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The Fellowship of the Ring: Remade

spelledaren

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Alright, I'm using the same post again. Today's date: 2010-03-04
This is a newly made version of my project, created over the last few weeks. I've tried to keep the editing as simple as possible, while still making the changes I wanted. I've been slightly more restrictive in this last cut, leaving in 3 more minutes than in the previous cut. I've created a dvd over the last week or so, and made an extra (or two) to go with it. It's made in two parts, but I guess it would have been possible to get the three hours onto a single disc. No matter.

This is about spot on two years after the first release. Huh.
Below follows the usual info, along with a cut list.

Original film name: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Extended Edition
New film name: The Fellowship of the Ring: Remade
Original Runtime: 208 mins
New Runtime: 174 mins (1.31 + 1.23)
Amount of time Cut: 34 mins

Your intention for this fanedit:
To sidestep all the little oddities that PJ allowed in this one. The Fellowship is one of my all time favourite movies (and books), but there was still a lot of things that felt decidedly odd. The most prominent in the first movie was that the Nazgul were a bunch of losers. One sits right on top of it's prey and does not notice them. They are outrun by hobbits, while the Nazgul themselves have horses. They don't notice that the beds are stuffed with dummies. They don't kill the hobbits even when given plenty of time. Five of them are defeated by Aragorn alone (why are we worried about these guys?). They see the flood coming and they turn to ride along the river, for long enough that they would have made it to the other side had they just kept moving, or turned back. They fail utterly at everything they do in this movie. That's not very scary. I've tried to bring out the best of them, and portray them as the terrifying opponents they should be.

There are several other things that are silly or dumb, and I've given my comments to why I've changed things in the cut list below.

My overall intention was to bring out the best of this awesome movie, trying to improve on something that's already great. Not a small task. I have had no intention of bringing this closer to the books, I am only interested in what works in the movies themselves.

I wanted to show the best of each character, and I think I've succeeded fairly well in that. (And how great is Sean Bean in this? Oscar for best supporting actor went to Jim Broadbent for Iris . Yeah. Sean was robbed!)


FotR: Remade Cutlist SPOILERS

Removed "Victory was near". How could victory be near with Sauron left?
Sauron exploding does not topple the entire army. It just seems like everyone close by should have been killed.
Cut Bilbo searching franticly for the Ring. It doesn't have to be overly clear yet about the rings effect. I feel it distracts from the feeling of the storytelling at that moment.
Cut Gandalf banging his head. This cut is back! It's a rather silly way of presenting the character of Gandalf.
Cut Merry and pippin stealing a rocket. To make that work Bilbo hiding at the party also had to go, and we don't see the dragon fireworks. Introducing Merry and Pippin can be done in other ways, this one I don't like. Nor do I particulary like the dragon scene.
Cut Frodo and Sam seeing the wood elves. Dialogue meant to introduce us to the world? But coming from them it feels odd. Also Frodo and Sam switch places during the scene, and that bugs me.
Removed Gandalf running to several doors and them closing. It's meant to heighten the excitement, but has the opposite effect.
Cut most of the battle between the wizards. It's a kinda silly battle. Now Saruman is obviously more powerful.
The Nazgul does not sit right on top of the hobbits, nor do they distract it. Now it's scary but not failed. Once the Ring is resisted the Nazgul moves off.
Cut Nazgul finding hobbits in the forest. They are not slower than hobbits on foot anymore.
Cut some of Sauron's voice in the inn. It's less scary with words.
Removed some of the sleeping hobbits and posing Nazgul. They seem scarier when they are more to the point. Also I don't like this kind of tension-heightener that the interposed sleeping hobbits and Nazgul images are supposed to be. It was overdone here, and I've shortened it.
Removed scene with Saruman contacting Sauron. Saruman is more threatening as an independent player. That he starts building an army is because he wants the ring himself!
Removed "The trees are strong my lord. Their roots go deep." " Cut them all down". We understand anyway, don't need this overly clear line. And I don't like the orc voice.
Only 1 Nazgul finds them on Weathertop. And it's damn scary! Thank you Kerr for providing a crucial shot of the lone approaching Nazgul.
Removed "What's this? A ranger caught off his guard?". Yeah, why is he? And it doesn't make Arwen's introduction more potent or interesting.
Arwen and Aragorn do not argue about who will ride. They just know who is the best suited. And I get a chance to add a little romance by changing the translation of the spoken elvish.
Removed "What are you doing? Those wraiths are still out there!". Why is Sam so stupid?
No goo on Frodo's face during the chase, and the Nazgul don't come quite as near. The goo is gone later on, so...
Removed Nazgul claiming the halfling and Arwen challenging them. They are scarier when they don't make demands like that.
The flood hits them too fast for them to move out of the way. They aren't stupid anymore.
Cut Arwen getting very upset that Frodo is dying. She still cries out, but the worst parts are gone.
Removed Frodo saying that he is ready to go home again. I want him to appear more effected already, not wanting to leave the ring.
Cut any talk about Aragorn choosing exile. Men are not without power, and Aragorn is only waiting for his time.
Time change, the council of Elrond. Two reasons. It makes the revelation of Aragorns heritage more potent. It makes the next scene with Boromir and Narsil much more meaningful!
Boromir does not question Aragorn on who he is. Because he already knows.
And we get to end the first part with a kiss!

Part 2

Aragorn does not refuse his heritage. The burden is upon him, and he is ready to shoulder it.
The Watcher battle at Moria is shortened. If it had more time it should have killed someone.
Troll action is drastically shortened. Nor do the hobbits kill any goblins. A little over the top in some parts, and I really don't get why the hobbits get to be action heroes.
The goblins do not climb walls like insects. Do I need to?
A little less of Boromir almost falling down. Didn't add to the tension.
They do not jump over a hole in the stairs. What an anti-climax! A long scene about jumping a hole when they are chased by a Balrog.
Removed Haldir telling Frodo that he is not welcome and carries great evil. Why does Haldir say this? If he knows, Galadriel must have told him. And she would want to help them. So either he shouldn't know at all (good) or help them. Instead it is the arrogance of Gimli that makes Haldir reluctant to offer any help. I know that some have big issues with this scene, clothes, make up, etc, but I think the scene is good in other aspects and worth keeping. That parts are used again the Mirror of Galadriel only underscores her words "some things that have been"
Removed "The enemy knows you have entered here. What hope you had in secrecy is now lost". Which enemy? And what do they know? This makes things more unclear and poses questions never answered.
Galadriel does not say that "he will try and take the Ring" The temptation is back! But this part isn't very good, or at least I think so. It is enough that the Ring will break the Fellowship.
Galadriel does not explain about her Ring. No need to. Feels off.
Removed Celeborn telling Aragorn about orcs spotted, and changed his parting words. Once again his words aren't properly explained. Followed by whom? (Gollum, yes, but let us know that then.)
Sam does not ask for a dagger. It's not his character to question the gift of the mighty Galadriel.
Elvish translation change - Aragorn does not wish for Arwen to go to Valinor. Galadriel speaks of Arwen's choice and what it will mean for her life. Because he accepts her choice and her love.
Cut the Uruk-hai running. Shout out to Kerr, I found this an excellent choice, and went with it myself.
Removed Aragorn talking about Minas Tirith as "your city" to Boromir. He does want to go there, but not like this, with the ring.
Cut some of the first blows Aragorn makes against the horde of Uruk-hai. He retreats instead to a better position.
Cut Boromir's first intervention to save the hobbits. It's not a bad scene, but a little odd, and has hobbits stabbing a couple of orcs too.
Removed Legolas killing orcs that fall over randomly. Why do they do that?
Removed Uruk-Hai felled by magic hobbit stones, and other orcs randomly dying near Boromir. They are strong and scary, not fluffy bunnies. And they have helmets for "#*^'s sake!
Cut short the execution aiming on Boromir. It just looks silly.
Sam does not go limp with glazed eyes under water. That would mean too long time. This cut turned out better this time around.

END SPOILERS


The extra on the second dvd is a comment on the fact that the hobbits are action heroes in PJ's LotR. And then there is another one that is just silly, but in essence it's a mockery of the Nazgûl in the first movie. Both extras contain several scenes that were removed or changed in this edit.

Thank you, enjoy.


Programs used:
DVD Decrypter, Womble, DVD Lab Pro.
 

spelledaren

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Yeah, Womble made them.

They just appear, often in places where nothing has been changed, but close to a cut.
 

Captain Khajiit

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I take it you are applying the regulation 0.1 second fades for the audio tracks? Is it popping that you hear or some other kind of distortion?


Have you made sure that the following options are ticked, especially number three?

1 Gop size compliance for DVD recording
2 Use CRC protection
3 Re-encode the whole audio if any part needs re-encoding
 

spelledaren

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I did work on it yes, but the question is moot at this point, as I have deleted just about everything except these AVIs.

I take it you are applying the regulation 0.1 second fades for the audio tracks?
This was not the cause of the problem.

But thanks for showing interest in helping out! :)
 

Captain Khajiit

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It's a shame you didn't keep your source files. :( My experience is that most audio problems in Womble can be solved: it just takes a great deal of tinkering and frustration to fix some of the more vexing ones. :)
 

jjrdias

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How would one go about procuring the AVIs? I've tried fanedit.info and can't find any links. Love LOTR and am always looking towards a different approach to such epics.
 

spelledaren

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Just wanted to say that help has been given. Anyone else in need of links, just poke me.
 

boon23

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uhm... as this is posted in firstlings... is this supposed to be an official release or not?
If it is a preview it should be posted here:
viewforum.php?f=66
 

spelledaren

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It's as official as it's ever going to get, that's why I chose to release it. If it turns out that it won't be approved, which I would understand, then it can go some other place. Until that happens it deserves a chance, I think :p
 

Hal9000

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Take a look at this screenshot.

https://dl-web.dropbox.com/get/Screen%2 ... w=2afba71a

This is my method of wrestling Womble to the ground and forcing it to cooperate with audio. You make a chance, using the sound line editor, right? Place an additional point at the bottom of the sound line editor before and after you make your change. Then drag the starting and ending position of the clip so this newly added point isn't visible.
Also, add a fraction-of-a-second fade in and out for all audio bits.

This method, while insane and shouldn't be necessary, does seem to get rid of all audio problems for me.

Video, on the other hand....
 

Ghostcut

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Put it in your Public folder and then give us another link to it, because the one you're giving us doesn't work.
 

spelledaren

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*bump*

Updated first page for the new version of this movie.
 

TV's Frink

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spelledaren said:
*bump*

Updated first page for the new version of this movie.
I think you should let people know before you edit their posts. :wink:
 

boon23

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The Fellowship of the Ring: Remade by Spelledaren

review by boon23

Prologue:
There have been many LOTR fanedits since the movies were released. Many of them were not approved on fanedit.org for having huge flaws or truly bad image/audio quality. Then there are the famous purist/book cuts, which I never was a fan of, because what I have seen of them always destroyed the mood of the movies for me. I for one simply don't care if it is closer to Tolkien's original idea, but if it works as a movie for me and keeps me entertained. I am a huge fan of the original movies and no fanedit will change that. Still from time to time I enjoy watching a different take, so I sat down and watched Spelledaren's version of THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING: EXTENDED EDITION. I did not read the fanedit info to see an unspoiled version and experience the movie as it flows. This is not always an easy task, especially not, if one knows the original really well. But I have made the experience that once I am getting into the flow, my comparisons stop and I can enjoy a present watching experience.

As for all my reviews: this is just my personal opinion of this fanedit. I cannot tell anybody else, if he or she will experience it in the same way or the opposite. So my review is not objective and does not reflect the opinion of fanedit.org.

!!!!This review contains heavy spoilers!!!

The edit:
Launching the DVD did not really put my hopes up, because the main menu is not great. It looks very simple and feels to me like the introduction to something amateurish. This continues, when there is a badly done title insertion that comes with a stutter. Then I was watching FOTR. Most of the things that were cut were very well done and I did not miss them at all. Audio edits are most of the time great and not audible. Same goes for most cuts. However, some cuts were obvious and I will point them out, where they came to my attention and whether or not they worked for me:
(Some of the editors intentions are pretty tough to pull off convincingly, so I am keeping that in mind)
1. Removed Gandalf running to several doors and them closing. It's meant to heighten the excitement, but has the opposite effect.
2. Cut most of the battle between the wizards. It's a kinda silly battle. Now Saruman is obviously more powerful.
The one time Gandalf fires back felt rushed. Otherwise this worked really well. Saruman seemed incredibly powerful.

3. The Nazgul does not sit right on top of the hobbits, nor do they distract it. Now it's scary but not failed. Once the Ring is resisted the Nazgul moves off.
This scene did feel a bit choppy. It worked though.

4. Cut Nazgul finding hobbits in the forest. They are not slower than hobbits on foot anymore.
It worked very well for me, even though the riders have no introduction here.

5. Removed some of the sleeping hobbits and posing Nazgul. They seem scarier when they are more to the point. Also I don't like this kind of tension-heightener that the interposed sleeping hobbits and Nazgul images are supposed to be. It was overdone here, and I've shortened it.
Good call. This scene really works better this way.

6. Removed scene with Saruman contacting Sauron. Saruman is more threatening as an independent player. That he starts building an army is because he wants the ring himself!
Again: good call. Saruman is in this edit much more than just Sauron's servant.

7. Only 1 Nazgul finds them on Weathertop. And it's damn scary! Thank you Kerr for providing a crucial shot of the lone approaching Nazgul.
It feels choppy and the image quality varies. Aragorn pops up from nowhere and the Nazgul is defeated really quickly. although I understand the desire to make the Nazgul stronger (and I agree that this would be needed), the new scene did not convince me.

8. Removed "What's this? A ranger caught off his guard?". Yeah, why is he? And it doesn't make Arwen's introduction more potent or interesting.
Arwen and Aragorn do not argue about who will ride. They just know who is the best suited. And I get a chance to add a little romance by changing the translation of the spoken elvish.
Removed "What are you doing? Those wraiths are still out there!". Why is Sam so stupid?
No goo on Frodo's face during the chase, and the Nazgul don't come quite as near. The goo is gone later on, so...
Removed Nazgul claiming the halfling and Arwen challenging them. They are scarier when they don't make demands like that.
The flood hits them too fast for them to move out of the way. They aren't stupid anymore.
This all worked really well, with the exception of the flood. Event hough it comes a lot faster it still is a bit weird. But overall: great work.

9. Cut Arwen getting very upset that Frodo is dying. She still cries out, but the worst parts are gone.
Now that scene felt now particularly strange and incomplete and jumps to Rivendell. Didn't work for me at all.

10. Cut any talk about Aragorn choosing exile. Men are not without power, and Aragorn is only waiting for his time.
Time change, the council of Elrond. Two reasons. It makes the revelation of Aragorns heritage more potent. It makes the next scene with Boromir and Narsil much more meaningful!
Boromir does not question Aragorn on who he is. Because he already knows.
I found this a bit confusing.

11. The Watcher battle at Moria is shortened. If it had more time it should have killed someone.
Troll action is drastically shortened. Nor do the hobbits kill any goblins. A little over the top in some parts, and I really don't get why the hobbits get to be action heroes.
The goblins do not climb walls like insects. Do I need to?
All worked great, but the city part felt chopped.

12. A little less of Boromir almost falling down. Didn't add to the tension.
The result is a choppy scene change. Very obviously cut. Not good.

13. They do not jump over a hole in the stairs. What an anti-climax! A long scene about jumping a hole when they are chased by a Balrog.
I always liked that scene kind of. It adds a bit if humor to a very sinister scenario. But it is not really missed, when it's gone.

14. Removed Haldir telling Frodo that he is not welcome and carries great evil. Why does Haldir say this? If he knows, Galadriel must have told him. And she would want to help them. So either he shouldn't know at all (good) or help them. Instead it is the arrogance of Gimli that makes Haldir reluctant to offer any help. I know that some have big issues with this scene, clothes, make up, etc, but I think the scene is good in other aspects and worth keeping. That parts are used again the Mirror of Galadriel only underscores her words "some things that have been"
Removed "The enemy knows you have entered here. What hope you had in secrecy is now lost". Which enemy? And what do they know? This makes things more unclear and poses questions never answered.
Galadriel does not say that "he will try and take the Ring" The temptation is back! But this part isn't very good, or at least I think so. It is enough that the Ring will break the Fellowship.
Galadriel does not explain about her Ring. No need to. Feels off.
All worked well.

15. Removed Celeborn telling Aragorn about orcs spotted, and changed his parting words. Once again his words aren't properly explained. Followed by whom? (Gollum, yes, but let us know that then.)
Sam does not ask for a dagger. It's not his character to question the gift of the mighty Galadriel.
Elvish translation change - Aragorn does not wish for Arwen to go to Valinor. Galadriel speaks of Arwen's choice and what it will mean for her life. Because he accepts her choice and her love.
All good calls.

16. Cut some of the first blows Aragorn makes against the horde of Uruk-hai. He retreats instead to a better position.
Cut Boromir's first intervention to save the hobbits. It's not a bad scene, but a little odd, and has hobbits stabbing a couple of orcs too.
Removed Legolas killing orcs that fall over randomly. Why do they do that?
Removed Uruk-Hai felled by magic hobbit stones, and other orcs randomly dying near Boromir. They are strong and scary, not fluffy bunnies. And they have helmets for "#*^'s sake!
Cut short the execution aiming on Boromir. It just looks silly.
The Uruk Hai encounter felt very choppy and was one of the worst parts of the fanedit for me. I don't think any of the cuts were necessary or did improve the tension.

17. Sam does not go limp with glazed eyes under water. That would mean too long time. This cut turned out better this time around.
Good call. It still feels unlikely that Frodo could have saved him without getting wet.

As you can see, there are quite a few inconsistencies for me. Most things worked great, others really did not. I was getting a bit bored in Lothlorien and think the theatrical cut is more to the point there. Overall I was mostly entertained and realyl impressed by some of the decisions of Spelledaren that worked great.

editing: 7 of 10 (some spottable unnatural scene changes, but most of all really well done)
entertainment: 7 of 10 (I was distracted by the things that did not work well for me, but always could get back into the movie flow without wanting to stop. (original: 10 of 10))

Image and video quality:
The video quality was in most scenes great. There were a few scenes with varying image quality in close-ups and a few stutters.
Video quality: 8 of 10

Audio editing and audio quality:
audio quality was great. I did not notice a bad audio cut, which is a great achievement in such a heavily scored movie.
audio editing: 10 of 10
sound quality: 10 of 10
resulting in a 10 of 10 for overall audio

presentation:
The fanedit comes on 2 SL DVDs, which is not a great choice for ONE movie. 174 minutes is long, but one DL would have been the better choice IMO, especially because the menus are not nice and look pretty cheap. The chapter selection menus have custom titles for each scene, which is a nice addition. Unfortunately there is a flaw on disc 1 that makes you click twice to go back to the main menu. The custom title was not well inserted and very obvious, especially because of the stutter that came with it. The end credits are cut super short and are not custom. There are no extras and no cover art.
To sum it up:
The presentation leaves quite a lot to be desired. For the presence of menus, custom title and chapter menus I am giving 4 stars.
4 of 10 for overall presentation

Final result: 7 of 10
There are some really well done scenes and it is an enjoyable fanedit and a quite well done and promising firstling. What I particularly like about it is that Spelledaren tried some truly daring cuts and alterations and succeeded most of the time. I was entertained by the fanedit, but will not watch it again probably.
Recommended for those who are interested in a fixed cut of LOTR other than the book cuts.
Thank you, spelledaren, for creating it.

approved.png
 

spelledaren

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:wat: :eek: :eek: :) :) :smile: :D :smile: :smile:

8)

Sorry for the abuse of smilies, but that review is pretty damn awesome to me. Thank you for taking this one on, I know how much you love these movies, and that it worked for you all the way through feels just great.

audio quality was great. I did not notice a bad audio cut, which is a great achievement in such a heavily scored movie.
audio editing: 10 of 10
sound quality: 10 of 10
resulting in a 10 of 10 for overall audio
I call victory!

I get the presentation part, it's the part that I'm not that pleased with. Really not good if a stutter appeared with the title! Haven't seen that myself.

I'll comment on the rest later on, right now I'm just going to bask in the glory that is an approved fan edit.
 

spelledaren

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boon23 said:
1. Removed Gandalf running to several doors and them closing. It's meant to heighten the excitement, but has the opposite effect.
2. Cut most of the battle between the wizards. It's a kinda silly battle. Now Saruman is obviously more powerful.
The one time Gandalf fires back felt rushed. Otherwise this worked really well. Saruman seemed incredibly powerful.

Glad you liked it. It was a tricky one to pull off without the pacing getting all messed up.

boon23 said:
3. The Nazgul does not sit right on top of the hobbits, nor do they distract it. Now it's scary but not failed. Once the Ring is resisted the Nazgul moves off.
This scene did feel a bit choppy. It worked though.

Had some versions made of this, I too find that this one works.

boon23 said:
4. Cut Nazgul finding hobbits in the forest. They are not slower than hobbits on foot anymore.
It worked very well for me, even though the riders have no introduction here.

Good. It's a scene that worried me some, as it cuts very fast into the ferry scene.

boon23 said:
5. Removed some of the sleeping hobbits and posing Nazgul. They seem scarier when they are more to the point. Also I don't like this kind of tension-heightener that the interposed sleeping hobbits and Nazgul images are supposed to be. It was overdone here, and I've shortened it.
Good call. This scene really works better this way.

Yay! And I feel the same way (obviously).

boon23 said:
6. Removed scene with Saruman contacting Sauron. Saruman is more threatening as an independent player. That he starts building an army is because he wants the ring himself!
Again: good call. Saruman is in this edit much more than just Sauron's servant.

I think most edits of FotR will make this particular cut.

boon23 said:
7. Only 1 Nazgul finds them on Weathertop. And it's damn scary! Thank you Kerr for providing a crucial shot of the lone approaching Nazgul.
It feels choppy and the image quality varies. Aragorn pops up from nowhere and the Nazgul is defeated really quickly. although I understand the desire to make the Nazgul stronger (and I agree that this would be needed), the new scene did not convince me.

That's too bad. This is a major change, the one that was the hardest to put together. The image quality does shift, and it's very slow in parts. Can we write it down to the Nazgûl warping reality around them?
I still stand by the change, I think it makes the enemy a whole lot more fearsome.

boon23 said:
8. Removed "What's this? A ranger caught off his guard?". Yeah, why is he? And it doesn't make Arwen's introduction more potent or interesting.
Arwen and Aragorn do not argue about who will ride. They just know who is the best suited. And I get a chance to add a little romance by changing the translation of the spoken elvish.
Removed "What are you doing? Those wraiths are still out there!". Why is Sam so stupid?
No goo on Frodo's face during the chase, and the Nazgul don't come quite as near. The goo is gone later on, so...
Removed Nazgul claiming the halfling and Arwen challenging them. They are scarier when they don't make demands like that.
The flood hits them too fast for them to move out of the way. They aren't stupid anymore.
This all worked really well, with the exception of the flood. Event hough it comes a lot faster it still is a bit weird. But overall: great work.

Woo. The flood was another tricky one, and another one that was a must for me. I simply had to change to scene, in whatever way I could.

boon23 said:
9. Cut Arwen getting very upset that Frodo is dying. She still cries out, but the worst parts are gone.
Now that scene felt now particularly strange and incomplete and jumps to Rivendell. Didn't work for me at all.

I can see why you'd feel that way. Tried some different transitions into Rivendell, but this most straight forward one seemed to work the best. I really don't like her original reaction.

boon23 said:
10. Cut any talk about Aragorn choosing exile. Men are not without power, and Aragorn is only waiting for his time.
Time change, the council of Elrond. Two reasons. It makes the revelation of Aragorns heritage more potent. It makes the next scene with Boromir and Narsil much more meaningful!
Boromir does not question Aragorn on who he is. Because he already knows.
I found this a bit confusing.

Mk...how? I'm a big fan of the time change.

boon23 said:
11. The Watcher battle at Moria is shortened. If it had more time it should have killed someone.
Troll action is drastically shortened. Nor do the hobbits kill any goblins. A little over the top in some parts, and I really don't get why the hobbits get to be action heroes.
The goblins do not climb walls like insects. Do I need to?
All worked great, but the city part felt chopped.

I was a bit worried about the troll action, and I can see that it can feel rushed, or chopped. All in all I find it helps this part quite a lot.

boon23 said:
12. A little less of Boromir almost falling down. Didn't add to the tension.
The result is a choppy scene change. Very obviously cut. Not good.

Sorry! You expect a view of the chasm but cut to Gandalf, so it doesn't follow like you'd think. I suppose that is what jolts you out of it. I might have been ok with not changing this scene. Ah well.

boon23 said:
13. They do not jump over a hole in the stairs. What an anti-climax! A long scene about jumping a hole when they are chased by a Balrog.
I always liked that scene kind of. It adds a bit if humor to a very sinister scenario. But it is not really missed, when it's gone.

Hehehehe.

boon23 said:
14. Removed Haldir telling Frodo that he is not welcome and carries great evil. Why does Haldir say this? If he knows, Galadriel must have told him. And she would want to help them. So either he shouldn't know at all (good) or help them. Instead it is the arrogance of Gimli that makes Haldir reluctant to offer any help. I know that some have big issues with this scene, clothes, make up, etc, but I think the scene is good in other aspects and worth keeping. That parts are used again the Mirror of Galadriel only underscores her words "some things that have been"
Removed "The enemy knows you have entered here. What hope you had in secrecy is now lost". Which enemy? And what do they know? This makes things more unclear and poses questions never answered.
Galadriel does not say that "he will try and take the Ring" The temptation is back! But this part isn't very good, or at least I think so. It is enough that the Ring will break the Fellowship.
Galadriel does not explain about her Ring. No need to. Feels off.
All worked well.

Wooo. I'm very glad that you found the part where Gimli insults Haldir to work well. Also the Galadriel parts, that caused me some headache in editing.

boon23 said:
15. Removed Celeborn telling Aragorn about orcs spotted, and changed his parting words. Once again his words aren't properly explained. Followed by whom? (Gollum, yes, but let us know that then.)
Sam does not ask for a dagger. It's not his character to question the gift of the mighty Galadriel.
Elvish translation change - Aragorn does not wish for Arwen to go to Valinor. Galadriel speaks of Arwen's choice and what it will mean for her life. Because he accepts her choice and her love.
All good calls.

Yay, thanks. Any specific comments about the change of words?

boon23 said:
16. Cut some of the first blows Aragorn makes against the horde of Uruk-hai. He retreats instead to a better position.
Cut Boromir's first intervention to save the hobbits. It's not a bad scene, but a little odd, and has hobbits stabbing a couple of orcs too.
Removed Legolas killing orcs that fall over randomly. Why do they do that?
Removed Uruk-Hai felled by magic hobbit stones, and other orcs randomly dying near Boromir. They are strong and scary, not fluffy bunnies. And they have helmets for "#*^'s sake!
Cut short the execution aiming on Boromir. It just looks silly.
The Uruk Hai encounter felt very choppy and was one of the worst parts of the fanedit for me. I don't think any of the cuts were necessary or did improve the tension.

Awwww. Well that sucks, as it's the end fight scene. I needed to make these changes, so I wouldn't take anything back. So I find them neccessary. Perhaps it could have been more skillfully executed...
It's too bad. I hope that not everyone will experience this fight in a similar manner!

boon23 said:
17. Sam does not go limp with glazed eyes under water. That would mean too long time. This cut turned out better this time around.
Good call. It still feels unlikely that Frodo could have saved him without getting wet.

Yup.

boon23 said:
As you can see, there are quite a few inconsistencies for me. Most things worked great, others really did not. I was getting a bit bored in Lothlorien and think the theatrical cut is more to the point there. Overall I was mostly entertained and realyl impressed by some of the decisions of Spelledaren that worked great.

editing: 7 of 10 (some spottable unnatural scene changes, but most of all really well done)
entertainment: 7 of 10 (I was distracted by the things that did not work well for me, but always could get back into the movie flow without wanting to stop. (original: 10 of 10))

Image and video quality:
The video quality was in most scenes great. There were a few scenes with varying image quality in close-ups and a few stutters.
Video quality: 8 of 10

Audio editing and audio quality:
audio quality was great. I did not notice a bad audio cut, which is a great achievement in such a heavily scored movie.
audio editing: 10 of 10
sound quality: 10 of 10
resulting in a 10 of 10 for overall audio

Lots of nice words. Thanks. That audio 10 is very gratifying. I've had so many fights with the damn sound! I do know that there is a few music changes that aren't perfect, but I guess you know your own work and all it's tiny faults so well.

I'll take that less than 10 for video, those shifts in quality gave me a chance to do some changes I really wanted to make. 7 for editing feels like a passing grade, which also works. I have a lot to learn, I know this. All I can say is that this site made it possible for me to create something passable instead of a truly chopped up hack version. I'm very glad that you could watch it all the way through! I know how much you love FotR. Of course an entertainment value of less than the original isn't good, but I'll take that 7 with a smile.

boon23 said:
presentation:
The fanedit comes on 2 SL DVDs, which is not a great choice for ONE movie. 174 minutes is long, but one DL would have been the better choice IMO, especially because the menus are not nice and look pretty cheap. The chapter selection menus have custom titles for each scene, which is a nice addition. Unfortunately there is a flaw on disc 1 that makes you click twice to go back to the main menu. The custom title was not well inserted and very obvious, especially because of the stutter that came with it. The end credits are cut super short and are not custom. There are no extras and no cover art.
To sum it up:
The presentation leaves quite a lot to be desired. For the presence of menus, custom title and chapter menus I am giving 4 stars.
4 of 10 for overall presentation

Final result: 7 of 10
There are some really well done scenes and it is an enjoyable fanedit and a quite well done and promising firstling. What I particularly like about it is that Spelledaren tried some truly daring cuts and alterations and succeeded most of the time. I was entertained by the fanedit, but will not watch it again probably.
Recommended for those who are interested in a fixed cut of LOTR other than the book cuts.
Thank you, spelledaren, for creating it.

Thank you for giving insight and feedback during my first years on the site. Presentation definetly isn't my strong side. I might get better!
 

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New DVD out now! New presentation, hopefully slightly more appealing. Both parts are now included on the same DVD9. I linked from the first part directly to the second, and the transition works ok, almost like they were edited together as one movie.

I hope that this and the links for the avi will be added to fanedit.info now. Enjoy!
 

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Bump! Now available again. The current version is the one that I made after Boon's insightful comments above, so might be even a little better than what he saw.

With a lot of LotR talk going on I hope someone takes the time to watch this piece. I like it a lot :p
 

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Watched yesterday.
Since I'm planning to do it myself I had some doubts to watch it because I wanted to have fresh ideas, but also, what's the point to do something when it's already done?


I know It's not a faithful to the book edit. My comments would take that into account.


For the first part (first DVD) I rewatched the original movie to see the changes.


Spoilers
At Bilbos's party I would try to keep the dragon's firework scene. With the forthcoming release of "The Hobbit" it might be a good recall of it (better if you watch them consecutively). Also, there is a missing scene between Bilbo and Frodo that is not bad.
Otherwise, good editing and you removed Merry and Pippin (Thanks).


Cut some Sam's complains about sleep on the floor. Good choice.
Removing Elves's parade. Works well but also it's not a bad scene to let it in.


Saruman versus Gandalf. Fantastic job. I had in my mind to do something like this and you just did it perfect. Seamless job. No issues with the sound. Thanks for it!


First encounter with the Nazgul. Much better in general but I would try the Nazgul to don't get off the horse. I think that way it is going to be more frightening, also, it seems to me, he is too much close to the Hobbits, and, of course, to the ring. Must be the one blind, deaf, an without the sense of smell, Nazgul of the nine. Lucky Hobbits.




Clever edits at the river. Works much better for me.


Nice choice removing the Nazguls stabbing the Hobbits. I hate that scene. They look silly.


Weathertop scene. We have here one of the top edits in the movie if not the best. Despite it is a bit harsh in some transitions, the overal is wonderful, very well done. I had to rewatched because I was wondering how you did it. Still don't know how you tricked the Nazgul coming through the mist.
Exceeded my initial expectations. Very refreshing scene.


Now stating the hard part. I personally dislike-hate some of the incoming stuff; Arwen, Elrond and Rivendel in general.


Arwen first appearence. I dislike this scene but it's imposible to fix (where will be Glorfindel). At least you did it better removing some silly lines. Arwen don't caught Aragorn off guard, and removing the last lines of Sam: "What are you doing?!Those Wraiths are still out there!". Thanks.
Good choice removing a Nazgul trying to catch Frodo in the chace.


I don't like Arwen casting the spell. It seems to me she is too much powerful. She, all alone, defeats the Nazgul. It dosen't feel right.
Thanks for removing the Nazgul going in the same direction of the wave and the last lines of Arwen "What grace is given me..." but it's still weird how she behave with Frodo. She just meet him. Don't know why is she so concern. Maybe cut the scene a bit before, when Frodo is still on the horse.




Some good cuts in Rivendel but I don't like the council and you leave it, I think, as it was. Two things bother me; Legolas responding to Boromir (don't know why he is so upset) and, more important, Gimli hitting the one ring with the axe. Augh, it's too silly even for him. Please, think about removing that.


Moria. You did some cuts at the battle scene and even It's well done I think it's good stuff to miss.
You removed the monkey orcs, thanks, and the ladder scene. I understand why but I like that scene.


Lorien.
I don't like the first appearance of the elves, pointing a bow at them very, very close. I don't know if it can be fixed. Also, Galadriel's telepathy feels weird to me.


Sudden transition with the music at 1:00:39.


There is an issue at the final part of the movie, when Aragorn let Frodo to go alone to mordor. Think about it. Aragorn who is a ranger with a lot of experience would let a Hobbit without any experience, go alone, even without Sam, with the one ring toward mordor? It's a totally suicide and jeopardizes the safety of the mission. I don't know what the scriptwriters were thinking about when they wrote it.
I know it's hard to fix but maybe you can do something.
Same for Merry and Pippin. We thougth they were friends but, hey, maybe they just hate Frodo. They must be thinking something like; "Go, Frodo, go alone and die in mordor".


The cuts are well done but again, you cut some good fight stuff that I like. I miss when Legolas shoot one after another arrows. Even I don't like him making odd movements It should be noted that he is an elf and It is one thing to do that kind of stuff and another the things he do in the next movies (to kill an mûmakil is a serious stuff).
There is another sudden transition with the music at 1:08 but it's not a big deal.

The overall edition is very good. Amazing work with the sound transitions and some scenes are a huge improvement from the original (Saruman fight, Weathertop). It's a pity that you don't go for a more faithful (to the book) edition because I believe you would do a great job.
My, personal, concerns about the edit would be (aside it's not a faithful edition);
Gimli smashing the ring.
The missing of some fight stuff in moria and in the forest at the end of the movie.
And the biggest of them; Aragorn's decision toward Frodo (same for Merry and Pippin).


Oh, and the video quality. It have saturated colors and some issue when a subtitle is displayed. I would be better if you could do it in HD 1080 or, at least, 720.


I would recommend this edition to the people who enjoy the original movie and wants an improved version.
 
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