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Post #660180

Author
MTHaslett
Parent topic
Return of the Jedi: Radical Re-Edit (Released)
Link to post in topic
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/660180/action/topic#660180
Date created
16-Sep-2013, 3:22 PM

daneditor: I agree that the Jerjerrod scene runs a little long, but I'm not sure what you could cut, other than just ditching the whole scene: the ground battle is chaos... he orders in the TIE bombers... boom! I'm not married to the scene though, so might just ditch it. At the very least the music needs reworking.

**

 

Well, I see another option in recutting this bit. After looking again at the Jerjerrod scene, I see that what bothered me was two-fold.

FIRST -- the footage he was "watching" contained dramatic editing and camera angles that wouldn't be on his screen (specifically close-ups and camera moves on Stormtroopers shooting over the camera).

SECONDLY -- Jerjerrod's reactions are too long and too dramatic for what he's seeing.

Before I go on, I want to underline: I think this is an AWESOME idea. I think what you've done adds so much to the battle, it has to be applauded.

But I think the best version would be a much shorter one. It's very easy to catch on to what's happening, so Jejerrod's reactions do not have to be very long. Neither does the footage he sees. I like your outline-- he sees, he orders the tie fighters, boom. When it feels off to me is when he seems to react with anxiety and emotion-- things just aren't drastic enough to cause him any sweat. He might have a little sadistic glee, which his performance hints at. But if he just calmly watched, ordered them to concentrate on that area, and saw results on screen that would be great. Because just seeing his attention on the battle below and seeing any additional battle footage expands everything exponentially.

 

As a side note, I was struck again by how much I dislike the start of the battle where the ewoks and Threepio have teamed up to cause a distraction. I think skipping that and just going right to the ambush feels more dramatic. It also avoids the bizarre out-of-character heroics from Threepio. "We're doomed. So why don't I just stand up like a big target and have them shoot at me?" It feels forced, strongly out of character and easily avoided-- in my humble opinion.