Dark Knight, The: Remixed by Jorge

Updated
 
8.6 (6)
 
9.8 (41)
5603 7 9
Dark Knight, The: Remixed by Jorge
Faneditor Name:
Original Movie/Show Title:
Genre:
Franchise:
Fanedit Type:
Original Release Date:
2008
Original Running Time:
152 minutes
Fanedit Release Date:
Fanedit Running Time:
120 minutes
Time Cut:
32 minutes
Synopsis:
A chronological re-order of the entire film for a fresh new ride.
Intention:
With a Rotten Tomatoes meter of 95% freshness no question THE DARK KNIGHT is the best Batman movie ever, the best superhero movie ever and the best movie of 2008.

But there are some opportunities for a fanedit.

Initially, the story unwinds with poise keeping up with the “A” elements, however, at about midway, new plots are introduced diluting some otherwise well-earned momentum. It’s a long movie anyway, but after that midpoint, it just begins to feel relentless and a little tedious.

The action sequences are a tad incoherent. Specially the one in the building with the Doctors and Hostages and Sonar and Lucious Fox. The same with the Armoured truck chase scene.

My attention went also to Harvey Dent whose story doesn’t get rolling until well into Act 3. Often the comment is that Harvey’s story should have been saved for another movie, mainly because by the time it is revealed the audience is exhausted. But THE DARK KNIGHT is really Harvey’s movie. Neither Batman nor the Joker are changed by the end of the movie to the extent that Harvey is transformed.

This is THE DARK KNIGHT and a simple trim job as mentioned in the “Cut/Added” would not suffice.

And since this is Christopher Nolan, I decide that for a NEW ride and to address the Two-Face issue I would completely eschew the linear storytelling and replace it with Nolan’s own style from MEMENTO. The film is now structured backwards and forwards, so that Harvey’s past and future appear to be interconnected from both ends, directly affecting his present.

This nonlinear narrative structure challenges the conventional rules of plot construction and defies the standard notion that a film’s scenes must advance chronologically. It makes the audiences understand the film in a new way by making new cause-and-effect connections between the scenes. Each beat of information must relate to what comes before and after, even if a scene transcends the chronological order of time. In nonlinear films, relationships created between the various time segments form a specific meaning when taken all together.

The film’s events unfold in two separate, alternating narratives. One in color, and the other in black and white.
The black and white sections are told in Forward Chronological order.
The color sequences are in Reverse Chronological order.
The result is hopefully a new ride with some wonderful fresh thrills along the way.
Release Information:
DVD
Special Features:
Bonus Motion Comic “Shadow of the Demon” and trailers
Cuts and Additions:

trimmed restaurant scene
deleted kidnapping moscow ballet
deleted ferries and the prisoner’s dilemma
deleted most sonarvision
deleted the Mayor as next victim
deleted Parade and Gordon’s death
deleted Harvey’s russian roulette
deleted bullet on wall
deleted tumbler female voice
added 3 scenes from BATMAN BEGINS
added 3 Gotham City shots from BATMAN BEGINS
trimmed armored truck sequence
many more trims to mention
DKDISCSURFACE
jorge_darkknight_by_avp
DK
DKR_cover_by_Rogue
DKR_disk_by_Rogue
DKR_inner_cover_by_Rogue
Faneditor Name:
Original Movie/Show Title:
Genre:
Franchise:
Fanedit Type:
Original Release Date:
2008
Original Running Time:
152 minutes
Fanedit Release Date:
Fanedit Running Time:
120 minutes
Time Cut:
32 minutes
Synopsis:
A chronological re-order of the entire film for a fresh new ride.
Intention:
With a Rotten Tomatoes meter of 95% freshness no question THE DARK KNIGHT is the best Batman movie ever, the best superhero movie ever and the best movie of 2008.

But there are some opportunities for a fanedit.

Initially, the story unwinds with poise keeping up with the “A” elements, however, at about midway, new plots are introduced diluting some otherwise well-earned momentum. It’s a long movie anyway, but after that midpoint, it just begins to feel relentless and a little tedious.

The action sequences are a tad incoherent. Specially the one in the building with the Doctors and Hostages and Sonar and Lucious Fox. The same with the Armoured truck chase scene.

My attention went also to Harvey Dent whose story doesn’t get rolling until well into Act 3. Often the comment is that Harvey’s story should have been saved for another movie, mainly because by the time it is revealed the audience is exhausted. But THE DARK KNIGHT is really Harvey’s movie. Neither Batman nor the Joker are changed by the end of the movie to the extent that Harvey is transformed.

This is THE DARK KNIGHT and a simple trim job as mentioned in the “Cut/Added” would not suffice.

And since this is Christopher Nolan, I decide that for a NEW ride and to address the Two-Face issue I would completely eschew the linear storytelling and replace it with Nolan’s own style from MEMENTO. The film is now structured backwards and forwards, so that Harvey’s past and future appear to be interconnected from both ends, directly affecting his present.

This nonlinear narrative structure challenges the conventional rules of plot construction and defies the standard notion that a film’s scenes must advance chronologically. It makes the audiences understand the film in a new way by making new cause-and-effect connections between the scenes. Each beat of information must relate to what comes before and after, even if a scene transcends the chronological order of time. In nonlinear films, relationships created between the various time segments form a specific meaning when taken all together.

The film’s events unfold in two separate, alternating narratives. One in color, and the other in black and white.
The black and white sections are told in Forward Chronological order.
The color sequences are in Reverse Chronological order.
The result is hopefully a new ride with some wonderful fresh thrills along the way.
Release Information:
DVD
Special Features:
Bonus Motion Comic “Shadow of the Demon” and trailers
Cuts and Additions:

trimmed restaurant scene
deleted kidnapping moscow ballet
deleted ferries and the prisoner’s dilemma
deleted most sonarvision
deleted the Mayor as next victim
deleted Parade and Gordon’s death
deleted Harvey’s russian roulette
deleted bullet on wall
deleted tumbler female voice
added 3 scenes from BATMAN BEGINS
added 3 Gotham City shots from BATMAN BEGINS
trimmed armored truck sequence
many more trims to mention
Cover art by Remixed By Jorge (DOWNLOAD HERE)
image

Cover art by AvP (DOWNLOAD HERE)
image

Cover art by Rogue-theX (DOWNLOAD HERE)
image

Trusted Reviewer reviews

Overall rating
 
9.2
Audio/Video Quality
 
8.0
Audio Editing
 
10.0
Visual Editing
 
10.0
Narrative
 
9.0
Enjoyment
 
9.0
A very creative edit that restructures The Dark Knight roughly in the style of Memento. Additional footage from Batman Begins is used for flashbacks, and the Black & White scenes have a Sin City effect emphasising the Joker's makeup. This edit also puts the focus more on Harvey Dent. Really excellent job here with the cuts and rearrangement. Although I imagine someone who hasn't seen the original before will be lost, this is a great way to experience The Dark Knight on a rewatch, and it gives an entirely different feel to the film. Overall, highly recommended.
Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 0 0
(Updated: August 29, 2012)
Overall rating
 
7.8
Audio/Video Quality
 
N/A
Audio Editing
 
10.0
Visual Editing
 
9.0
Narrative
 
5.0
Enjoyment
 
4.0
Rated: November 17, 2011
Reviewed: July 26, 2012

Pre-Amble Ramble -
This was the second fanedit I ever saw, before I knew about this site. I knew fanedits existed but had only ever heard about the countless Star Wars prequel edits. So when I found this (however the hell I found it) I was eager to watch it as I love TDK like McAdams loves Gosling. I don’t need to go into how much I love TDK but I love it, warts and all.

So I watched this edit (in 2010) and didn’t care for it. I didn’t like the Memento style story telling and was upset that some of my favorite moments were cut. Much later once I had joined this site I gave this edit a 7/10 rating without rewatching it. I’ve felt bad about that 7/10 because I didn’t appreciate the idea of a FanMix and when I first watched it I cared more about the fact that blah blah blah was cut and didn’t watch it with an open mind. Now when I look at the history of fanedits, this is a big bright shining star so I felt I should revisit it.

So now that I’ve watched it fresh, here’s what I think.

Note: When it comes to rating the edit in terms of enjoyment/narrative as a movie in its own right, it is all opinion based on my own warped views.

Technically speaking, this edit is close to perfection. The only complaint I have (on the editing side) is the “Sin City B&W/color effect” that is applied spills over at times (mainly when it comes to Joker’s smile). But there are so many things Jorge did right with his editing I can easily overlook these moments.

But this edit still doesn’t work for me. I didn’t like the flow of the narrative, mainly due to the Memento-mix structure. Most of the scenes were too short and (especially in the beginning) it felt disjointed. I often had to remind myself that the original film still exists and I can always rewatch that version. If I hadn’t seen this movie a million times it would be hard to keep track of what was happening.

The Memento-mix works in Memento because the main character has no short term memory. The structure of that movie puts you into the main character’s shoes (to a degree) and the finale brings the two timelines together perfectly. This movie doesn’t have that lynchpin to really justify the structure. As an example, the final scene here feels forced and out of place, yet Memento’s final scene makes you rethink everything you just watched.

I know that Jorge’s intention was to create a new ride for people who have seen the movie umpteen times, but truthfully, I’m not sure how many more times I will watch this version of TDK. To be fair, it’s still Batman and (more or less) it’s still TDK.

Now let’s be unfair. I’m going to compare this edit to Jaws The Sharksploitation Edit. Both are FanMixes of beloved movies by top notch faneditors. Jaws Sharksploitation on the one hand is the perfect “Disc 3″ version to Jaws. If I want to rewatch Jaws I ask myself “Do I want to see the original classic or do I want to watch the crazy version?” It’s a coin toss for me, depending on the mood I’m in. With TDK, I’d rather watch THE DARK KNIGHT instead of THE DARK KNIGHT REMIXED. Is it fair of me? No. Do I love TDK as it is? YES. Did I enjoy The Dark Knight Remixed by Jorge? As a piece of fanediting history, that’s an emphatic YES. As a movie, I’d say “Eh, not really.”

OK, with all that being said, I applaud Jorge for what he did here. As a fanedit, this is a must-see. As a movie in its own right, this would collect dusk in my cabinet.

Let me add something. Having watched it again, I don’t know what the hell I was upset about Jorge cutting. I may have confused this edit with The Rise and Fall of Harvey Two-Face. All of my favorite Joker moments (except the shot of Joker with no make-up) are here. So that was sweet.

FANEDIT RATING – 9
Audio/Video Quality – N/A (The DL DVD is offline so I watched an xvid avi someone else made)
Visual Editing – 9
Audio Editing – 10
Degree of Editing – 8

(NOTE: “Degree of Editing” is a 100% arbitrary rating that I keep in mind when reviewing edits. This is not meant to insinuate that a faneditor is lazy or not. Some fanedits require a lot more work than others and I take this into account.)

MOVIE RATING – 5
(NOTE: Normally, Movie Ratings treat the edit as if it were an official theatrical release. In this case, because this isn’t a FanFix, I’m looking at it as if it were like a 10th Anniversary Alternate Cut. I know this edit doesn’t try to replace TDK.)

Narrative – 5 (Original, honestly, is an 8/10)
Enjoyment – 4 (Original is around 19/10)

OVERALL RATING – 5.5
(Damn...)

User Review

Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 0 0
(Updated: August 29, 2012)
Overall rating
 
9.0
Audio/Video Quality
 
N/A
Audio Editing
 
N/A
Visual Editing
 
N/A
Narrative
 
N/A
Enjoyment
 
9.0
November 16, 2010
*This rating was given before reviews were required*
Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 0 0
(Updated: August 29, 2012)
Overall rating
 
10.0
Audio/Video Quality
 
N/A
Audio Editing
 
N/A
Visual Editing
 
N/A
Narrative
 
N/A
Enjoyment
 
10.0
October 20, 2010

PHENOMENAL!

This may easily be the Best Fan Edit I have ever watched!

I had the distinct honor of the seeing the rough cut of this masterpiece more than a year ago.
So I feel like a total schmuck that it took me this long to actually sit down
and watch the final DVD version.

The alternating timelines thru the use of colour and b&W,
the moving of Harvey Dent to the forefront
while maintaining the powerful psycho presence of the Joker,
the seemless merging of past and present….

…this was just a beautiful experience.

While I am not a huge fan of the memento-mix style,
here is works perfectly, and if anything,
magnifies the power and tragedy
of Bruce, Harvey, Gordon and Rachel.

Bravo Jorge.

ps. I WANT MY ITALIAN STALLION!!!!!
Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 0 0
(Updated: August 29, 2012)
Overall rating
 
9.0
Audio/Video Quality
 
N/A
Audio Editing
 
N/A
Visual Editing
 
N/A
Narrative
 
N/A
Enjoyment
 
9.0
August 17, 2009

I heard people said “who the hell is this Jorge guy to think he can make a better movie out of TDK?”.
Well to me Jorge did not make a better movie, it is a GREAT companion to the original.
It took me a long time to get into it though. I like when a movie loose me sometime, but here I realy had difficulties following it for a good 20 minutes.
For that reason: -1
But in the end it’s still a solid 9/10!
Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 0 0
View all Trusted Reviewer reviews

User reviews

41 reviews
 
68%
 
27%
 
5%
3-5 stars
 
0%
1-3 stars
 
0%
Overall rating
 
9.8
Audio/Video Quality
 
10.0(6)
Audio Editing
 
9.8(6)
Visual Editing
 
10.0(6)
Narrative
 
9.3(3)
Enjoyment
 
9.0(41)
View all user reviews View most helpful
Overall rating
 
10.0
Audio/Video Quality
 
10.0
Audio Editing
 
10.0
Visual Editing
 
10.0
Narrative
 
10.0
Enjoyment
 
10.0
When I saw the original Dark Knight in the movie theaters, I was massively disappointed. It felt long (I checked my watch several times near the end of the movie) overly complicated and had no real emotional center.

I am glad to say that Jorge has improved on the original immensely! This is without a doubt my go to version of Batman!

What works? The memento style is brilliant to me. It is not a gimmick because it makes much clearer how and why Harvey Dent fell. The first and last scenes are with him and I think the last scene of the movie is quite powerful and tragic due to the way the movie was structured.

Also I believe this movie has much more momentum than the original. Like I said the original movie just began to drag for me. The new structure and aggressive cuts make this a leaner and more interesting movie.

Great idea, great execution, great movie!

User Review

Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched
DVD
Report this review Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 0 1
(Updated: August 29, 2012)
Overall rating
 
8.0
Audio/Video Quality
 
N/A
Audio Editing
 
N/A
Visual Editing
 
N/A
Narrative
 
N/A
Enjoyment
 
8.0
August 18, 2011
*This rating was given before reviews were required*
Report this review Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 0 0
(Updated: August 29, 2012)
Overall rating
 
10.0
Audio/Video Quality
 
10.0
Audio Editing
 
10.0
Visual Editing
 
10.0
Narrative
 
N/A
Enjoyment
 
10.0
September 4, 2010

This review is based on my opinions and my viewing experience. Nothing is meant as an attack. Spoiler warning.

AUDIO: Audio sounds great on my 2.0 system and i have yet to find anything to complain about here.
10 out of 10

VIDEO: The image quality is a bit pixilated, then again i used dvdrebuilder to get it to fit on a single layer disc, since boon gave image quality 10 out of 10 i am obliged to do the same.
10 out of 10

EDITING: I have watched this edit a few times now, NEVER once in those viewings has anything caught my eye as being off. Everything has been executed perfectly. 10/10

ENTERTAINMENT: This beast is too cool. Fun all around. A new way to look at it, and every time i watch it i find something different so that’s definetly saying alot.
10 out of 10

HOT DAMN 10 out of 10 all around. well done JORGE!

SIDE NOTES: THE DARK KNIGHT: RE-MIXED BY JORGE is a must see. you will be dazzled. If you haven’t watched it already, do yourself a favour and check it out.

User Review

Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Report this review Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 0 0
(Updated: August 29, 2012)
Overall rating
 
9.0
Audio/Video Quality
 
N/A
Audio Editing
 
N/A
Visual Editing
 
N/A
Narrative
 
N/A
Enjoyment
 
9.0
August 10, 2010
*This rating was given before reviews were required*
Report this review Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 0 0
(Updated: August 29, 2012)
Overall rating
 
6.0
Audio/Video Quality
 
N/A
Audio Editing
 
N/A
Visual Editing
 
N/A
Narrative
 
N/A
Enjoyment
 
6.0
July 6, 2010

Very creative idea and interesting alternative way to watch the movie. My only 2 cents that hasn’t already been said is that I can’t help but wonder if there were another way to achieve the same essential results of shifting the focus to Harvey Dent without quite as many chronological jumps as there were. I suspect that the reason this edit works is because we have all seen the original a number of times. If this edit were the only version I had ever seen, I think it would have been very confusing.
Report this review Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 0 0
View all user reviews