Star Wars - Episode I: Shadow of the Sith

FINALLY! I have been searching for the perfect fanedit of THE PHANTOM MENACE for years. When THE PHANTOM EDIT was first released, it was a breath of fresh air. I had never seen anything like it and I thought it was the perfect edit. Watching it years later, I started to notice lots of things that were still in the film that I hated. Since then, I have downloaded several MENACE edits and none of them have gone far enough … until now. Simply put, L8WRTR’s edit is brilliant. I was smiling from ear to ear as I watched this, as L8WRTR made almost every single cut that I had wanted. Seriously, it was if he somehow got into my brain and made this cut just for me. This is, far and away, the greatest MENACE edit available. That being said, there are still a few small issues. The last line of the opening crawl is clumsy and unnecessary. It ruins what I thought was an otherwise excellent opening crawl. There are still a few too many annoying Jar-Jar and Anakin moments / lines (“Yousa thinking yousa people gonna die?”, “They all brokey”, “Are you an Angel?”, “I’m a person and my name is Anakin!”, Anakin’s woo-hoo as he exits the exploding Droid Control Ship). Also, I don’t like the virgin birth angle but I get that L8WRTR will be utilizing this sub-plot in future prequel edits. Going out on a positive note, L8WRTR’s editing of the end battles is amazing. The best part, by far, is Darth Maul’s death. He no longer dies like a little bitch! That has always bugged me and I’ve never seen it addressed in a fanedit. Bravo, sir! If you’re like me and hate the movie but feel the need to watch it during complete STAR WARS marathons, this is the only edit worth your time. Also, give the commentary a listen. It’s really informative and L8WRTR is very knowledgable and entertaining.

*This rating was given before reviews were required*

*This rating was given before reviews were required*

*This rating was given before reviews were required*

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS

I was pleasantly surprised with this edit. The only other edit of The Phantom Menace that I had seen before watching Shadow of the Sith was The Phantom Edit. Honestly, I had expected more from The Phantom Edit. I felt that it didn’t go far enough with its edits. After watching The Phantom Menace Revew – by RedletterMedia, I was even more turned off to The Phantom Menace. But L8wrtr’s edit turns this movie into something fast-paced and enjoyable.

DVD Presentation:
Nice Motion Menu. 20th Century Fox logo into the L8wrtr logo nice touch.

Movie itself:

Podrace: Thank you for making it bearable. Removing the ESPN style announcers was much needed! Removing Anakin being delayed at the starting line was good. It makes the pacing better the way you have him just stall for a second and then take off again. Also making it 3 laps makes it more entertaining and less of a chore to watch.

Removing of the midichlorians – how could anyone have a problem with this change!

Its great that Jar Jar is no longer a goofy outcast, and regarding the Gungans theres no spitting and quivering of the lips.

The ending was awesome. Im glad i didn’t read the cutlist ahead of time.. If I had known ahead of time the change to the ending it may not have had the same effect. But ending on the cliffhanger and with suspense was cool and works much better than the multipronged ending of the original movie from a celebration to a funeral etc.

Lastly, a real stroke of brilliance was adding that scene with the probe droid. Its crazy, I never realized it before, but TPM never really explains why Qui Gon is in such a rush to get back to the ship in the outer rim of Tatooine. They just cut to Qui Gon and Anakin running. So the addition of the probe droid scene made sense.

Well this is my definitive version of The Phantom Menace. I don’t know if I’ll be watching any other people’s fanedits (there’s only so much TPM i can watch!)

I look forward to future fanedits from L8wrtr!