Shadow Knows, The

I'm a huge fan of the Shadow as a character in the comics, novels / magazine stories, and radio dramas. The film in 1994 was such a let down to what could have been. When I read about what this edit was trying to do I had to see it. Thanks to lapis molari for their excellent work here.

There were three elements of change I really felt watching this version: the credits, the flashbacks, and the tone. The first is the most obvious. The new title sequences were expertly done and with pinache. Wonderful shots of the comics were a fantastic introduction to the film which itself was trying to keep some of that sequential art vibe. The choice to split up the flashbacks in parts into the various dream sequences was also a relief. We didn't really miss out on anything from the material left on the cutting room floor, and the pacing was drastically improved. Finally the tonality work, cutting some poor humor choices, trimming shots, and so on, did a nice job trying to pull the strings together.

Sadly, as lapis molari notes in the edit description, there's only so much that can be done with the source material. The writers missed opportunities to dive into the Shadow's network of agents and show them as his investigative strength. There could have been much more emphasis placed on his ethical choices and what it means to be irredeemable, yet struggling. Honestly, the franchise deserves another shot on screen. For as many times as they've rebooted Batman, the Shadow could bring something truly wonderful to the big screen.

But until then, this fan edit will have to suffice. Well done.

What a good edit! This is easily the best form the movie has seen. It feels significantly closer to the pulps and does a wonderful job of getting rid of some of the awful jokes and flaws of the film. Highly recommended to anyone who even saw anything good that stood out to them in the original film. This is an objective improvement, and it is created very lovingly.

As someone who grew listening to the radio shows on the KNX Drama Hour, an L.A. news radio station that played old time radio at night, I was super excited about this! I only watched a few of the TV episodes, but certainly watched the 94 film and liked it very much. Though I liked it, it always felt it was missing some of the grit of the old radio/tv versions. As well as a lil too much fluff and not enough left to the imagination.

This fanedit did the trick and is highly recommended for any Shadow fan!

Technically speaking it is very well done and nothing stood out that took me out of the watching experience (which is always my benchmark for me from the technical side). I will say and I get it, it's done 4:3 for the old timey feel, but I would have loved it 16:9. With our monster TVs these days, it's just more enveloping and (IMO) makes a better viewing experience.

Thanks for your hard work and sharing this Lapis!

The original film is a “guilty” pleasure. This edit was simply a pleasure! I love the artistic changes with the backstory flashbacks. A lot of cheese was excised from dialogue. The new old fashioned universal logo was a nice touch. Also changing the credits music was a good decision. The only jarring moments for me were the additional “the shadow knows” dialogue at the beginning, and the laughter at the end. I only mean that they were obviously inserted, and not necessary. They don’t make the movie worse.

An excellent fanedit!

I had, totally coincidentally, recently re-watched 1994's "The Shadow" for the first time in well over a decade and walked away feeling it was a movie that could be improved with a solid re-edit. Lo and behold, I stumble across "The Shadow Knows" and find Lapis Molari has addressed every issue I had with the film! The movie now starts where it logically should, in New York, and the at times painful prologue sequence has been excised and repurposed as dream sequences. Well done! The new opening credit sequence is creative and well-implemented, and considering I'd just seen the theatrical cut recently I was astounded at how seamless the cuts were.

As noted in the change notes, the most noticeable - for me, probably because I'd just seen the theatrical cut - are the cuts to the finale, which do make it feel a bit rushed but it works well despite that. My biggest nitpick is something the editor could do nothing about: the fanedit is in 1.78:1 aspect ratio as presented in the Shout Factory blu-ray and not the original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. Aside from that, excellent!

Definitely recommended!