|
|
|
|
The Phantom Edit
|
| |
|
| |
The Phantom Edit is a fan edit of the movie Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, removing elements of the original thought to be unsuccessful by some critics and long-time fans. The purpose of the edit, according to creator Mike J. Nichols, was to make a much stronger version of The Phantom Menace based on the previous execution and philosophies of film storytelling and editing made famous by George Lucas himself.
Discussion
Ask a question about 'The Phantom Edit' Start a new discussion about 'The Phantom Edit' Answer questions from other users |
Encyclopedia
The Phantom Edit is a fan edit of the movie Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, removing elements of the original thought to be unsuccessful by some critics and long-time fans. The purpose of the edit, according to creator Mike J. Nichols, was to make a much stronger version of The Phantom Menace based on the previous execution and philosophies of film storytelling and editing made famous by George Lucas himself. The Phantom Edit was the first unauthorized re-edit of The Phantom Menace to receive major publicity and acclaim for making the film appreciably better, and although many other re-editing attempts followed, the original Phantom Edit is still highly regarded as a successful exercise of professional and artistic narrative film editing.
Changes
The changes include:
- re-editing nearly all scenes featuring Jar Jar Binks and removing some of what he dubs 'Jar Jar Antics.'
- removing or re-editing most Battle Droid dialogue
- limiting redundant exposition throughout the film
- trimming reiteration of the politics
- re-arranged shots and scenes to match original trilogy presentation style
- removing "Yippee" and "Oops" from young Anakin's dialogue in order to make him a stronger character
- removing dialogue that specifies the nature of Midichlorians as a biological basis for Force sensitivity.
It was originally circulated to studios in Hollywood in 2000 and 2001, and was followed by worldwide media attention in magazines, television, and especially the Internet.
Rumor attributed The Phantom Edit to Kevin Smith, probably because he edits his own films and his films frequently refer to the Star Wars mythos. Smith admitted to having seen the re-edit but denied that he was the editor. The editor was revealed to be Mike J. Nichols of Santa Clarita, California in the September 7, 2001 edition of the Washington Post and the June 1 2002 edition of the Los Angeles Times.
Illegally available on VHS, DVD and later via BitTorrent, the DVD contains two deleted scenes and a commentary track by the editor as well as a few easter eggs. The DVD version has also been relabeled as Episode I.II, has a slightly different podrace from the VHS version, and contains more extensive editing to individual images and sounds that have not been entirely cut.
Reviews
Critics and filmmakers have commented on the original Phantom Edit, in most cases providing the approval and recognition which furthered the fan edit movement.
"Smart editing to say the least." — Kevin Smith, Film Director (Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy)
"...Materialized from out of nowhere was a good film that had been hidden inside the disappointing original one." — Daniel Kraus, Salon.com (November 5, 2001)
"[Done by] someone with a gift for editing!" — Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune Film Critic (June 18, 2001)
This was mentioned in the comic strip FoxTrot, drawn by Bill Amend, where Jason Fox mentioned this video, stating that the "more annoying characters" had a diminished role in the video. The last panel in the strip showed a scene at Skywalker Ranch, where someone (presumably George Lucas) screams, "My Jar Jar-free edition leaked out?! I could have made millions! Billions!" and another, unknown person states, "Sir, please don't pound R2 like that."
Attack of the Phantom
The Phantom Editor followed up his edits of Episode I with an edit of Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, for the stated purpose of not just providing easy criticism of Episode II, but to do the harder work of demonstrating why he thinks his edit is better.
Called Star Wars Episode II.I: Attack of the Phantom, the DVD contains a re-edited version based on a DVD release of Episode II in surround sound, with a commentary track. At points during the commentary, the viewer has the option to interrupt the movie to view in more detail some of the things that the editor is talking about.
See also
External links
- , BBC News Article, Thursday, June 7, 2001
- , an NPR story, 'Star Wars' - The Phantom Edit, Robert Siegel talks with Andrew Rogers from Zap2it.com, July 16, 2001
- , a Salon.com article by Daniel Kraus, November 5, 2001
- , a PBS Article by Charles C. Mann, November 22, 2001
- , Joshua Griffin's April 29, 2005 review of Episode II.I: Attack of the Phantom, on TheForce.net fan site
- , Wookieepedia page about this edit
|
| |
|
|
