I posted this over on TFA board, but it is probably more useful here:
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calamb — 10 years ago(January 11, 2016 01:26 PM)
Oh, I've definitely covered your initial three problems. There's a scene with one of the large fish that I simply can't cut (well, I don't want to), but it's a scene within the bonco, and you see the giant fish swimming about in the distance. It works fine the way it is, but I'm trying to paint out the big fish, if possible.
But Jar-Jar is 100% more of a hero in battle, and the podracing is considerably shorter and more tense.
And for your suggestions:- My current opening crawl is as follows (a few minor things may change, but this is pretty much the final version):
"Episode One
SHROUD OF THE SITH
For a thousand generations, the Galactic Republic has been the great pillar of order and harmony in the galaxy, aided by the mystic warriors of peace and justice known as the Jedi Knights.
But now, the shadow of war rises. The peaceful planet of Naboo has been seized by a blockade of deadly warships, sent by Viceroy Nute Gunray of the corrupt Trade Federation, for reasons unknown.
While the Senate's endless debating drowns Naboo's cries for justice, the Supreme Chancellor of the Republic has secretly dispatched two of the Jedi Order to settle the conflict." - I would LOVE to add some deleted scenes (QGJ destroying one of Maul's probes, in particular), but as I'm doing a 1080p blu-ray version, I haven't been able to find any deleted scenes above 720p. I tried adding one in to see how different it lookedand it's pretty noticeable. I've tried everything to make it appear higher quality, but everything I've found would probably hurt the film more than help. If you or anyone else knows where I could find high-quality resolution versions of the deleted scenes, there are two or three which I would most definitely add in (including the pre-podrace scene you mentioned).
- I'm currently working on cutting/coloring the final fight sequence, and I agree. I think some cuts are useful, but there are far too many to keep you engaged in perhaps the best moment of the entire film. I've done my best to keep most of the fight intact, but I have reworked a few bits here and there (after QGJ dies, I've done my best to make Obi Wan's fighting style change a bit. Instead of the perfectly choreographed style from before, Obi Wan now strikes with more intensity and anger.), and I'm trying to improve on Maul's death (I was originally going to try and have him survive, which I can do, but then there's no way to convincingly kill him in Episode 2, so I'll probably just leave his death). There's not much else I can say about this until I actually do it haha.
Thanks for the input!
- My current opening crawl is as follows (a few minor things may change, but this is pretty much the final version):
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mazrimalthor — 10 years ago(January 11, 2016 01:39 PM)
It would be damn cool if you could keep Maul alive. Always thought he should have been around still, if not to replace Dooku, then to assist him. If you kept him alive, and then later did an edit of Episode 2, you could alter the fight scene towards the end of it.
Instead of having Dooku vs Anakin/Obi-wan followed by Dooku vs Yoda, you could have Maul fighting Anakin/Obi-wan whilst Dooku battles Yoda. Have Maul beat Anakin and Obi-wan like Dooku did in the original version, but then have Dooku sacrifice Maul to Yoda in order to aid his escape.
Not having any artistic flair what-so-ever, I would have no idea in hell how you'd get Maul into that scene, and without it looking like crap lolone can dream I guess -
Kruleworld — 10 years ago(January 11, 2016 10:41 PM)
- Anakin piloting then destroying the control ship by accident
i can't see a way to have anakin in the battle without the silliness. you'd have to cut him all together, i guess. QGJ should have left him on Corusant instead of taking a child into a battlezone.
and I'm trying to improve on Maul's death (I was originally going to try and have him survive, which I can do
we find out in Clone Wars (series) that he did in fact survive. Perhaps better to not add him to Ep2?
"He's dusted, busted and disgusted, but he's ok"
- Anakin piloting then destroying the control ship by accident
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calamb — 10 years ago(January 11, 2016 01:28 PM)
If there is good reception to my edit of Episode 1, I'll probably edit Episode 2 and 3 as well. 2 is my least favorite of the prequels, mostly for all of its missed opportunities and some of the more awkward romantic scenes.
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bondukkevin — 10 years ago(January 13, 2016 03:42 AM)
I have dine a prequel edit which runs at two hours. Cuts out tpm as IMO not needed. It begins with obi wan finding the clones and ends with Sith. It focuses more on anakin and has all the story beats that were necessary and what I had to include for a cohesive story.
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litltingod — 10 years ago(January 14, 2016 07:57 AM)
Good luck. I made my own fan edits of the prequel trilogy a few years ago. Here are some of the changes I made
Jar Jar never speaks
R2 never flies
C3-PO never switches heads with a battle droid
Darth Maul never gets cut in half*
Darth Vader never screams
General Grevious never coughs
The battle droids don't tell jokes
No pod race announcers
No metachlorians
No virgin birth
No mopey beep Anakin
No beep back talking Anakin
No dopey love scenes
No "Yipee" and "How rude"
We never see Jango's face
We never see Boba's face
We never see Gungan City
We never see the Emperor's big, rubber, naked slug head
I cut each film down from over two hours to about 90 minutes each. It makes a much leaner, faster paced trilogy with more action and less goofiness. It really did help me appreciate these movies a little more.
Communism was just a red herring. -
calamb — 10 years ago(January 15, 2016 09:17 AM)
Okay, so I'm finished with 90% of my cuts, and I'm now going through and fixing/rescoring bits of the music that I've cut. In the process, I'm rewatching the first scene in Watto's junk shop and decided to add a piece of music to the scene. Originally, it's quiet up until the point where Anakin and Padme have their introduction (which oddly drops your guard just before possibly the most awkward scene in the movie), so I decided to add a little flair to the junk shop. Part of my thought process also entertained the idea that there really isn't any "fun" bits of music in the film like the Cantina Band scene in ANH (nothing against John Williams' score, of course). Another issue I had with the scene was Jar-Jar's little fight with the random droid (it further adds to his clumsiness and ineptitude), which I can't exactly cut, because he is in the backdrop of a few important moments.
Sothis is how I fixed ALL of that with one addition: I added a filtered piece from a Budapest Klezmer band in the background of Watto's shop, giving the appearance that the music is coming from somewhere within the shopspecifically, the random droid Jar-Jar pokes at. The way I have set it up, while Anakin and Padme are talking, Jar-Jar is in the background, somewhat searching for the source of the music. Finding the droid, he pokes at it, and the music shuts off as the droid springs to life. Jar-Jar wrestles with it for a second or two (which has been trimmed considerably), before Anakin tells him to hit the nose. Jar-Jar pokes the nose again, and the droid collapses, allowing the music to continue playing.
Anyway, I'm telling you this to get some input on the song in particular. Here it is:
(keep in mind, it's not overpowering the scene. just playing in the background to give the scene a bit more flavor). I'm considering giving the Mos Espa town scenes a bit of an additional score as well, which would share similarities with this genre of music. What do you think?