"Pearl Harbor: ADigitalMan's "Strength And Honor" Edit.
Sometimes the love story makes the movie. Sometimes it breaks the movie. And sometimes it's
just there. The love triangle in Pearl Harbor stunk. ADM removed it from the Director's cut.
And the result--- rocks!
New Running Time: 128 minutes
Stats: NTSC, Anamorphic, Dolby Digital 5.1 (448 Kbps)
Covers: Darth Enzo's, Blaksvn's & Kracker's
Size: 4.38 GB (4,696,495,361 bytes) (Without some covers ** & before my nfo & junk).
** Note: This disc, as torrented, wouldn't fit on an SL disc. So, I reluctantly removed most
of Blaksvn's awesome covers from the Dvd-rom folder. All of Blaksvn's covers are in this rar
set, and a download link is in the Dvd-rom folder. Kracker's (newer) are also in the rar set.
It was a tough choice, but I'm a sucker for old-timey-poster covers of Darth Enzo's.
10% Pars. The rars have a recovery record. If you need more pars, reply to this nfo (limited time offer).
Md5 & Sha1 verification files included (see below).
http://www.originaltrilogy.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=11&threadid=2474&STARTPAGE=1
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ADigitalMan says:
I write this having completed my first viewing of the final cut. This may be the
finest re-edit I've done. Using the R-rated Director's Cut as my basis, I have
completely removed the awful romantic love triangle and thereby turned this into
a kinetic war movie that focuses entirely on the lead-up and attack on Pearl
Harbor, and the Doolittle Raid on Tokyo. Like Titanic, Pearl Harbor was really
two movies in one. A story of a historical disaster, and a love story. It made
Titanic float, but it made Pearl Harbor sink. By removing the ham-fisted love
story, the movie becomes a visually stunning actioner that hits the gas and
doesn't let up for two hours.
We see the genuine comradery between lifelong buddies Rafe and Danny without any
pointless tension thrown in. We respect Evelyn as a capable nurse who rises to
an incredible challenge. She isn't romantically linked to either character,
which keeps the focus on the looming war from all sides ... Rafe's combat post
in the RAF, Danny, the other flyboys and nurses posted at Pearl, the newsreels,
the intelligence and analysis in Washington, and the preparation of the Japanese
for the attack. When all hell breaks loose, we're squarely focused on it, and
not on false tensions written out of a marketing playbook.
Some scenes were moved around in the first act to improve flow, but rather than
pulling out little bits here and there, I mostly lopped out giant sections and
left others intact. Just remember, the Ritalin-challenged quick-cut editing
style is Michael Bay's work, not mine. The most finessed part of the edit is the
bar scene upon Rafe's return. Instead of having lifelong friends sniping at each
other and descending into fisticuffs over a woman, we have Danny somewhat
speechless and in awe of his friend who has returned from the dead. Moments like
that aren't moments for anger and hate, they're cause for celebration, and
that's how the scene now plays out.
Oh, and Bruce Willis is taken right the F--- out of this film. If there ever was
a moment that pulled me out of a movie, it's was seeing John McClane limping
around in triage behind Jennifer Garner's bewildered Nurse Sandra. That one shot
drained all the emotional investment the attack built up. All it needed was a
"Yippie-kay-yay" as a final punch. Whatever. It's gone, and Jennifer Garner's
moment of clueless despair right along with it. It only improves her character
and keeps you emotionally invested in Nurse Betty's death.
Kate's voiceover brings the film to a pitch-perfect close. No cheesy scenes of
"the family" flying about in the clouds. The end is more patriotic, more noble,
and yes, more uplifting than a crop duster.
What we're left with is a film that pays genuine tribute to the men (and women)
who fought and died at Pearl Harbor, and those who lived on to fight out World
War II. Clocking in at 2 hours 8 minutes (including credits) it feels like the
perfect length.