Wolf Dancer
 a TRUE FANEDIT by CBB
This is a new take on DANCES WITH WOLVES, the famous 4h Western/Adventure that is so similar in its story to Avatar. Condensed to 2h30 minutes this is a much faster paced intense movie with no voice overs from John Dunbar, no irritating madness and less over-the-top scenes. The conflict of the two worlds and clashing cultures has been toned down to a more realistic, but still highly emotional take. member ratings: |
(19 votes, average: 9.63 out of 10, rated)
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TAGLINE: Silence says more than a thousand words.
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INTENTION:
To tell Dances With Wolves in a new, faster paced, plot condensed version that gets rid of exaggerations, focuses on John Dunbar and his journey from being a soldier to joining a Sioux tribe, and to let the audience experience the turn for themselves without the voice-overs that take away any thinking of their own.
EDITING DETAILS:
After watching Avatar I was reminded on this wonderful movie and realized that I hardly ever watch it, because it is just too long. I thought about fanediting it, condensing it and maybe remove some of the weird parts that always bugged me a bit. When I watched the movie again, I realized that these voice-overs are a bit annoying, especially because they happen all the time and leave the audience no option to feel or see anything the way they want to. So I decided to get rid of them. I also realized that my original DVD was truly bad quality and purchased the bluray to work from a great quality source. It truly shows. This fanedit looks by far better than the original DVD.
here is a comparison (click to see it bigger):
I asked my friend, ThrowgnCpr several times if he would think this or that would work – and his input has helped me (and this fanedit) a lot. It was for example his help that led to the deletion of the flashback scene of “Stands With A Fist”. The input from Mollo on the forum was also great and helped shape it some more (although I did not do anything about Mary McDonnell and her Bonnie Tyler look – sorry, dude). But like me he felt that the mad major Fambrough needed the full editing treatment to be bearable. He actually suggested to skip him entirely, which I did not do for plot reasons, to give John Dunbar a true soldier beginning and the audience some needed moments to get to know the character and his intention for his voyage. “I am here on my own request to see the frontier before it’s gone.” is a key sentence to me that must be in the movie.
My initial goal of 2h was not possible without sacrificing too much important plot and atmosphere, so the final runtime is around 2h30min. The plot focuses a lot more on John Dunbar. I removed many scenes with “cute Indian” humor, because they did not add to the intensity and distracted from the depth. My take is more serious, faster paced and deeper than the original.
The questions always were: is this scene needed? What does it do for the progress of the movie? Is it important for the atmosphere?
The removal of the voice-overs and fully recreating the audio of these scenes was a huge undertaking. It took hours for a few seconds. Overall I used more than 150 different sound effects.
CUTLIST:
- - cut suicide attempt beginning (because it’s a strange beginning and the madness contained is not needed. The scene was probably used to establish John Dunbar’s relationship to the army, to make it obvious how special and how daring he is and that he is willing to die for a thing he believes in. All of this though gets clear later on.)
- - removed all voice overs of John Dunbar telling us of his experiences and journey (it is a not needed influence and keeps the atmosphere from being quiet. It influences the audience and stops them from thinking and seeing for themselves. Without the voice-over the scenes have a different, but even deeper impact.)
- - cut the madness of Major Fambrough (because that guy is utterly confusing and weird for no true reason)
- - removed all scenes of Captain Cargill and his men at Fort Sedgewick (Dunbar will find it deserted and like the audience wonder why that is <– like in the theatrical cut. The deserted fort has much more impact than the explained one.).
- - cut Timmons throwing away the empty can and John Dunbar being shocked about it (environment protection is a good thing, but it’s not needed to have it so obvious, which is historically also not accurate)
- - removed Timmons wake-up butt poke scene (unneeded dumb humor and a bit wrong for Dunbar’s character).
- - cut mystical wind experience of John Dunbar, when he is standing in the field (it serves no purpose and mysticism like that is repeated only in the deer-in-the-lake scene, but never explained or continued).
- - cut first Wolf appearance, when he watched the soldiers leave (continuity).
- - cut second wolf appearance, because he is later on introduced better (pace).
- - cut part of “drawing dead deers out of the water” to get rid of voice over (the dead deers are really weird, yet the scene is needed for the fireplace surprise that follows)
- - removed funny parts of Dunbar discovering he is naked after scaring off Kicking Bird (unneeded in-the-face humor)
- - removed Dunbar hiding the goods (the scene was getting too long. Pace.)
- - removed the Lakota scenes, after Dunbar hid the weapons(because we will encounter them when they meet Dunbar – the edit focuses mainly on him and it is good to keep the rather peaceful intentions of the natives a mystery for now <– pretty much like the theatrical cut. Pace.)
- - removed the Lakota scenes after the 2nd attempt to steal the horse (pace.)
- - removed “Stands With A Fist’s” flashback (it’s a good scene and sure adds some action to a long time without fights, yet it is not really needed. Pace.)
- - cut “Two Socks” feeding scene, Lakota bringing gifts and Dunbar writing in his journal (all not needed. Pace.)
- - shortened road to buffalo killing ground (pace)
- - removed killed white fur hunter scenes from pre-buffalo hunt celebration (while surely historically accurate,such a brutality was really strange and would have probably led to Dunbar not being able to join the tribe later on. Continuity and pace.)
- - cut Lakota kids being beaten to get away from the buffalo hunt (historically inaccurate)
- - shortened buffalo killing scenes (where they were mainly just riding with the bulls without shooting. Pace.)
- - removed “fire dance” (it was always a bit weird scene and is not needed. Pace. You can see it as the main menu in full.)
- - removed Dunbar’s arrival at Lakota camp with voiceover talking about the upcoming war with the Pawnee and him being given his own tent (which unfortunately contained important information)
- - added arrival scene (repeat shot from first approaching the Lakota, which is a continuity error there, because “Wind In His Hair” wears Dunbar’s jacket, so it is pretty fitting here now. continuity.)
- - removed part of the speech training (pace)
- - cut Dunbar brooding over “Stands With A Fist” not speaking to him (pace)
- - removed wedding preparations (pace)
- - removed ride invitation of “Kicking Bird” (pace)
- - removed poachers hut (Poachers were not that unusual and their being “bad” is too obvious and not needed. Pace and continuity.
- - cut entire journal mentioning in the soldier camp and later on (it is just gone)(Dunbar considers it private and will not ask for it, because it could endanger the Lakota. Continuity and pace.)
- - reduced Spivey heavily from being a villain (he was never convincing and way over-the-tio, making him deeply annoying, which was unneeded as a reason to kill them all later on. pace and impact.)
- - reduced soldier badness (they are bad enough already. impact.)
+ many more tiny cuts for faster pacing.
700 lines of dialogue were removed. That is about 60%.
The former voice-over scenes that were kept have all fully recreated sound effects and score.
ADDITIONAL COMMENT:
I am a true fan of the original and this has not changed. My version is not meant to improve the original, but to create a different version that can be watched easier than the full 4h and also cause a different atmosphere.
CREDITS:
thank you: ThrowgnCpr, Mollo
also thank you: Uncanny Antman, Winnie, Nono, Heinrich
AWARDS:
Disclaimer: You must own the original movie before acquiring any FanEdited movie. We here at FanEdit.org respect the company’s copyrights, and don’t want to infringe on any company’s rights. Thank you, FE!
Maybe downloadable from Fanedit.info (enter and download at your own risk and responsibility)
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First review here…so what to say? Great concept, good editing choices and superb editing skills at work here. I do not believe that I will ever watch the original Dances with Wolves again. You may say that the intention isn’t to improve the original, but with this one I strongly feel that this is the case.
Some comments about the cut list…”removed all voice overs”, is really what stands out the most as the major change. And it really really works. The added emotional depth for the movie is great, just by saying less! Keeping the focus on Dunbar’s experience also helps us (me) to connect emotionally. The added arrival scene (repeat shot from first approaching the Lakota) was perhaps needed but I actually noticed it when watching (that it was a repeat). It might be possible that I was being very alert, looking for changes and how it was presented, and that a viewer in general wouldn’t catch this one. “cut entire journal mentioning in the soldier camp and later on”. Not entirely sure about this one, as the journal is his reason for going back. It makes movie sense for them to be talking about it, and I wondered later on what had become of it, since it was so important to him. But I’m sure you had good reasons for leaving it out. “removed “Stands With A Fist’s†flashback”. At first I was a little confused here, but thinking about it I agree that this version works a lot better, and we don’t see flashbacks in any other part of the movie.
As I said earlier, lots of other good editing choices.
I was also struck how much better this story is constructed and played out than the one in Avatar. Your editing has highlighted the best parts of that story. Thank you.
In total this recieves a 9/10 from me. Great version of a good movie, but it didn’t totally blow me away for a perfect 10. Though giving this a 9 makes me question some other 9s I might have given out
Review by spelledaren — February 13, 2010 @ 11:58 am
Wolf Dancer – A Review by Mollo
Dances with Wolves in its original form is a perpetuation of the long-standing myth of the American west. It embodies overt revisionism and romanticism. At its heart, it reeks of fantasy and sentimentality. It also continues the insidious myth popularized by western screenwriter Frank S. Nugent, that white women once captured by the American Indian inevitably go mad.
The problems I had with the original film mainly focused on four issues. The opening American Civil War sequence, the Mad Major scene, the vaudeville villainy of the American troopers and Mary McDonnell’s poor acting and Bonnie Tyler hair.
Boon’s idea that Dances With Wolves could do with a FanEdit is a solid one and I eagerly anticipated its release.
The opening titles of Wolf Dancer are superbly done and the introduction of our hero reminds me of westerns of a bygone era. This also removes the American Civil War sequence, which in my opinion is a major improvement.
In Dance With Wolves, there are constant references to Costner as a benign Christ-like figure and the more of those that are removed the better in my opinion.
So far great stuff but this beautiful title sequence leads us to the “Mad Major†scene. Boon has radically culled this scene of its nuttiness but in doing so has altered the pacing, which now appears somewhat rushed and abridged. The line “I want to see the frontier before it is gone” needs a reaction shot from the Major or a pause before he rapidly suggests the wagon master. Also Costner’s salute but mainly his reaction is at odds with the new content of the FanEdited scene.
From here the FanEdit settles into a confident stride with solid narrative flow and seamless editing. I began to become engaged in the film rather than being aware that it is a FanEdit. This feeling of completeness continues right until the end credits and I was very satisfied with the over-all result.
The problems that remain are inherent in the original, as mentioned above but these cannot affect the consistent improvement Boon has achieved with this FanEdit.
The removal of the narration is perfectly done and the sound editing is faultless. I would have added a bit more of a thump when the young brave is pulled off his horse, maybe even the sound of bones breaking but this is subjective. The enormous amount of work that has been with the sound design of this FanEdit is really excellent and in my opinion sets a new standard in CBB productions.
So in conclusion this is a healthy improvement over the original apart for the minor issues with the “Mad Major†scene. Wolf Dancer is now my preferred version. Not perfect but damn near close.
The picture quality is very good. I have not compared it with my PAL Special Edition but it is really crisp and bright.
9/10
Review by Rock Savage — February 13, 2010 @ 3:53 pm
I struggled as to how I wanted to word my comments of this FE. I have been a huge fan of the book since it’s original release (well before I knew there was going to be a movie). I guess it is also important to mention that I am half-Sioux (my mother’s side of the fmaily are almost all exclusively full Sioux). So needless to say, I have always had a soft spot for this movie (in the book, the Native Americans are Commanche, not Sioux).
For me, two apects I have always had problems with are these: 1) the over-the-top, stereo-typical, portrayal of the Army personnel. and 2) believe it or not, the portrayal of the Sioux. Very down-played version of what the true Sioux and Sioux life was actually like. Neither of these groups were remotely, accurately portrayed in the movie.
regardless, still like th emovie. I completely agree with Rock Savage’s “four points”. CBB addresses these with his usual expertise. As much as I fond the “Mad Major” out of place inthe original, I understand why he is needed, even in a small way, to remain – the line, “I want to see the frontier before it is gone†is of utmost importance to set the tone for the entire movie.
I always liked the “narration” from the original and was somewhat apprehensive of it being edited it out. Once I watched the movie without it, I can’t now believe I ever thought it was necessary. (think “Blade Runner” as a good reference).
I never liked the “Stands with a Fist” flashback; always fast-forwarded through; and am very glad it has been excised from the FE.
A sign of an effective FE (for me) is as I am watching it and I stop thinking of it as an edit, but as a original movie. I found myself watching this FE initially and trying to spot the edits etc, but as the movie progressed I found myself caught up in the movie.
The technical side: the redesigned audio is VERY well done! If there were any flaws in it, then I missed them entirely. the video quality is excellent. never knew how poor quality my standard DVD id compared to the BR version.
If you are apprehensive about DL’ing this FE because the original is soooo long, have no fear! This FE trims the original down to a watchable length!
Overall, a well paced, excellent FE. CBB never disappoints!
Review by flyboy707 — February 13, 2010 @ 7:42 pm
Wolf Dancer
Review by Captain Khajiit
**Warning!**
**This review contains spoilers!**
While the blu-ray of the long sprawling director’s cut of this film occupies pride of place in my film collection, the slower moments almost seem to cry out for a more tightly-paced alternative version of the film. Boon has skilfully crafted one.
The voiceover served its purpose well in the original, and it was not a mistake on the director’s part; yet removing it has allowed viewers to draw more of their own conclusions, follow the main character and become a little more absorbed in the film. Inevitably, when an element designed to be integral to a film is removed, events occasionally sit a little awkwardly with the rest of the film and are sometimes a little hard (but not impossible) to follow for those who do not know the film well – notably the scene depicting buffalo butchered by white hunters and the subsequent night scene at the camp. Nonetheless, the overall result is the creation of a refreshingly different way to experience the film, which is always what I look for in a fanedit. The faneditor obviously had a clear vision of what he wanted to achieve with the edit, and it is implemented consistently right through to the end.
Editing: 9 out of 10 for the editing itself. I really liked the way in which the scenes with Spivey and Bauer were trimmed, but the “Mad Major” scene felt a little rushed. I missed the council scene in which the Sioux boys learn of Dunbar’s presence, as they seem to come out of nowhere. One sequence I wish had been cut comes after Dunbar asks to relieve himself; he is bashed on the head, again, and wakes to be interrogated, again. This has always seemed slightly odd, and I would have cut straight to Dunbar washing himself in the stream, as the content of the second interrogation seems to me to be largely implied in the first.
Entertainment: 9 out of 10 (theatrical – 9 out of 10; director’s cut 9 out of 10)
Image and video quality: The video – derived from the director’s cut blu-ray – was of excellent quality. It really shows how sloppy the plethora of official DVD transfers of this film has been. 10 out of 10
Audio editing and audio quality: The voiceover has been extremely well removed. The audio does very occasionally sound a little odd, but given the extent of the undertaking, the soundtrack is very impressive. 9 out of 10
Presentation: I actually burnt this DVD to disc, which shows you how much I liked it. Menus always do nothing for me, but I confess that I did actually love the wolf emerging from the darkness. The lettering of the menus and the opening credits was perfectly chosen, though I must say I really didn’t like the yellow subtitles, and wished they had been placed entirely in the black border (thought there might have been a technical reasons for their placement). 9 out of 10
Overall: 9 out of 10 CBB’s latest edit is an impressive achievement.
Review by Captain Khajiit — February 14, 2010 @ 5:54 am
the people before me have said it all. Great fanedit.
Review by brauventura1 — February 14, 2010 @ 10:05 am
Excellent edit, it kept me highly entertained throughout, loverly picture and excellent sound for the most part there was the occasional sound flutter, the subtitles when they appeared are fine.
Highly recommend, thanks for the movie edit.
Review by chancer127 — March 1, 2010 @ 10:50 pm
really, really good. loved the axed narration and loss of journal entries.
some nitpicking:
i think some of the spivey removal (and explanation) is a bit much, tho…
it would have been nice to have scenes of john USING the journal during the film so that his reason to retrieve it is more obvious,
Review by joebshmoe — March 8, 2010 @ 1:20 pm
Removal of voice over has never been more accurate than in this edit. Watching the original scenes with voice over now feels so useless.
The movie already was a masterpiece but I like this edit even more.
You really feel like you are John Dunbar rather than watching his story.
A complete success.
Review by TMBTM — March 21, 2010 @ 6:34 pm
Dances with Wolves was and still is one of my favourite movies, the length of it always stops me from watching it as its the time element. Your edit is a masterpiece on its own, Voice over? what voice over? I had completely forgotten about it after watching your edit. Mollo and Captain Khajiit have both given great reviews and said just about everything that the rest of us were going to mention. All I can say is once again great edit once again from CBB.
Audio 10/10
Video 10/10
Entertainment 10/10
I guess that’s full marks from me. Really enjoyed the edit, looking forward to the next one.
Review by searcher — March 29, 2010 @ 4:22 pm
I haven’t watched Dances With Wolves in years precisely due to it’s length.
It’s a great movie but it goes on forever.
I watched this without reading the spoilers.
The only thing I knew about it was that the voice over was gone and that it was getting rave reviews – which is to be expected for a CBB edit anyway.
I had no idea that the movie got trimmed so much and quite frankly, I didn’t miss anything since I hadn’t seen it in so long.
About the mad major scene… well it didn’t seem rushed to me mainly because I just don’t remember the full scene.
To me, it merely felt that the Major considered Dunbar nuts and decided to get him out of his office as quick as possible.
Everything else that I would want to say has already been said.
Thanks for another great edit.
10/10
Review by zeppelinrox — April 5, 2010 @ 7:42 am
Streamlined, improved version of a masterpiece. I love it.
Review by humanissue — April 21, 2010 @ 6:54 pm
Greetings from Germany. Is this correct that the fan editor is a German too? If so: cool. This is a great version. Thanks for deleting the civil war and that stupid chief of the fort. These changes already make for a better movie. Also thanks a lot for Spivey, who always destroyed the final atmosphere for me. Image quality is terrific. It is a Single Layer and looks so much better than my Dual Layer. Sound is also good.
Compliments and respect from a fellow German and huge fan. I will watch more CBB fanedits and report back.
Review by sorenreichelt — April 21, 2010 @ 9:37 pm
I can’t add much to what has already been said. It was a completely new and awesome experience to watch this beautiful movie.It felt fresh. Very very well done.
Review by dvice — May 15, 2010 @ 11:50 am
Ditto to Flyboy’s review. Thank you much CBB for the improved sound editing and blu-ray source video. Out of curiosity, why not post up a blu-ray version for download if you were working from blu-ray source? Also curious what software you used to convert the blu-ray disc to an editable non-copyprotected format.
The voice-over had to go. It ruins the original and is a great example of why one of my screenwriting professor’s cardinal rules was, “No voice-over! If you want narration, read a book! This is cinema. Show. Don’t tell.”
This is some of the best fan editing work I have thus far seen, and the best of CBB’s I have seen. Great job and thanks.
10/10
Review by geminigod — July 6, 2010 @ 8:22 pm
While I loved the original, I have to say that this rendition makes for a more ‘real’ experience.
I truly loved everything about this edition.
10/10
Review by ionvox — December 27, 2010 @ 6:55 am