logo Sign In

Kingdom of the Crystal Skull Edit Suggestions — Page 39

Author
Time

I liked Connery with the birds as well.  Willie screaming... pretty dumb, I wouldn't say dumbest.

Mind you, I thought falling in the raft was perhaps the least believable scene in the whole franchise.

Dr. M

Author
Time
 (Edited)

I had no problems with the dumb moments inthe original trilogy mostly because despite that they were still good films, well except temple of doom but even that has some fun parts.

Crystal Skull. the Whole movie is unbelievable even in the fictional sense of the indiana jones franchise.  I mean fucking Aliens in an indiana jones film, this is not star wars for crying out loud.

At least the original star wars and indiana jones trilogies had their own in universe set up laws and make believe set of Logic. 

But the star wars prequels and crystal skull pretty much are a farce of a once great series, and they throw their own in universe logic and laws out the window because now that we have cgi we can do anything.

The lack of solid characters, a plot or story can be forgotten as long as you can wow people with the effects and confuse them enough and take them off on a nonsensical tangent so your plot looks elaborate, like palpatine pulling the strings. When it is just a cover up of lazy movie making.

 

If you don't believe me look for the raiders story transcript online.  Where Spielberg and Lucas talk about selling the movie as believable.  Like when Lucas made star wars and empire the idea was for selling the stories as believble and not as camp.  Then that all was thrown out the window in temple of doom or return of the jedi.  By the time they made Last Crusade despite it being a fun action adventure, it was brought to the level of farce and not taking itself seriously.  Despite all that Jedi, Temple. and Crusade were still real craftsmen made films and not cgi pieces of shit.

“Always loved Vader’s wordless self sacrifice. Another shitty, clueless, revision like Greedo and young Anakin’s ghost. What a fucking shame.” -Simon Pegg.

Author
Time
 (Edited)

I had no problem with the aliens thing in Crystal Skull - it's certainly no sillier than the wrath of god in a box melting the Nazis faces. The movie has several major flaws (too many protagonists to develop properly, unnecessary CGI animals), but the aliens didn't bother me at all. The films have always been about thoroughly implausible maguffins.

As a fanedit, I think it needs a "light touch" - tightening here and there, sorting the colours and removing the odd redudant CGI critter or lame 'nut shot' joke, rather than the radical changes proposed.

But it's all about personal taste, I guess.



Author
Time
 (Edited)

I still don't see why everyone has such a big problems with aliens?

 

- A magical box that angels come out of and burn the faces of Nazis: GOOD

 

- Mystical stones that hold some great power for a people's survival: GOOD

 

- The cup of Christ which gives eternal youth to whomever drinks it being guarded by an 700 year old man: GOOD

 

- Interdimensional beings that are looked to as gods by the ancient myans: TERRIBLE

 

I just really fail to see how the "aliens" are really so different and out there compared to the rest of the series and the macguffins.

 

 

Author
Time
 (Edited)

My problem is not the fact that the macguffin deals with aliens, but I was hoping (maybe THAT is the real problem) for a movie more grounded in realism in the way things are shown (like in Raiders). God, aliens, I don't care, I wanted a believable movie.

I personaly don't believe in God but when I watch Raiders I kind of believe in what I see.

I personaly think we are not alone in the universe, but when I watch Skull I don't believe those interdimensional beings were here in 1957...

Author
Time
Histeria said:

 

I had no problem with the aliens thing in Crystal Skull - it's certainly no sillier than the wrath of god in a box melting the Nazis faces. The movie has several major flaws (too many protagonists to develop properly, unnecessary CGI animals), but the aliens didn't bother me at all. The films have always been about thoroughly implausible maguffins.

As a fanedit, I think it needs a "light touch" - tightening here and there, sorting the colours and removing the odd redudant CGI critter or lame 'nut shot' joke, rather than the radical changes proposed.

But it's all about personal taste, I guess.



 

 

In a review I wrote on another site, I mentioned that the problem is not that the story centers around aliens, but that, unlike all the other movies, the power behind the crystal skull (the aliens) actually appear on-screen. If Jesus had walked out of a crack in the wall in Last Crusade, it would have been a different movie, and one equal to the sum of its parts rather than greater than the sum of its parts. Same goes if God appeared in Raiders or Shiva appeared in Temple of Doom.

Take care,

Ryan

 

Author
Time

ID has some personal problems so has taken so time off.  As for anyone else, the only one that was speaking of an active edit was Jones but he all but gave up when ID started his in full force.

 

 

Author
Time

I've been following this thread for a while, but I'm still confused.  How many projects does this thread cover?  Have any of them actually been released yet?

Author
Time

Hey yo!

Here's a fan edit worth knowing about if you haven't seen it yet-- '50s style RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK! Link

This Youtube vid captures a lot of what inspired the original Raiders -- I mean literally inspired it.  I didn't realize how much Chuck Heston was the prototypical Indiana Jones.

Author
Time

The Charlton Heston "Indy" Footage from the trailer is mostly taken from "Secret of the Incas", a 1954 adventure flick. Heston's "Harry Steele" has been one of the key influences for Indy. 

Author
Time
 (Edited)

For those that haven't heard, Indy 5 looks to be a certainty.  Ugh.  Maybe it'll be like Star Trek except the odd number Indy films are good.

Btw, that YouTube video is pretty cool.  Is the scene where he's tied up in front of the ark from Secert of the Incas as well or something else?

Dr. M

Author
Time

Doctor M said:

Maybe it'll be like Star Trek except the odd number Indy films are good.

It's all down to taste... Temple has always been my favourite.

 

What?

Author
Time

Some bad news to report here: I've been informed that ID will not be returning to this edit anytime in the foreseeable future. Understandably, the personal situation he has been dealing with has not allowed him the time or energy to return. So keep ID and his family in your thoughts/prayers. He's had some rough times recently and lets hope things get better for ID and his family real soon. Based on my year of working with him on this edit, it is clear he is a very talented fella and a good guy all around. I wish him the best.

The work ID has done thus far on this edit has been inspiring in many ways, as is the contributions made on a technical and creative level by several others on this thread. Now it looks as though someone else will have to step up and take the reins.

List of propsed changes to Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull  http://originaltrilogy.com/forum/topic.cfm/Kingdom-of-the-Crystal-Skull-Edit-Suggestions/topic/9732/

Author
Time

We're talking over at the other forums about finishing this edit for ID (though we would not consider this his true edit). There's been a lot of good work done over here (Laser, etc) that would be a great contribution to the work done over there. So if anyone is interested in lending a hand please let us know. 

List of propsed changes to Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull  http://originaltrilogy.com/forum/topic.cfm/Kingdom-of-the-Crystal-Skull-Edit-Suggestions/topic/9732/

Author
Time

I have done some very basic but in some cases radical edits to scenes and wanted some feedback. Is this thread alive? If not, where is the one that is, if any?

Author
Time

BelloqLugosi said:

I have done some very basic but in some cases radical edits to scenes and wanted some feedback. Is this thread alive? If not, where is the one that is, if any?

 Let's see em! :D

Author
Time

I'd be interested in seeing.

Ryan

Author
Time
 (Edited)

I'm waiting for a confirmation from the fanedit forums, where I am told there's a more active thread. I'm the definition of a newbie when it comes to this so I want to read that and see what this is all about and where the best video hosting options are, because I know YouTube often pulls stuff like this. For now though, here's the two videos I have up (if they aren't down already!)

 

First of all let me just say again I am new to this and am not really sure how people feel about what to edit. I look at KOTCS and see a movie that has so much about it that works, and then a few punches to the gut that don't, which seem bigger than they are because of a fairly flabby editing approach. Spielberg seemed to be lightening things up to make it some kind of War of the Roses bickerfest, and also slow things down in order to make an old-fashioned movie, but if I recall Roger Ebert saying that Raiders moved at such a pace that you could almost never go back to the old style of action scene again, and I wanted to up that ante. Normally I don't like modern quick-cut action like the Dark Knight, but I feel that just taking frames out here or there, or a very CG looking reaction shot, or a little gag that isn't funny, etc., can really make a scene that in the theatrical felt awkward and underwhelming suddenly come alive by adding some urgency.

So my edit is going to be a highly subjective attempt at making the Indy movie I wanna see in that spirit: keeping things moving, leaner, less about Indy's age and clumsiness, and more like it came out in 1999 rather than 2008.

Some of the changes are going to be substantial. I am taking out the big moments that bother me (the gopher opening, the tree-as-landing-pad-and-ramp, any character moments which don't work, and in large part, yes, the aliens)

The first is the scene with Indy, Marion and Mutt tied up in the back of the truck, the first part of the "Jungle Chase".

Changes include:

 - Trimming of most of the unnecessary backstory. It felt like a screenwriter's attempt to recap 20 years and it didn't add anything, and I felt added a loud comic tone that was more reminiscent of the worst exchanges between Indy and Willie rather than harkening back to the feisty but sweet bickering of Indy and Marion in Raiders. It also was awkward that Marion was just telling Mutt she lied to him about his parentage all these years. This way, I figure when Mutt says "You're not my father" to start the scene, it's open to interpretation that Mutt always knew his Stepdad was not his biological dad, but that he simply is in disbelief that the biological dad is in fact Indy and making the point that even if he is his "real" dad, he doesn't consider Indy his father.

 - Trimmed the weird "A-OK!" nod Indy gave Mutt after kicking the guard. Just felt a little too Brock Landers/Chest Rockwell to me.

 - Trimmed the truly pointless gag with the knife falling as the guns outside are being loaded up. Is that even the joke? I don't know, and I've seen it ten times, which is why it had to go. This Indy is all business and simply cuts the damn rope like I assume he has many times.

 - Trimmed Marion's Pantene commercial smile as she comes out of the truck. It was cute, but it was too soon after the last shot of her was a big beaming smile, and it just came across strange. Now she simply jumps out and he hands her the wheel, she's an equal of Indy rather than a fawning damsel.

 - Added revving engine sound effect to scene where Mutt jumps out of the truck. In the theater it looked like he was checking his mom out or something, very awkward, but in hindsight I think he's just marveling at seeing his mom driving the truck. But Shia is overacting the moment, so I added the revving engine sound to explain why he looks down at her legs, by indicating that Marion is charging this truck as hard as it can go, which slightly surprises and maybe even worries him, but also makes him proud.

 - Added music cues, like more tense music from the "Basket Chase" Raiders piece as Indy is untying Marion, to give a little history as well as a tonal contrast to the moment where he sweet-talks her before jumping out of the truck. Also added the Indy theme as he pulls out the rocket launcher and generally tossed some tone pieces during the surprising amount of musical lulls.

(Overall I am not going to be shy about using old music from the previous films to give some pop to this edit, because I felt the score, like a lot of John Williams recent material, was safe and bland. And since the movies are pretty openly calling on our old memories to make many of the scenes work, I figure it can stand to flagrantly steal some of the more iconic pieces in the series.)

The second video is the rest of the jungle chase.

Changes include:

 - General tightening of the action and compression of events to eliminate the flaccid, obligitory nature of the original (which screamed "set piece" a little too loud) and turned it into a fast, furious chase scene heavy on action.

 - No Marion commentary during swordfight. This was on the line. I kind of liked that it was a moment of realizing Marion was one of those overbearing moms who has to comment on everything her kid is doing. But I kind of hated it for the same reason. I feel that Marion's presence in the movie is largely supposed to be about feeling her original spirit come along for another adventure, not so much changing her into a cougar pageant mom.

 - No ball shots. Indefensible.

 - No "Dawn of Tarzan" moment. Now Mutt gets stuck in a vine, launched up into a tree, and the chase is trimmed tighter to make it plausible that they simple drove out of the jungle and then circled around to follow the river, and when he sees them drive by through an opening, he grabs a vine and swings in. Still a little silly, but far less "prequelish" than the theatrical.

 - Removed the "Whoa...WHOA!" exchange. To Harrison's credit he delivered well and the idea of it wasn't bad, and if you are into Mutt as a character then its a nice acknowledgement of his first Indy-style heroics. But for me, I wanted this movie to be more about Indy. But I think the result is actually that Mutt is more likeable. He's less preening and whining and more action-oriented, and seeing him less actually makes us want more, I think.

 - Also made Mutt's decision to go to the sword a little more organic. It feels less like, "Oh what a coincidence, Spalko prefers the sword and Mutt happens to be getting his sword out too!" The way they get them out at the same time, but almost as independent actions, feels wrong. Now it's more clear that when Spalko goes to the sword, it is the thing that sparks the idea for Mutt to look for one as well. It's reasonable that he wouldn't think to use his fencing skills until he sees her go to her sword, and when he sees that he thinks to look for one himself, figuring that's one area where maybe he can take her.

 - At the beginning of that scene, I also felt like Indy saying "Stop being a child" was a little too cute (hey, he's your child!) but I did like him telling Mutt to find something to fight with, also gibing some narrative momentum to him looking for something around him to fight with. So now Indy delivers that line alone, and then bolts right into the jeep and starts punching fools, including only punching Mac once and meshing it with later cuts to the jeep to make it all more continuous. Someone needs to tell Lucas and Spielberg to stop intercutting everything.

http://www.youtube.com/profile?edit=1#p/a/u/1/fmhNLXxmesk

Author
Time

Hey BL,

Your ideas seem great and fit pretty well with my idea for the proper tone of the movie. I'd like to see the videos but I can't access them at the youtube link.

Ryan

Author
Time

Have they been taken down, or do you just not get youtube where you are? I can put them somewhere else, I wasn't sure what the best options are.

Author
Time

I'm thinking there may be a problem with the link. When I click it it takes me to my own profile on youtube.

Can you post direct links to the individual videos?

Ryan

Author
Time

Both videos have been taken down. You'll have to post somewhere else. Maybe something like megaupload or some other service.

Ryan