.Mac.

Braltika said:

.Mac. said:

…Alright steering this back on topic 😄

oh_riginal said:

adywan said:

Something i promised to show a while ago but ended up completely forgetting about, was the shot of Luke’s shuttle escaping the Death Star. So here it is:

Original version:

Revisited Version:

That shot took a hell of a lot of work. I had to slow down the gantry and other elements, yet keep the camera movement and the shuttle at the original speed, then track and add the new background. Couldn’t use the original stars to track because they suddenly stop their movement before the end in the original.

Should we not be able to see Endor in the reflection also…?

I think this is actually a great question, oh_riginal, so I hope this doesn’t get overlooked. I didn’t have a problem with it at first as I feel the forest moon is sooo far off in the distance that we wouldn’t see its reflection? But, I rethink that when I see a picture such as the following of a mountain where, even though it is far away, we still can see its reflection on the lake (granted, the distance between the forest moon/DSII is greater than the mtn/lake):

So really I’m not sure, lol, but I am leaning more towards “yes we should”. Maybe someone who definitely knows the science behind reflections can reflect on this and let us know? 😄 Or are you confident that it would, oh_riginal?

I know, this is a fantasy/sci-fi film, but getting even small details like this right is a very nice touch and does help with the immersion that this is all happening and “real”, imho 😃

I don’t think it should be visible because the hangar floor is “above” the planet. In the image you used as reference, the mountains rise higher than the lake. So I think the (the lack of planet) reflections are valid, the floor should reflect things that are “above” it, not below, from our point of view.

That’s a very good point, Braltika - good eye! Even if we see the moon outside (because of the height of the camera), I guess the hanger floor does appear to be slightly “above” the viewable portion of the moon, so you’re right (and Ady too!) we wouldn’t see it’s reflection after all 😃

Greatly appreciate the tremendous amount of work in just that short clip, Ady! Even the stars outside were atrocious not tracking correctly. I’m sure sweat may have been involved but I can only hope no tears and certainly no blood were shed 😄

…Alright steering this back on topic 😄

oh_riginal said:

adywan said:

Something i promised to show a while ago but ended up completely forgetting about, was the shot of Luke’s shuttle escaping the Death Star. So here it is:

Original version:

Revisited Version:

That shot took a hell of a lot of work. I had to slow down the gantry and other elements, yet keep the camera movement and the shuttle at the original speed, then track and add the new background. Couldn’t use the original stars to track because they suddenly stop their movement before the end in the original.

Should we not be able to see Endor in the reflection also…?

I think this is actually a great question, oh_riginal, so I hope this doesn’t get overlooked. I didn’t have a problem with it at first as I feel the forest moon is sooo far off in the distance that we wouldn’t see its reflection? But, I rethink that when I see a picture such as the following of a mountain where, even though it is far away, we still can see its reflection on the lake (granted, the distance between the forest moon/DSII is greater than the mtn/lake):

So really I’m not sure, lol, but I am leaning more towards “yes we should”. Maybe someone who definitely knows the science behind reflections can reflect on this and let us know? 😄 Or are you confident that it would, oh_riginal?

I know, this is a fantasy/sci-fi film, but getting even small details like this right is a very nice touch and does help with the immersion that this is all happening and “real”, imho 😃

adywan said:

https://youtu.be/Nw03j5wq0l0

Even with just the temp audio, wow, I think that works and flows perfectly - well done! It’ll take some getting used to (with the original so well-ingrained in memory) but this is certainly a good change to get used to 😉

I assume you’ll keep the siren blaring up until it gets cut off moments before the Imperials ‘fire-zipper’ the door, just like how you had it in the original Revisited? Always loved how you handled that detail and the impact it has on the scene.

And we’re glad to see you’re doing okay, Ady, even if your monitor currently is not. Hoping you can get that situation resolved soon but in the meantime we’re still here for you 😃

JoyOfEditing said:

.Mac. said:

Absolutely loved this, Joy! Very interested in seeing how this goes.

Also, couldn’t help but wonder what the Mon Calamari would possibly be saying to himself right after each kill.
…
“That was a trap.”
…
“That was a trap.”
…
“Heh, he fell for that trap!”
😄

“Wedge, why is Red 2 flying a Y-Wing?”

Wedge: “If I let Fadlan fly an X-Wing, there’d be War Crimes.”

Wedge: “Also he doesn’t know yet that we didn’t have the Mon Calamari in mind when we designed the T-65.”

Absolutely loved this, Joy! Very interested in seeing how this goes.

Also, couldn’t help but wonder what the Mon Calamari would possibly be saying to himself right after each kill.
…
“That was a trap.”
…
“That was a trap.”
…
“Heh, he fell for that trap!”
😄

JoyOfEditing said:

My general take on RotJ is that I completely agree with HAL-9000 that RotJ is the first “Prequel”. All of the editing and storytelling problems present in the prequels are already on display in RotJ. However, I also agree with Hal that it has the potential to be one the best if not the best of all of George’s STAR WARS films. Basically, you have to completely overhaul Jedi’s structure and then delete a bunch of the minor story points to make the film feel focused like A New Hope. If you do that, Jedi really sings!.

100% in agreement with that first assessment! I soon began to realize that once the prequels were all complete and had enough times to view the OT along with the PT.

And I’m certainly in agreement there is potential for ROTJ to be improved upon, most definitely, but for it to possibly be the “best” of George’s SW films, hmm… that my friend is a bold statement 😃 In my humble opinion, that would require much more than just rearranging scenes and removing minor story points. Even if it might never top ANH/ESB (at least for this scoundrel anyway), because, as you mention, it is hampered by certain storytelling problems (even if the Luke/Vader scenes are still among the best SW moments for me!) and specific plot point decisions (such as another Death Star) where editing can only go so far with that, I will say, however, that I have no doubt Ady will do the best he possibly can at bringing it more in line with the quality and tone of ANH/ESB and less so like the PT, and he will make it sing as well as Sy Snootles on her very best day!

JoyOfEditing said:

Okie Doke. Here’s a link to my opening of RotJ up to the point where Luke walks in through Jabba’s front door: //drive.google.com/drive/folders/1EleIyLvBBrk-D8zN9zy23NJhEeg6FMcs?usp=sharing

An example of what I’m talking about is in the clip I posted. If you recut the Tatooine sequence as a heist film, where you’re coming in in the middle of a plan in progress, the whole sequence suddenly works. Then if you use that structure to rework a bunch of the characters: Make Jabba more Godfather-y and competent, Threepio never gets “captured” he and Lando have been working in the background to take jobs close to Jabba. Han has full eyesight during the Sail Barge Brawl, so his shot on the tentacle is Han Solo being dope, rather than goofing around, Artoo also never gets capture and sneaks aboard the Sail Barge of his own accord (Threepio’s dialogue in that scene shockingly makes complete sense of that change), and if you completely overhaul Luke’s lightsaber skills with the editing techniques developed for the Prequels (think Arena Battle), he suddenly feels like a Prequel Era Jedi Knight like he should at this stage.

The terrible thing is my whole rework of the opening sequence is just so I can cut directly from the Emperor’s Arrival on the Death Star II to the Rebel Fleet massing near Sullust. That one change COMPLETELY overhauls the tone of Jedi, and gets the hype train rolling for the greatest of all Space Battles. That specific change would probably work really, really well with the incredible stuff Ady is going to do.

Had the chance to finally check out your clip and let me start off with saying that I truly commend your work! There were indeed some very interesting choices of what you cut vs. kept and how you arranged them. If I may be forthright with you, though, I do feel that, while much of the trims and changes do technically work (even if I might miss certain bits of the original), some of the others might not land quite as well, especially for casual/first-time viewers. It’s easy for those of us who have likely seen this film over a hundred times (I know I probably have, lol) and can easily fill in some of the gaps in our minds, but as for the first-time watchers, there are certain situations occurring in here (especially during the Jabba’s Palace scenes) that are now no longer backed by some of the (I believe to be) essential footage (and weren’t replaced with something else, since obviously you didn’t bring your DeLorean to go back and re-shoot scenes, dang it! lol). And so, in these cases, I believe the casual viewers will be more confused and have more questions than before. For an example, the audience is now missing a proper introduction to Jabba the Hutt, so initially it would be confusing to a first-time viewer who sees this giant space slug the way you first present him now 😄 And Telion also brought up good points regarding the Dagobah scene in that it feels somewhat truncated, so I won’t reiterate that. So at least for this nerf herder, I might prefer an edit that doesn’t remove nearly as much (and that’s coming from someone who’s actually okay with excising existing shots/scenes [within reason of course, lol]) as I’d want certain scenes to have both flow and still make enough sense for a first-time viewer - even if it might mean keeping some of the flaws (and that’s where Ady often applies his magical brush at concealing much of that!). Otherwise, I still very much enjoyed this, Joy! Thank you for sharing it and I’m sure Ady will see something in there that works for his vision 😉 I look forward to seeing more of your clips!

And Joy, if you’re at all interested and have plenty of free time (emphasis on “plenty”), I invite you to take a gander through my ROTJ wishlist. There you can see much of my thoughts regarding ROTJ and understand my take on certain scenes (including what I think can be deleted/trimmed) and, who knows, perhaps there’s something in there you’ll like for your future editing 😃

IlFanEditore,

It was only at the beginning of March when I had stumbled across your page for the first time and so, after reading through your list of changes, I was ecstatic and knew I had to check out your ROTJ Renewed. I reached out and you were prompt, very friendly and happy to share it; now that I finally had the chance to sit my butt down and watch your edit from beginning to end… I absolutely enjoyed it!

Of course, it certainly helped going into this with the proper mindset that this is more of a “conceptual edit” and still a WIP, as opposed to a fully-polished and completed edit (as there are indeed some rough cuts around [most notably while the Emperor’s shuttle is now landing at the beginning - instead of Vader’s], certain compositing effects do stand out, some color/picture quality inconsistencies, etc.), BUT, you already know all this as you acknowledged it beforehand.

You and I share a lot of the same or similar ideas of where to possibly improve this film and so it was a delight to actually watch them in action and see how well these worked out (some scenes I even had to watch more than once to be sure). Some examples are: I loved the reorganizing/trimming of scenes during Jabba’s Palace, or cutting out the unnecessary “soap opera” drama between Han/Leia on the bridge at the Ewok village (that was executed perfectly!), or even the blink-and-you-miss-it removal of Vader falling on his ass after Luke kicks him down the stairs (we didn’t need to see that - I’ve always been a proponent for Vader appearing stronger overall as a character in certain instances in ROTJ, no matter how big or minor). There were even some other ideas I hadn’t thought of before but it was like, “Wow, that worked so well!”, such as the music you added while Luke is in his X-Wing and on his way to see Yoda, or the audience seeing Ben’s Force ghost already standing there when Luke initially sees him (so you cut out Ben walking through the vines before finally coming to Luke) - those unexpected edits, for example, worked so well for me! There were, of course, some choice editing that didn’t quite land as well with me, such as the removal of Vader’s proper intro at the beginning and thus also removing the build-up for the Emperor (though I completely understand why and what you were going for!), or certain music you inserted/replaced in some areas (especially during Luke/Vader’s final duel - Williams’ original score was already fantastic there), or some of the changes to Jabba’s dialogue, or some other things that, at this point, were very minor niggles and not worth mentioning.

One last note that’s worthy of its own mention: I’m not sure if it was intentional or not, but the way you now have Han blindly looking around after he sets off Boba’s jetpack was hilarious to me - I legit lol’d at that 😄 In all honesty, though, I don’t think I’d want that in a final edit (it definitely had a “Marx Brothers” vibe, which I don’t think is wanted in this context) but just wanted to give that a shout out anyway!

So would I recommend this to anyone looking for a new and fresh way to watch ROTJ (or to anyone looking for ideas/concepts for their own edit)?? To that I would say a resounding “YES”! But, again, one must go into this with the correct “viewing lens”; I feel that anyone who may have been overly harsh with criticisms didn’t prepare themselves and expected a fully-polished and completed edit, which it’s not yet.

Thank you so much for all of your hard work and for sharing this edit, IlFanEditore! You mentioned to me that you’re taking a break from the editing for now but may possibly renew the Renewed in the future, so when you do decide to do that, hit me up and I’d be more than happy to lend you any helpful pointers I can 😃

Cheers!

JoyOfEditing said:

Okie Doke. Here’s a link to my opening of RotJ up to the point where Luke walks in through Jabba’s front door: //drive.google.com/drive/folders/1EleIyLvBBrk-D8zN9zy23NJhEeg6FMcs?usp=sharing

Hey I’ve actually been meaning to reach out to you on your page, JoyOfEditing, to say I’ve recently watched your vids and, truly, they’re a hoot to watch and I enjoyed them! Especially the ones related to the prequels. But then when I got to the ESB vids, I gotta say, while I respect the approach, to me that movie is like the Bible, lol, so don’t tamper with “Holy Scriptures” man! 😄 But seriously, you got great talent, love your humor, and between what you, Ady, and numerous other big names here are doing, it’s very inspiring for someone like me who’s uninitiated to serious editing (it’s just unfortunate I haven’t enough time these days to learn - but maybe some day!).

So back on topic for ROTJ:R, personally, I’m always up for reading and seeing what all ideas people would like to share about it, so share anything about it you wish here, Joy! I’m sure Ady won’t mind any extra potential ideas/concepts, especially if they’re video clips where we can actually see how it looks and feels. I am one who believes this movie needs as much of our ideas together as possible, and from there Ady will pick what he feels is the best and most appropriate option. Btw, I hope people don’t get me wrong, I still very much like ROTJ and it will always have a special place with me (and through the hard work of preservationists, we’ll still have the original), but if we look at this film objectively and compare it to the previous two films of the trilogy, at least imho, it isn’t quite on par (for various reasons), which is why, if Ady is wanting and willing, I’m a proponent for some bigger changes and not just VFX updates that ESB:R only needed.

Ugh, and of course “it’s late, I’m in for it as it is!” as it’s a work night for me. TGIF though! I’ll definitely be checking out the above clip as soon as I get the chance and let you know what I think, Joy!

Bingowings said:

Years ago I proposed that the film started with Luke on Dagobah completing his training by creating his lightsaber telekinetically. Yoda dies, having trained Luke and not just in mid sentence. Luke returns to Tatooine only to discover that in her inpatience Leia has already attempted to rescue Han and failed. Luke then has to rescue the rescue. It means shifting some scenes around and construction of new shots. But the technology to do so is almost upon us.

Love that concept, Bingo! I definitely understand the appeal for many wanting to have Luke continue his training with Yoda before Han’s rescue - it makes total sense. Not sure if it’s the same with you or anyone else, but for me it would also help fix the (minor) plot holes of a) how did he appear to gain more wisdom/skill with the Force (on his own, btw) in just about a year, and especially b) how and where did he learn to construct his new snazzy lightsaber (I have a potential idea in my wishlist that helps “remedy” this, for anyone curious, by adding a little extra dialogue from 3PO to R2 as they’re walking to Jabba’s). But, if we do see Luke before Jabba’s Palace, though, I’d worry might this undermine the already-great first reveal of Luke as he’s marching into Jabba’s palace while looking ominous? That’s my biggest hold-up. Also the original reveal of his lightsaber and then him igniting the green blade after his stunt on the skiff is amazing, too.

Okay on that note, gotta share a quick story… I was very young and at a friend’s house who had a swimming pool with a low-ish diving board… so you better believe I had to reenact Luke’s heroic stunt on that! Minus the flip back up of course 😉 Did that a few times until I was finally told to stop because it was “dangerous”, lol. Please tell me someone else here also used to do that! I know I can’t be the only nerd who did that 😄

But anyway, if one could actually pull off a new good first reveal of both Luke and his lightsaber, just like how you described it, Bingo, and it looked convincing, I for one would definitely be open seeing it and how it works along with the original surrounding footage. So you’d also obviously need to trim a bit of the original Yoda/Luke scene; I’m assuming you would keep the Obi-Wan/Luke dialogue after Yoda, right?

regularjoe said:

.Mac. said:

Just had to share this short but spectacular clip from SkyForgeFilms:

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/nV4UeojnK8c

His work just keeps getting better and continues to impress! It would be a dream come true if there could be some collaboration between SkyForge and Ady for his expanded space battle in ROTJ:R.

I used that clip for my RotJ fanedits opening. In that context it represents the Bothan spies getting away with the Death Star II plans and the tracking device on one of the Corvettes is how Palpatine knows the location of the rebel fleet massing near Sullest.
From this scene I cut to Yoda and Luke on Dagobah.

I actually quite like that idea, regularjoe! Definitely in favor of somehow beginning the film with a bit more of a punch and excitement than it does originally. I imagine you also reworded the crawl to reflect the new opening and clue the audience in with what’s happening? And/or did you add your own comm chatter?

Just had to share this short but spectacular clip from SkyForgeFilms:

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/nV4UeojnK8c

His work just keeps getting better and continues to impress! It would be a dream come true if there could be some collaboration between SkyForge and Ady for his expanded space battle in ROTJ:R.

G&G-Fan said:

Lando probably found some other way. There are more then one ways to get into acquaintance with a mob boss.

Exactly!! So she didn’t have to resort to sending in Chewie then 😉

JEDIT: I think we’re actually in agreement for the most part. The only difference is you don’t seem to mind her sending in Chewie, which is fair, and that’s really all where we differ.

JEDIT II: I mean this sincerely, I love the discussion guys! Unfortunately though I do have to call it a night for now (work night) 😄

G&G-Fan said:

.Mac. said:

Did Lando have to prove himself, though? Let’s say Lando did, and he brought in someone - great, he’s in. Now it’s her turn, but the point I’m trying to make clear is did she absolutely have to bring in Chewie? Clearly she could’ve brought in anyone else with a bounty if Lando was able to. Or, if Lando didn’t have to prove himself, and none of the other patrons do either, why should she have to? 😉

Lando probably proved himself in some other way. He was there and serviced Jabba for like, a year. He was needed to give Luke intel about things.

Lando is likely there so he can sneak the droids out after Leia frees Han. Luke wouldn’t just abandon R2 and 3PO (who were there to keep Luke’s lightsaber in case he needed it, bc he’d be searched upon entering if he needed to, and to deliver Luke’s message to attempt a non-violent solution).

Sure, I don’t have a problem with any of that! 😃 But you didn’t answer why did she have to sacrifice Chewie, a friend, and not some random criminal who also had a bounty and actually deserves to be sent in. That part doesn’t settle well with me.

I’m sorry you feel that my reasons for axing a bad scene (imo) feel forced - Believe me, I’ve thought of ways to trying to justify it, like have the real Boushh bring in Chewie, but then you have to somehow show how and why Leia is in the Boushh suit later, but that wouldn’t be good either, lol.

That guy with no name said:
umm… Jabba had a bounty on his head… Did you forget? where the hell is Luke and lea supposed to find someone else with a bounty? they’re not bounty hunters. Chewie was her ticket in.

Of course I haven’t forgotten that. So, if Lando needed a ticket in and did indeed find someone to get in, which I’m fine with, then so can Leia which didn’t have to be Chewie - That’s the part I’m not fine with.

JEDIT: I only wish that the rescue plan made more sense overall, originally, including Chewie not being treated as a sacrificial pawn in all this. Then we wouldn’t have to be having this discussion 😄

G&G-Fan said:

She needed to prove herself to Jabba. This is a gangster, he doesn’t just let any schmuck in.

Would Vito Corleone just let anybody hang around his property?

Did Lando have to prove himself, though? Let’s say Lando did, and he brought in someone - great, he’s in. Now it’s her turn, but the point I’m trying to make clear is did she absolutely have to bring in Chewie? Clearly she could’ve brought in anyone else with a bounty if Lando was able to. Or, if Lando didn’t have to prove himself, and none of the other patrons do either, why should she have to? 😉

timdiggerm said:

I would certainly miss hearing “Yotoh…yotoh”

In all seriousness, it’s a great scene

Oh I don’t disagree, it definitely has some good moments in there 😃 Just like seeing Luke building his green lightsaber is a great scene too (actually it’s very cool!). But trying to put nostalgia aside, I think we gotta honestly ask ourselves: Is this scene truly essential for advancing the plot? With this scene, does the “rescue plan” make better sense, or less sense? And would/should Leia willingly hand over Chewie? Even if there was no other choice and even if Chewie was okay with it, I’m not convinced she would actually do that to her favorite walking carpet 😄

Here’s a fun HelloGreedo video on his overall thoughts about the rescue plan and he absolutely nails it with the concluding point! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhvDfkQK2gQ

timdiggerm said:

.Mac. said:

timdiggerm said:

Roobyoo said:

G&G-Fan said:

Roobyoo said:

In the german translation, C-3PO is saying "Lando Calrissian and poor Chewbacca never got out of this palace (“Lando Calrissian und der arme Chewbacca sind aus dieser Burg nie wieder herausgekommen.”)

Translations aren’t always accurate.

I’ve watched enough bad English dubs of Godzilla movies to know that 😄

Yes I know, I just wanted to point out that in the german context, showing Chewbacca in the prison scene first would make sense.

If you want to remove all mystery about his location & fate, sure

Can you elaborate? I see the opposite as true, where it’d add mystery by not revealing his location & fate until we see him when Han does.

Oooh I misunderstood.

Oh I get that, no worries! 😄

But if there is anyone who thinks it’s better and makes sense to keep Leia handing over Chewie, I’m genuinely curious why you think so. If any patron, including Lando, can get in without having to bring in a Chewie to Jabba (not to be confused with the Chewy Granola Bar, lol, though he’d like that), then so can Leia 😉

timdiggerm said:

Roobyoo said:

G&G-Fan said:

Roobyoo said:

In the german translation, C-3PO is saying "Lando Calrissian and poor Chewbacca never got out of this palace (“Lando Calrissian und der arme Chewbacca sind aus dieser Burg nie wieder herausgekommen.”)

Translations aren’t always accurate.

I’ve watched enough bad English dubs of Godzilla movies to know that 😄

Yes I know, I just wanted to point out that in the german context, showing Chewbacca in the prison scene first would make sense.

If you want to remove all mystery about his location & fate, sure

Can you elaborate? I see the opposite as true, where it’d add mystery by not revealing his location & fate until we see him when Han does.

That guy with no name said:

Telion said:

The marvel SW comics are not the source you are looking for.

Yeah, I also rolled my eyes at that.

Yeah all of the extra mediums are often scattered and a mixed bag, to say the least, and so in my head canon they are secondary (at best) to these films 😉

That guy with no name said:

G&G-Fan said:

When he said he never came back from “this awful place” he was probably referring to Tatooine.

Yup, you’re right. He says “Lando Calrissian and poor Chewbacca never returned from this awful place.”
Because Lando and chewie immediately left for tatooine at the end of empire.

You both are right but I think it’s also fair to say it’s open to interpretation. If one believes 3PO meant Jabba’s palace for “awful place”, that is equally just as valid. So both ways do work, imo. It just depends on how you personally interpret it and your point of view 😉

nightstalkerpoet said:

Considering 3P0 mentions Chewie not coming back as they’re on the way to the palace, would it be feasible to cut the scene of Leia arriving in disguise and handing over Chewie? Just cut straight to her sneaking in to free Han, getting captured, and we first see Chewie as Han arrives in the cell. Makes the plan less convoluted.

100% agreed, +1, and “would buy from again”, nightstalkerpoet! Count me in as someone who also dislikes - nay - loathes(!) the Leia-handing-Chewie-over scene 😄 Look, I’m all for any ideas of improving and keeping original scenes wherever possible, but if an entire sequence is arguably a bad idea in the first place and causes additional problems of its own, it just needs to go in my honest & humble opinion. Also by eliminating this scene, not only will it help make the disjointed rescue plan feel less convoluted, as you said nighstalkerpoet, but I do think it will help improve the pacing of the first act, which (to me at least), does kinda drag on during the Jabba’s Palace scenes and could be tightened up a bit. And another point I’ll finish with is (from my wishlist):

For improving the original nonsensical rescue plan, Leia should not be surrendering Chewie, a friend, with hopes of rescuing their other friend Han (otherwise they are back at square one, or as it turns out, in a worse scenario). A few good memorable moments cut out, but with nostalgia aside, it is for the better this way. It works perfectly well to have Chewie already captured (by some other undisclosed way) and to see him for the first time in the prison cell with Han.

No idea, though, if Ady feels the same way or not, so I do look forward to watching his upcoming video updates revealing what he would like to do, and I’ll be supportive of whichever way he thinks is best for the scene in question 😃

Interesting idea you brought up from FB, FVDnz, and for sure worth mentioning! As much as I do like the idea of seeing more Boba/Slave I, yeah, I agree with timdiggerm and G&G Fan, it would be best not to have a scene just to show him delivering HiC - I too think it works fine already seeing HiC for the first time when Jabba reveals it to R2 and ‘captain obvious’/3PO 😉 I don’t remember where I heard this, but I remember listening to an experienced editor say something to that effect of: “When editing a film, every shot of every scene must be intentional. You show just enough so the audience gets it, but any more than that then you’re wasting their time” - makes perfect sense to me! And that, btw, is also why I feel it’d be beneficial doing without the Leia-handing-Chewie-over scene, because it doesn’t add anything essential for advancing the plot, just the same as a Boba-handing-Solo-over scene wouldn’t either.

And I definitely agree, G&G Fan, at surface level it does seem silly if it took Boba a whole year to deliver Han… Although (forgive me as I play a little bit of devil’s advocate here), I guess in The Mandalorian, Mando did have multiple bounties in his locker before cashing in on those, and so for all we know (we don’t know from the movies) maybe Fett had several captured bounties in his ship too, cashed in on all the others first (and possibly each at a different galaxy), then finally a year later got to Jabba’s - not saying this is how it happened, but it’s possible 😉 So maybe it’s not that ridiculous, after all, if one has that possibility in mind, and it would also explain why he is even still there at Jabba’s, instead of: delivering a year ago and still there a whole year later (not saying a busy bounty hunter can’t take a year off for some R&R, lol, as that’s entirely possible too)… Or, it’s equally possible he delivers Han, runs off to do other errands, and a year later returns here, of all the palaces in all the planets in all the galaxies, just to hang out (when you think of it, this too kinda sounds silly at surface level, but it’s certainly possible, especially since he is apparently known to work often with Jabba [plus, maybe Jabba was having a Thirsty Thursday Bubble Tea Night that lured Boba back??])… But anyway, again, it all kinda depends on one’s point of view as each way works about the same 😄

So I don’t remember if Ady had said if he was open to the idea of doing this for his edit or definitely not, but in the slightest chance he could be, was hoping I may share ideas for potentially rewording the ROTJ opening crawl?

While the original does work and is okay, I do feel it could use a bit more meat on its bones, imho. I think the original first paragraph is good as is, however those last two paragraphs, especially, could easily use less fluff and be consolidated into one. Then as for giving it more weight, perhaps it’d be good to mention something about the current state of the Rebels as well as their end goal, so (hopefully) there will be more at stake for them this time around of the story and not just another Death Star attack? And lastly, since the Emperor is a key player in all this, I think he’s definitely worthy of mention.

So I put this together and was curious of some thoughts? What works or what doesn’t? Even tiny details like which word(s) to have in all caps or not, etc. Also I’m aware of the funky spacing around one of the words, but that can be easily fixed when done more accurately 😉 (Still, not too bad of a tool that’s easy and free!)

https://gostargazer.com/sample/tsjr8l2rjiesqamc7paq6llwpsog6skf/

FVDnz said:

I love the idea of two SD’s escorting the Executor coming into view at the beginning of the film. If something like this can be done, that would be amazing! Just doesn’t make sense using a normal SD really. Would look cool seeing them come out of lightspeed and Endor Prime actually appearing in view.

And it would be cool to see how expansive Home One could be too…

Thank you again, FVDnz! To tell a little story, I was actually inspired by Adywan who stated a long time ago how he didn’t like the original reveal of the DSII and also that Vader should arrive from the Executor. So when I read that I was most definitely on board with the idea, but since we still don’t know his specific plans for that yet, I got to thinking it over and imagining how the new intro might go… Finally I thought of how I do love the sounds of ships exiting light speed and it was like, Voilà, that can be it! And it progressed from there to as you read it. I just hope it’s good enough that many others including Ady himself will actually like this too as a possibility 😃

As for expanding Home One, I’m all for making a massive cruiser appear large as it should be - which can also potentially be world-building and, imo, that’s always a good thing for Star Wars 😉

Hard to believe how much time has already flown by… So much has happened since originally posting this list (keep in mind this was posted after Rogue One but before TLJ) and so we have the completed sequel trilogy, a Solo film, various TV shows, multiple games and books.

We also have a handful of useful tools at our disposal now, such as deepfake (I remember someone by the name of Shamook who did spectacular work at improving (or even perfecting?) the CGI faces of Luke from Mando and Tarkin/Leia from RO, all from the comfort of his own home [I was happy to hear he was hired by Lucasfilm later]) and, yes, even with the rising popularity of AI. So either individually or together, these can absolutely be used to aid with recreating people/faces and voices where necessary (which is only getting better), something someone with enough time and talent from home can certainly accomplish if they wanted. And then I’ve heard of tools for significantly helping clean up most old and grainy footage, so possibly certain deleted scenes could be recovered and somehow implemented, such as the gunners aboard the MF? Drones are certainly the norm nowadays, so pretty much anyone can go filming in, say, a large forest for some scenic and professional-quality shots, too!

So, with all that in mind, I actually gave this wishlist a reread and see how it holds up for even me and, overall, yeah I still stand by the ideas I’ve outlined (maybe 95% of it). I realize it’s not in everyone’s taste to change too much about a classic (even if flawed), but, at least the way I humbly see it, since we already do have projects like ‘4K77’ (which aim at preserving the original film as best as possible), I’m completely fine with anyone willing to attempt a slightly more radical approach for improving this film (while still respecting and maintaining the original story, of course)… So that may include cutting away unnecessary fat from the meat and then sprinkling on extra good flavors, if that’s what it takes 😄

So about the ~5% of ideas I have listed which I’m no longer in favor of, the main ones are:

• I would no longer want to have a new actor portray General Crix Madine - Even if the intent was to film new shots/scenes with him and thus give more weight to the epic battle, I always felt that swapping out an original actor would hit too close to home for many (including myself, but was willing to suggest it anyway), but now with both AI and the ability to clean up old footage, I’d much rather keep the original actor, if at all possible.

• I was also in favor of removing the Ewok celebration at the end for a more bittersweet and somewhat poignant ending, but, having a change of heart over the years, now I do prefer to keep most of it, especially for seeing our main heroes all together again and happy. Still, would absolutely love to see Adywan or someone try to attempt some kind of a new ‘liberation of Coruscant’ sequence, as to further raise the stakes of this climatic battle and to give more of a closure to the Empire and this trilogy as a whole (a potential idea already outlined in OP)!

• Still wish we can see a stronger portrayal of Vader in ROTJ, including minor edits throughout the final duel, that way (over all) his character is slightly less pitiful (imho) and slightly more of the badass like we witnessed before. I still stand by that. So, I have this idea listed where we could see him once again doing what he does best, Force choking (the idea is/was he must Force choke the Emperor’s Royal Guards, who are preventing him from passing, so he can get past and speak with the Emperor), but it was never as well-thought-out as I would’ve liked and so, as it is, it feels shoe-horned in, so either the idea must be improved or the idea must be axed. Perhaps someone has an idea for how to improve that idea or a better idea altogether! 😃

Btw, to make it easier on people, I wish there was a way to somehow denote which bullet points are for continuity errors and which are for other ideas/suggestions. Would even be nice to have the ability to change the color of texts (eg: red text for glaring continuity issues, black for all else).

For anyone else who wishes to take on the challenge of reading the massive OP, discuss as much of it as you like - what ideas you like and don’t like - I love talking Star Wars! But I only ask that we keep it nice and civil please 😉

Hey thanks so much, FVDnz, I truly appreciate it and glad you liked it! And I haven’t heard of the fellow-nerd Dave Cullen before so I’ll be sure to check him out after this. Hope you’re all caught up with your sleep again! 😄

Jedit: Oh yeah I’ve seen some of Dave Cullen and his vids before! I just didn’t remember his name.

adywan said:

It’s scary just how fast this AI Video generation is progressing.

It really is. Not all are great, of course, but I’ve seen some other very convincing AI work out there in the right hands. Who knows, if done right, sparingly and when necessary, perhaps it could be a useful tool and open new doors for some edit ideas you might have for ROTJ:R, which might’ve been thought impossible merely a year ago?

Well for what it’s worth…

My favorite part about the SE version is that it opens up the Death Star more (similar to adding windows for Cloud City), especially when comparing it to the original “dead-end” hallway version, which pretty much does show the limitations at the time as Telion already nicely put it.

As for the garrison of 100+ troopers standing around in formation, I never had a problem with seeing them as some might. I view it as the same reason why a real-life military base would have this also - for inspection, etc. And prior to this scene, didn’t we just hear a Stormtrooper mention that they do drills (“Maybe it’s another drill”)? So for me anyway, I just assume they do frequent drills and this is just a glimpse of what that they have to go through at times.

As for the ROTJ helmets, in all honesty, I hadn’t noticed that before and even now that I am aware of it, it still doesn’t really bother me as there are several bodies/heads moving around in a brief shot and so, to me at least, it’s not that easy to focus on a relatively minor detail like that… and I often like to think I’m someone with a sharp eye XD Furthermore, who’s to say they aren’t currently trying to phase in the new armor type (hence the inspection)? 😉 But, I get it, consistency is nice too so I do understand why Ady or anyone could be irritated by that; truly, they should’ve just had the proper ANH helmets in the first place. If this were to be re-reinstated, though, maybe a quick digital touch-up on the more obvious ones?

As for the compositing of that shot, while not perfect as Ady had stated, I felt it was vastly improved by just the simple color-correction. It’s great to fix as much of the egregious errors as possible, but if we’re being real and honest, I think it’s perfectly acceptable, at least in certain instances where only so much can realistically be done, to accept a shot/scene at 95-99.9% perfection - though Ady will always strive for 100% perfection and that’s what we love about him!

And I understand, Braltika, what you were trying to say in regards to Han’s reaction to seeing all of the additional soldiers - it does further justify the sheer and utter panic on his face like “oh I f*cked up!”. That’s what I always thought too and also why I like the SE version. I will admit, though, I did like what you said, DZ-330, about the charm of the original, where the Stormtroopers have realized “Hey… we out number him! Why are we running?” That is indeed funny too and a fair point.

But, with all things considered, I do think I overall prefer the SE version between the two. Unless, if there could be some kind of compromise, like if Ady could replace the current “dead-end” background with something better of his own? Even if it is just more hallway (similar to the moc image DZ-330 quickly put together). I’m sure getting the reflections on the floor will be a task, but Ady seemed to do a miraculous job for the wide-shot during the Obi-Wan vs Vader duel. Just an idea, but I think it could be neat have a (closed) blast door instead of the dead-end, and when Han gets there, the door has already mostly opened up to reveal maybe a 2x6 grid of marching troopers accompanied by a K2 droid (just a fun nod to RO - which I truly hope Ady may have been able to sneak one in a hallway somewhere here and/or there, seamlessly and not in-your-face). Maybe? Something like that would be a good middle-ground.

Anyway that’s all of my two cents, but obviously Ady you have the final say in all this and we’ll be super happy with the end result! 😄