The Phantom Strikes!

[bionicbob]

Return to the Age of Pulp Heroes!

The madman Drax has embarked on ruthless quest for the three fabled supernatural Skulls of Tuganda! Only one man can stop Drax from succeeding and plunging the world into eternal darkness -- The Phantom!

From the Bengalla Jungle, to the streets of New York, to the mysterious Devil's Vortex -- nothing will stop The Ghost Who Walks from protecting the world and saving the girl he loves!


THE PHANTOM STRIKES!


Basic Details: I essentially enjoy the original 1996 film but just wanted to tighten the pacing a bit, tweak some the poor editing in the big action scenes and try to reign in Treat William's over the top scene chewing performance. I have also tried to convert the movie to a retro Black and White look to go along with the old fashion adventure tone.

original film names: THE PHANTOM
new film name :THE PHANTOM STRIKES!
film studio name aramount Pictures
edit crew name : Bionic Bob
persons involved: Me
Date Original Film Was Released :1996
Date Edit Was Released :NOVEMBER 2013
Original Runtime :1 hour 40 minutes
New Runtime :1 hour 28 minutes
Cut/Add Time: cut about 14 minutes
added about 2 minutes


Fanedit details:
Intention: Create a public domain black and white B-movie adventure.

Editing Details:
Used iMac 10.5, Mac the Ripper, MPEG Streamclip, Final Cut Express, GarageBand, and iDVD

Cuts removed/added/extended (add list of what was changed):

Reveal message

--Origin prologue gone
--New opening credits
--cut telegraphed elbow hit to kid
--reworked the bridge scene (see posted clip)
--cut all Patrick McGoohan scenes
--cut Diana listing all the crimes Quill committed
--reworked the plane to horse stunt
--cut bad edit of Quill after truck crashes
--cut Diana appears to be fainting
--cut the toothpaste line
--cut Drax inspecting the wall after pulling out spear
--cut some of Drax's dialogue during museum/Skull power scene
--couple small trims in Dax's office during his exchange with Kit
--reworked the elevator/guns/decent sequence
--trimmed flight to Sengh Island
--trimmed Draz dialogue during arrival in cave
--couple of dialogue trims during Drax's meeting with the Sengh Brotherhood
--reworked the cannon shooting the gangster
--couple of Drax dialogue trims during final fight with the Phantom
--created brief origin flashback
--cut end credits

TRAILER:
<em>

 

[LastSurvivor]

Very nice Bob... Congrats! Look forward to watching some more B&W serial style fun

 

[bionicbob]

Very nice Bob... Congrats! Look forward to watching some more B&W serial style fun

I hope you like it. It was a fast, fun project to do though I don't know if I really succeeded with the black and white.... :noidea:

 

[Vultural]

Thank you, BBob. Enjoyed it.
Good companion with Shadow Strikes!
The toning down of Treat Williams helped a lot.
Judicious edits improved the tempo, and I am glad you kept the "damaged" film look to a minimum.
Can be distracting when overdone.
The early jungle scenes looked soft, lacking the contrast actual Black & White film might yield.
That's a hiccup of a quibble, and I never noticed the lack of sharpness in later sequences.
Really top work, congrats.

 

[Fanedit]

My review from IFDB:

Bravo. A worthy successor to The Shadow Strikes. It has been a long time since I have seen the theatrical cut, so I am keeping this short. After reading the cut list all of the cuts seemed very appropriate and the narrative flowed very well. It was a fun one to watch.


I was a little disappointed that the videos in the thread weren't thrown in as special features for the DVD.


I am very impressed with the projector sounds, scratch effects and clouded edges added at the beginning and end. They were faded out effectively and I am glad you didn't use them in the film itself as you did in SS. Well done. Now on to the Rocketeer Strikes, then Dick Tracy Strikes, then Tarzan Strikes, then.....


PS - the DVD cover is awesome. Great job TM2YC.

 

[bionicbob]

Thank you, BBob. Enjoyed it.
Good companion with Shadow Strikes!
The toning down of Treat Williams helped a lot.
Judicious edits improved the tempo, and I am glad you kept the "damaged" film look to a minimum.
Can be distracting when overdone.
The early jungle scenes looked soft, lacking the contrast actual Black & White film might yield.
That's a hiccup of a quibble, and I never noticed the lack of sharpness in later sequences.
Really top work, congrats.

Thanks V.

I agree, the daytime jungle scenes I just could never get right. I know it.
In fact, all the daytime exterior shots I am not fully happy with... too much white.
But I think all the interior and night scenes worked out better than I expected. Win some, lose some. LOL!

Thanks for taking the time to post your thoughts, it means a great deal to me.

 

[bionicbob]

My review from IFDB:

Bravo. A worthy successor to The Shadow Strikes. It has been a long time since I have seen the theatrical cut, so I am keeping this short. After reading the cut list all of the cuts seemed very appropriate and the narrative flowed very well. It was a fun one to watch.

Thanks. Glad you enjoyed the show.

I was a little disappointed that the videos in the thread weren't thrown in as special features for the DVD.

Yeah, those were Youtube videos, and since I don't own those as source material, I did not feel comfortable including them on the dvd even if they are publicly available.

I am very impressed with the projector sounds, scratch effects and clouded edges added at the beginning and end. They were faded out effectively and I am glad you didn't use them in the film itself as you did in SS.

Yes, old Bionic Bob eventually learns from his past mistakes... hee hee. While I did not mind the aged film look I used in SS, it was clear the vast majority of viewers had a different opinion. And as any good schlock B-movie maker knows, give the public what they want! :lol:

PS - the DVD cover is awesome. Great job TM2YC.

Agreed.

I have been so lucky to have had such great talents like TM, Kenobi and Rogue collaborating on my projects. When I see their genius work, it only inspires me further. I owe them an immeasurable debt of gratitude.

Thanks again for taking the time to post a review. :smile:

 

[Fanedit]

Yeah, those were Youtube videos, and since I don't own those as source material, I did not feel comfortable including them on the dvd even if they are publicly available.

Yeah, better safe than sober, I suppose.

 

[DigModiFicaTion]

Is anyone else getting a password lock? I searched but can't find the password for the files

**edit**

just remembered the universal password

 

[bionicbob]

Is anyone else getting a password lock? I searched but can't find the password for the files

**edit**

just remembered the universal password

Yes, this edit (as are most of mine) is password protected.

But it you are a regular forum member, the password is fairly obvious.

But if you still can not figure it out, you can PM me directly.;-)

 

[Ripplin]

Congrats on getting this out. People (at least two of them) are digging it! I'll grab it in a few hours.

 

[bionicbob]

Congrats on getting this out. People (at least two of them) are digging it! I'll grab it in a few hours.

Coolsville daddio! :hippie:

Hope you enjoy the show.

 

[Neglify]

ReVu posted on Eye-Eff-Dee-Bee.


I saw this in the theaters with my buddies when I was eleven. We had a fun time at the movies but I have since forgotten pretty much everything about it. A Bionic Bob fanedit is the perfect way to revisit this.


The black & white effect was excellent, it really helped bring it back to the pulp era and made the cheese taste better. I quite enjoyed the movie this time around. And after reading the cutlist and watching the About this Edit video I was astounded by how different the movie feels without cutting a ton.


Editing was well done, only issue I had was the opening titles were too crisp compared to the damaged footage.


Recommended for lovers of pulp heroes.


A/V quality - 9
Editing - 9 visual, 10 audio
Narrative - 9
Enjoyment - 8 (original 7)


Recommended drink: Purple Mask

 

[bionicbob]

Thanks Neg!

Purple Mask... I might actually try to a make that.... sounds yummy. :grin:

 

[darth_xenu]

Thanks for the links, looking forward to seeing this!

 

[bionicbob]

THANK YOU to [MENTION=25319]reaper18783x[/MENTION] for taking the time to post a review.

I concur with your observation on how simply changing a movie to Black & White can sometimes makes previously "cheesy" scenes or bad acting suddenly seem more "acceptable".

If I can ever figure out a way to remove the Queen soundtrack from 1980s FLASH GORDON (which is wonderfully LOADED with campy cheese and terrible performances), I think it would play fantastically as a B&W STRIKES! adventure....

 

[Vultural]

I do not like the Queen music, either.
But the visual colors for that Flash Gordon were glorious.
Eye popping.
Rather see a mash of Flash and Flesh.

 

[TM2YC]

Ollie Harper has posted his latest 'Retrospective/Review' today and it's on The Phantom. Includes factoids, reviews, plot summary and custom trailers in the 19 minute package he's put together. Thought this would be of interest to all the fans of this edit...

 

[bionicbob]

I do not like the Queen music, either.
But the visual colors for that Flash Gordon were glorious.
Eye popping.
Rather see a mash of Flash and Flesh.

Actually I LOVE the Queen soundtrack!!! LOVE. IT.

But for a STRIKES! style fan edit it would have to go.

But I agree, the production design is fantastic. It wonderfully captures the magic of the Alex Raymond strip and the old Buster Crabbe serials.

 

[Vultural]

The clip was fun, but reminded me of much of the silliness that you , thankfully, excised.
Are you . . . mmm . . . going for the Strikes! hat trick?
You consider Rocketeer?