- The deleted scene where Sebulba flashes his vents has an issue with the black bars from the aspect ratio. They appear white, which makes the whole sequence kinda stick out like a sore thumb.
Glad you pointed it out, though. Thankfully only affects the larger version since the others are cropped.
It’s also appears in the main version too.
I figured. I cropped the clip slightly so the black bars align precisely but then when I overlaid the grain layer… it shows up that way. Simple fix, simpler than most other things that could have gone wrong.
I never had the nerve to make the final cut.
All fixed now, safe to re-download.
I never had the nerve to make the final cut.
That was quick! Thanks.
Really just takes a few clicks of the mouse to re-export and re-mix!
I never had the nerve to make the final cut.
Hal, thanks again for making these max versions!
Been around since V3 of your prequel edits. They have definitely come a LONG way. Your hard work is much appreciated.
The Star Wars Saga:
I · II · III · IV · V · VI · VII · VIII · IX | Rogue One · Solo
What was first just a dream has become a frightening reality…
Finally got round to checking out the max version this morning, very nice work Hal very much appreciated.
Is the audio commentary available by itself or is it only included with the video file.
Was just wondering as now I’ve got more into editing would love to hear your thoughts and ideas behind your edits.
update
Just downloaded a tiny encode version as that has the audio commentary also.
Recommend fans give it a listen to and looking forward to listening to episode II and III.
I avoided this fanedit for a long time until recently discovering the Max version. I know it sounds petty, but I actually really like the underwater scene enough to avoid edits that remove it.
Anyway, great job on this edit, Hal9000. I thought I’d note a few pros and requests (rather than cons):
What I loved:
-Your rendition of the final battle is definitely the best around. I didn’t notice any awkward moments or cuts. Anakin seems like he didn’t just blow everything up by mistake, and I enjoyed that. Maybe one day AI can change his “take that!” line into something like, “hey, there’s the reactor!”, but you can’t have it all right?
-I like the new background behind C-3PO. It surprisingly works well, and the new scenes fit right in. For once, C-3PO was not annoying.
-Most of the annoying lines/scenes I hate had in fact been cut, and this is a good thing. I didn’t miss any of the content that had been cut with Jar Jar.
-At the same time, I am happy you kept just a little bit of the humor in. Some edits cut EVERY scene that make the Jedi imperfect and/or humorous, and I feel this is unnecessary.
-The quality of the edit as a whole is amazing. Thank you for not adding grain like some other edits do!
Requests:
-I miss the first scene with the Droidekas at the start of the movie. With this scene absent, there is no introduction to these droids. When they appear later, their destructive power has not been established and it feels like it should have been. I also like this scene in general and didn’t know anyone disliked it. Could I request that it be reinstated to the max edition?
-I’m also confused why the scene was cut in which Jar Jar comes out of the water saying the Gungans aren’t there. I don’t remember any annoying antics with Jar Jar there. The new edit of this scene is awkward with Jar Jar’s voice talking while the screen pans over to the Gungan sacred place (it suddenly seems like Jar Jar is narrating the film).
-I’m surprised you kept the annoying Jar Jar shout and leap into the water near the start of the movie, but I suppose I can overlook that one!
-I’m also surprised the scene was kept in which Jar Jar juggles the booma and accidentally kills a droid on the tank, but I guess if you were to cut that the battle scene would become too short and potentially awkward…
-I sort of wish even more of the underwater scene was reinstated (the part with the giant eel in the cave), but at the same time I also hate all the antics with Jar Jar here, so I’m sure it would be VERY difficult to edit him out and keep that scene at all…
Anyway, thanks again for an awesome edit! I’d say this is my personal favorite for Phantom Menace.
Edit: As for the scene with the Gungans, I also realized the conversation between Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon was cut. This also feels like a loss to me. I think this scene is necessary as a conclusion to the conversation that took place at the Jedi Council. It shows the bond between Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan. Without this scene, there is less gravity behind Qui-Gon’s death. It also shows the compassion Obi-Wan has for Qui-Gon and how he is willing to overlook his faults because of it. It ties everything together between the master and the padawan.
I’d like to add a couple of my own opinions here in response to your review, Lightning…
Requests:
-I miss the first scene with the Droidekas at the start of the movie. With this scene absent, there is no introduction to these droids. When they appear later, their destructive power has not been established and it feels like it should have been. I also like this scene in general and didn’t know anyone disliked it. Could I request that it be reinstated to the max edition?
This was removed because we need to remove the Force speed/teleport. This ability doesn’t show up anywhere else in Star Wars canon, and it introduces a plot hole when Obi-Wan is trying to catch up to Qui-Gon and Maul later on.
-I’m also confused why the scene was cut in which Jar Jar comes out of the water saying the Gungans aren’t there. I don’t remember any annoying antics with Jar Jar there. The new edit of this scene is awkward with Jar Jar’s voice talking while the screen pans over to the Gungan sacred place (it suddenly seems like Jar Jar is narrating the film).
Admittedly, while I agree this is kind of awkward, I also think its exclusion helps with the pacing of the movie a lot. We’re coming off the tail end of a bunch of political scenes (and now even the midichlorian exposition) so it’s important to get into the action quicker.
-I sort of wish even more of the underwater scene was reinstated (the part with the giant eel in the cave), but at the same time I also hate all the antics with Jar Jar here, so I’m sure it would be VERY difficult to edit him out and keep that scene at all…
I think the underwater sequence is at a perfect length at the moment. The pacing feels like it lines up with how long it would take for the droids to reach the city.
Anyway, thanks again for an awesome edit! I’d say this is my personal favorite for Phantom Menace.
Agreed!
Edit: As for the scene with the Gungans, I also realized the conversation between Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon was cut. This also feels like a loss to me. I think this scene is necessary as a conclusion to the conversation that took place at the Jedi Council. It shows the bond between Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan. Without this scene, there is less gravity behind Qui-Gon’s death. It also shows the compassion Obi-Wan has for Qui-Gon and how he is willing to overlook his faults because of it. It ties everything together between the master and the padawan.
This is a scene which I do think could be hypothetically reinstated. I don’t know enough of the history of this edit as for why it was initially removed, but if I had to take a guess, it’s probably because of Obi-Wan’s bad wig and also because it foreshadows Qui-Gon’s death too much. Characters don’t talk like this unless something bad is about to happen lol.
Jar Jar Bricks said:
This was removed because we need to remove the Force speed/teleport. This ability doesn’t show up anywhere else in Star Wars canon, and it introduces a plot hole when Obi-Wan is trying to catch up to Qui-Gon and Maul later on.
Thanks for the response. Mind you, this debate is over small things here, but I’ll bring up my counter argument nonetheless. Lol
I thought someone might bring up the super speed ability. Sure it might open up plot holes, but if you really think about it, there are a million other plot holes as is. Why pick on this particular one? For example, last night it occurred to me why Darth Maul didn’t just use a force push when Obi-Wan was hanging by a thread near the end. And why didn’t Yoda and the rest of the council join Obi-Wan and Qui-gon to face the possible Sith? The first Sith lord in who knows how long comes around, and they send two jedi while the rest sit around the council twiddling their thumbs. Wouldn’t they want to send their best? My only point here being that I don’t think every single potential plot hole needs to be dealt with. I’d rather just the cringe scenes be removed (and they have been). Besides that, haven’t you seen this video?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3dI-ghYimg
This is a scene which I do think could be hypothetically reinstated. I don’t know enough of the history of this edit as for why it was initially removed, but if I had to take a guess, it’s probably because of Obi-Wan’s bad wig and also because it foreshadows Qui-Gon’s death too much. Characters don’t talk like this unless something bad is about to happen lol.
I think this scene is a pretty hefty loss just to speed up the pace a bit. And I don’t think we need to consider foreshadowing when all of us here know how Star Wars ends anyway (and lets face it; there are no surprise endings to be found in the prequels). But maybe that’s just me! I do think this scene is the only poorly edited scene in this whole fan edit, though.
As for the other scenes I brought up, those aren’t even worth debating since they aren’t that big of a deal to me. This is still an amazing edit. Haha
For what its worth, I think that scene was removed with the thought that it would be more dramatically interesting if Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan didn’t get to resolve their differences before Qui-Gon’s life is taken unexpectedly. It gives Obi-Wan more emotional baggage that he takes into training Anakin. This is a change that I think goes all the way back to the original Phantom Edit.
For what its worth, I think that scene was removed with the thought that it would be more dramatically interesting if Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan didn’t get to resolve their differences before Qui-Gon’s life is taken unexpectedly. It gives Obi-Wan more emotional baggage that he takes into training Anakin. This is a change that I think goes all the way back to the original Phantom Edit.
Got it. It sounds like one of those changes that appears to be good at first when all the fans get together and discuss it, but later seems kind of redundant (especially when nobody even remembers why it was changed). All of us have seen the movie enough times to fill in the blanks, so the scene where Qui-Gon is killed will have no more or less gravity with or without this scene. In the end, it just kind of leaves a gap with an awkward scene transition.
I thought someone might bring up the super speed ability. Sure it might open up plot holes, but if you really think about it, there are a million other plot holes as is. Why pick on this particular one? For example, last night it occurred to me why Darth Maul didn’t just use a force push when Obi-Wan was hanging by a thread near the end. And why didn’t Yoda and the rest of the council join Obi-Wan and Qui-gon to face the possible Sith? The first Sith lord in who knows how long comes around, and they send two jedi while the rest sit around the council twiddling their thumbs. Wouldn’t they want to send their best? My only point here being that I don’t think every single potential plot hole needs to be dealt with. I’d rather just the cringe scenes be removed (and they have been). Besides that, haven’t you seen this video?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3dI-ghYimg
The fan base has come up with explanations for all of these, including the Force speed, admittedly:
I think the reason why I’d ultimately prefer the Force speed thing gone is because it’s never used again throughout the entire saga or the entire expanded media. It also feels like something the movie is purposely showing us that Jedi can do, such as the multiple times Qui-Gon uses the mindtrick, because it will become important to the plot later on. It’s like the failed Chekov’s Gun of Force powers.
For what it’s worth, somebody else stated previously in this thread that the way the teleport is edited made it feel like a mistake/error with the movie when they watched it the first time.
Yoda and the rest of the council don’t join them because, yet again, they’re blinded by their arrogance. They don’t believe the Sith could have returned without any of them knowing about it first.
Not true.
“We will use all of our resources to uncover this mystery.”
“This could be the clue that we need to unravel the mystery of the Sith.”
The real reason is that they cannot do so without the Senate’s permission.
“I can only protect you. I can’t fight a war for you.”
Star Wars, Paleontology, Superhero, Godzilla fan. Darth Vader stan. 23. ADHD. College Student majoring in English Education.
My Star Wars Fan-Edits
This was removed because we need to remove the Force speed/teleport.
We need? Well, what about you need?
Just kidding. But seriously, I feel both these perspectives about the introduction to the destroyer droids.
And octorox is right about the scene between Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan. I feel the weight is more put onto Obi-Wan without their having kindly made up. I think this also supports the angle that he “took it upon himself” to train Anakin. I just don’t think that pickup scene adds anything critical, even if I don’t dislike it.
I never had the nerve to make the final cut.
I used the term “we” because it was a recent change pushed forward by a lot more people than just myself.
G&G, I think your point is true, but there’s definitely an element of what I said blended in there. There was a lot of doubt coming from both Mace and Ki-Adi-Mundi. I think Mace’s statement of discovering the identity of their attacker was more of an empty platitude.
More than anything, I just feel something is missing without the intro of the Droidekas. They just have some awesome sounding lasers and the scene itself is well done. I actually couldn’t care less about the force running bit being cut.
As for the Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan scene, it’s not the end of the world for me that it’s missing, but I still feel like the transition is awkward with Jar Jar narrating. I just felt like the easiest way to fix that is to re-insert the Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon scene.
^ To be clear, JJB, I just saw a chance to make an ESB reference to Han and Leia’s hallway fight. 😉
I never had the nerve to make the final cut.
Ah, I can confidently say that I didn’t catch the reference lol.
If you don’t mind me throwing in my two cents? I really like how the scene is edited to remove the Force Speed stuff. It’s a little awkward at first if you know what was cut but with the footage, you can follow the throughline. Obi-Wan calls out to his master about the Destroyer Droids, Qui-Gon pulls away and looks like he’s getting ready to vacate the area, then you see the droids roll up. The implication is definitely that these things are not to be trifled with and also there’s an aspect where perhaps Qui-Gon quickly noted that trying to get to Gunray while leaving Obi-Wan to deal with these things on his own is a bad idea and then later we do see their shields in action, meaning we have further reasoning for why they escaped. I think what sort of leads to it feeling a little weird might be how quickly it goes to the “They are no match for Droidekas.” line which is one of those things that can’t be helped. I did think maybe there would be a way to just have the shields come up before as a quick moment that establishes more of why they escaped but then they start blasting SO soon after the shields come up that basically that’s an impossibility.
Agreed, I think the current version is great. Force speed just has to go, and the version we have now still retains the threat and the key plot beats.
I will say that the audio on the cut feels a little “poppy” - as in, you can hear audibly that a cut was made there. I don’t really feel that on any of the other cuts in Hal’s edit.
I do hear a little bit of that. Mainly I think it’s that you can hear the little bit of the shield activating and coupled with it going so quickly into the scene with Nute Gunray and Rune Haako (The dude that boasts about the Destroyer Droids) that it’s a little fast. I’d say it’s one of those edits where if you’re in a perfectly normal viewing environment, it won’t be too noticeable but if you’re tuned to edits and analyzing these tiny details, it’s especially noticeable.
And just to be clear, I was never requesting that the force speed be added back in (only the part with the Droidekas), but I know it would be difficult to add back in that scene while still cutting the force speed. I just love the sound as well as the effects of the Droidekas firing in that sequence.
I do still think the cut is strange with Jar Jar when they meet the Gungans, but maybe I’m the only one who feels that way?
