine steal life from the two of them before finally ending with Ben giving his energy to Rey

That being said, this still has a couple of problems that need addressing. For one thing now that the Palpatine twist is removed? Luke noting that there are some things stronger than blood feels a lot more… odd. I don’t necessarily see how it could’ve been done differently necessarily but it still feels very weird. There’s also still some weird editing where scenes go faster than they should be and you also get an issue that involves one of our returning OT cast members and that’s Lando. Now I’m gonna be frank, I personally feel Lando’s inclusion in TROS was a weak inclusion anyway. Whereas Han, Luke and Leia felt like believably aged versions of the iconic trio and not like a group of out-of-touch boomers who are unable to accept that time is passing? Lando felt like he was just the same he always has been and really seemed unnecessary to the whole proceeding. Granted I understand some of it is due to both the rushed production and also Billy Dee Williams himself being not in the kind of state to where he could do a whole lot but even so, this just always comes across to me as more a glorified cameo for the sake of fanservice than it does an actual integral inclusion and the solution Resurgence comes to for attempting to fix this is… well it’s both a hit and a miss. On the one hand, it does chop out lines that has Lando just state that he’s not cut out for this so it gives you the idea he’s just more involved to begin with and it makes for a pretty satisfying bit of editing where after Poe says to Leia’s corpse that he’s not ready, it cuts right to Ahch-To where we see Rey is having a crisis of her own instead of lingering so that Lando could give advice to Poe. On the other hand, it makes his appearance at the briefing more sudden and awkward and it also really highlights just how unnecessary he is. Speaking of awkward, the edit also cuts out a good chunk of Poe’s speech to everyone and just leaves it in silence for a good couple of seconds too long until he suddenly speaks again which considering we don’t get idle chatter and sounds of everyone preparing for this battle and the way Poe’s dialogue comes back in? It sounds like Oscar Isaac momentarily forgot he should be giving a speech and that he noticed and picked it up again moments later. It takes what should be a triumphant “Kriff yeah! Let’s go take the First Order down.” kind of moment feel very awkward. But aside from that? This is still the point where the movie really picks up steam.

Act Three

The third act is in this instance what I’d consider to be… in the middle as far as quality is concerned for this edit. In terms of positives, this has some of the strongest positives I can give it. The moment where Lando flies in with so many ships from Star Wars’ history is awesome and all the call signs that are being thrown out really adds to the moment and makes it so much cooler. I love the dialogue the Knights of Ren have with Ben, especially lines like “You’ll join your father soon.” and when Ben gets the lightsaber, I really love the added joke to emphasize the shrug by having one of them say “That’s just not fair.” and what I think was a pitched down Wilhelm scream when one of them gets tossed. I quite like Palpatine just quickly tossing Ben to the side. On the one hand… it’s kind of a little too quick considering he is so important to this trilogy but on the other hand, I love the idea that Palpatine is just so done with Skywalkers and their nonsense that he’s willing to just take him out and get this Sith revival train rolling. It makes it seem like he genuinely learned from ROTJ and that’s something I can respect. I really like the… idea of the enhanced involvement of the Force Ghosts and when they’re shown at a distance, it’s a really cool effect and even if I’m bugged slightly by the close-up shots we get if only because it’s obvious it’s old footage? It’s still a nice idea at least and I even like cutting out Palpatine’s line insulting Rey’s origin as a scavenger since “I am all of the Sith!” is a great enough line for it.

But this is also where the fanedit’s biggest missteps is in. As Luke Skywalker stated, with powerful light comes powerful darkness and in this case? Indeed for the really good decisions made there are a ton of really awkward ones that are there to match it. The pacing kind of goes up and down. Some of it’s understandable as I get it’s editing out the “Rey Palpatine” stuff and there’s only so much you can do with that but in terms of other moments? The scene where the ships come in is edited really awkwardly to where the Wedge cameo and the added “FOR SKYWALKER!” shout wind up having way less impact than they should, there are a lot of odd cuts that are there clearly to speed scenes up and they’re done without much regard for flow and in one instance it messes up a music cue and then… there’s everything involving Palpatine’s death and the Force Ghosts and I want to start with the former because it’s easy to get through. It includes a classic Star Wars music cue at a point where it really throws off the music and from there we get such a rushed clash between Rey and Palpatine which cuts down tons of scenes and it even takes out Rey’s “And I… am all the Jedi.” comeback and instead replaces it with a sharp “NO!” which to me was such a bad call. I know there are mixed opinions regarding “I am all the Jedi.” as a line, especially when considering the movie came out a few months after Avengers Endgame and felt like it was more just trying to ape the famous “I am Iron Man.” moment and doing so very haphazardly instead of being its own thing but I feel when you have nothing there? The moment loses quite a bit of impact. This is Rey vanquishing the Emperor supposedly for good and yet with how the scene’s edited, it feels so off and like it’s just the Emperor being taken down for now and that he’ll back like a villain from Saturday Morning cartoons. Then there’s the Force Ghosts and here it’s indicative of a problem I feel this edit and Ascendant both grapple with to varying extents and that is the utilization of fanservice.

Fanservice in of itself is to be expected when it comes to fanedits and legacy sequels like the Sequel Trilogy and it’s not inherently bad. When done well, fanservice is that nice little reward for longtime fans who have dedicated so much of their time to these series, hence why the term is called “fanservice” and to be fair? This edit has some good instances of fanservice and in the case of Ascendant, near-perfect use of it. For instance, the quick shots of Han’s death we get from Kylo as the mask is being reforged? Those are brilliant uses of it as it gives us an indicator of what’s going through his head as he prepares to do the unthinkable with his father’s home planet. I also love the imagery of Rey standing up with the Force Ghosts faintly being behind her. It’s pushing things a little bit with the close-up but otherwise that’s fanservice done very right as it’s very subtle and it feels like it’s only adding to the moment rather than taking away from it and like careful consideration has been given to when it should show up and even the moment I said is pushing things I kind of forgive because… well this is Episode IX. This is supposed to be the finale to the Skywalker Saga and at least from what Lucasfilm and Disney have said? There seems to be this indication that it also could mean the end of the numbered episode films so I already know I’m gonna try to be more lenient when things get a little fanservicey. However, there does exist a point where fanservice can be pushed too far and I feel it is important to keep one thing in mind. Fanservice being unnecessary is not in of itself a reason to not use it. What you should consider is if the moment itself works without the fanservice and how said fanservice could enhance it. View it from the perspective of an audience member who isn’t in the know about fanservice. If it doesn’t add anything and instead comes across as just being thrown in for the sake of getting a rise out of the audience and is more distracting than great? Maybe that’s a sign the fanservice should either be tweaked or just plain removed. Case in point, having the scene where Han fell into the chasm in Starkiller Base fade in over the destruction of Corellia is an example of that. It’s incredibly distracting, adds nothing to the impact of the moment and instead takes away from it. The sentiment that Kylo is killing the past is already made very clear just through various filmmaking choices and editing, throwing this in just feels like it’s trying to be even more obvious for the slow audience members in the back and get a rise out of the people who saw TFA. As for the Force Ghost moment? Seeing them raise their hands and getting close-ups of them while they’re doing it is a big problem.

I get the idea being presented here and it’s a cool one. It’s showing generations of Jedi getting involved and it gives us a more visual take on what Rey wanted when she said “Be with me.” and the idea that all the Jedi reside with her. That being said? I feel this is an instance where less is more. Having the Ghosts be with her faintly appearing is more than enough to establish that the Force is with her, that generations of Jedi are with her and that they have her back as she ends an evil that has caused them so much grief for good and in a way if I have to justify them appearing in close-ups? It emphasizes that these people are seeing Palpatine off as he is put down for good, this monstrous puppet master that once ended the Jedi Order and orchestrated events which resulted in the demise of several of who those Jedi deemed to be friends and allies in a moment that he thought was going to be the grand return of the Sith was actually them being put down for good and he has to live with the knowledge that not only will the Jedi continue to live on but as an extra kick in the teeth, he is ended by just some scavenger from a backwater planet who will no doubt be the beginning of this next generation of Jedi. Them doing more disrupts this to a considerable degree. This is Rey’s moment, the ultimate test of the next generation as it puts down an ancient powerful evil for good. Luke and Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan and Yoda? They got their moments, they had their movies. They are what Rey has grown beyond and seeing them play a pretty significant role in Palpatine’s defeat in my honest opinion takes from that idea more than it gives.

And unfortunately… that extends to the very final scenes. The kiss between Ben and Rey is still present and while I am not super for or against those two getting together? I really did not feel this was an earned kiss and while I respect that in terms of structure the scene can’t easily be cut? I just have to point out that it’s still not preferred for it to be here and neither is the editing here where it cuts to Leia becoming one with the Force after Ben gives his smile. I still don’t get if visually that’s supposed to imply that Ben and Leia went together or if Ben’s alive. Whatever the case, it feels super clumsy to me and takes away from the moment. Now there are positives to quickly run through. Seeing Bespin again was really cool, the cutting of Poe’s non-verbal request to kiss Zorii worked as did cutting out Lando and Jannah even if it really demonstrates how odd Lando’s inclusion in the movie was in general, I love the move of the holochess scene to the end and I like that we don’t have Rey looking to Luke and Leia. Her still giving herself the name of Skywalker is weird but at the same time I always liked the idea in the sense that it feels like it takes some pages from takes of the King Arthur legend where King Arthur becomes a title that various people would borrow over the years so the idea that Skywalker takes on that same status works for me. But… oh the inclusion of “Be with me.” and Yoda’s dialogue from ESB coupled with how I think the footage of Rey and the old woman are flipped really take away from scenes that really work best when they are quiet and intimate and thus instead of ending off on a very high note? I feel it kind of… well it doesn’t ruin the ending, it’s more like as the movie makes the landing it sprains its ankle badly and you just can’t help but notice it attempting to keep a straight face despite being very clearly in agony.

Verdict

Overall, I feel like the new version of Resurgence is sadly a mixed bag and much more so than the previous version. Plenty of the issues that older version had are still here and for every issue that seems to have been fixed? There appears to be a new flaw that rises up to balance things out. Don’t get me wrong, there are tons of great moments here and even more great ideas that, if put to use in another edit like maybe if some insane team was able to meld both the best of this and Ascendant together we could have the definitive fanedit of TROS. I also understand that a lot of effort went into this and that if I remember correctly, the editor even went through some health issues and trust me, that effort cannot and should never be knocked. It still deserves a watch and I’d highly recommend people do so because the talent behind this really gave it their all and if you have seen it and really love the edit? Keep on doing so, that is totally amazing. But unfortunately, I have to be honest even if others disagree or it comes across as being very harsh. In spite of its efforts, Resurgence in its current form is a very uneven edit. If I have to give it a number score? I’d say it’s a 5.5 out of 10. It has its moments and I don’t regret seeing it but it is far from the ideal edit of this movie and just comes out to be, much like the movie it’s editing, more than a little disappointing.