War of the Stars II: The Future in Motion

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War of the Stars II: The Future in Motion
Franchise:
Fanedit Type:
Original Release Date:
1980 and 1983
Original Running Time:
124 and 134 minutes
Fanedit Release Date:
Fanedit Running Time:
134 minutes
Time Cut:
148 minutes
Time Added:
24 minutes
Synopsis:
This is a sequel to THE WAR OF THE STARS: A NEW HOPE GRINDHOUSED, released in 2010. The goal is now to mix “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Return of the Jedi” while taking care of the changes made for the first edit. A lot of deleted scenes are also back in this edit. Some hopefully intertaining twists and more than 90 new special effects turn this project into something that I think is special even if maybe not as “fun” as the first edit. Or fun in another kind of way.

(This is not a “grindhoused” version, although some of the deleted scenes are looking old and the main sources used are from the Original Theatrical Cuts released in poor quality in 2006 as a “bonus” to the special edition DVD).
Intention:
With the incredible praise following the release of the first edit (thank you all!), a lot of people asked for a sequel. But I already made my “silent Star Wars” before and I thought that it was enough Star Wars for meand so I made various edits of other movies for a while, and I’m glad I did that.

But the question was brought back each time I finished a new edit: “Will your next one will be Empire Strikes Back grindhoused?" At one point I thought about making a “VHS style” version of ESB but I did not have many ideas back then. Then, the Bluray box set of Star Wars was released with a lot of deleted scenes and I thought that an edit mixing ESB and ROTJ along with those deleted scenes would be great. But I also wanted to keep a “Star Warsy” length. Meaning not much more than 2hrs 20mins max. So a lot had to be cut. It was an interesting challenge and I also thought the “grindhouse aspect" had to go. But to really make a sequel to my edit, a lot more work was needed.

The fanedit where I used special effects the most was ALIEN-ATE, my version of Alien 4; 18 effects, and it was tiresome to do. “The Future in Motion” has more than 90 special effects… I started with a few in mind, then the number could not stop to grow and grow! Now, I’m proud on most of them, they are not all 100% amazing but for an edit that is not supposed to be “better” but more an “alternate take”, I think they are good.
Other Sources:
The new music used are mainly from Gustav Holst’s The Planets, Ulysse 31 (revisited by Parallax),
and also I used a theme from War Horse, by John Williams.
Few shots (special effect changed) from koyaanisqatsi and Avatar.
Special Thanks:
Special thanks to:
L8wrtr, Angel and Neglify for previewing my workprint (Angel also provided solid bases for two of the new special effects);
thanks to Serling1979 for the making of the German subtitles;
and to everyone’s support at fanedit.org and originaltrilogy.com
Release Information:
  • DVD
  • Digital
Special Features:
NTSC SL DVD
Animated menus
Extra:
- 10 minutes slideshow about the new special effects (before / after pictures)
- Subtitles french, english, german.
(some typos can remains and the english subs were done with the script of the movie so they are
most of the time too long I’m afraid. Sorry for that)
- Trailer.

Xvid:
Movie + the 10 minutes slideshow bonus.
(with .srt subtitles french and english)
Editing Details:
Main original source used: the Theatrical cuts of ESB and ROTJ from the official 2006 bonus DVD releases.
The version I use in my edit are from a “restored” version made by Dark Jedi (he made several versions, this is his version3).
So don’t look for a perfect quality since the 2006 theatrical release was in 4:3 letterboxed. Dark Jedi made wonders, but it’s obviously not
as clean as the special edition DVDs and a lot more grainy. I used those versions because I feel the original colors of the theatrical cuts are
truer to what I remember when watching Star Wars for the first time and I somehow wanted to have a little nostalgia feeling for this edit.
Cuts and Additions:
There are too many cuts to make a real cutlist. But I would say that most of the edit is from “Empire Strikes back” and the last 30 minutes or so are from “Return of the Jedi”. But there are scenes from ROTJ reorganized to appear during the events of ESB.

The 24 minutes added time is counting:
The deleted scenes of ESB and ROTJ (about 10 of them. Some very short.)
Some Star Wars prequels scenes
Some scenes from A New Hope
Some short shots used from other movies, and most of the time changed with new special effects or heavily color corrected.
Shots from two fan films: IMPS the relentless Chapter 2, and Boba Fett Chronicles The Hunt for Varrada.
TWOTS2_disc
TWOTS2_covertart
The War of the Stars II - The Future in Motion FULL FANEDIT
Franchise:
Fanedit Type:
Original Release Date:
1980 and 1983
Original Running Time:
124 and 134 minutes
Fanedit Release Date:
Fanedit Running Time:
134 minutes
Time Cut:
148 minutes
Time Added:
24 minutes
Synopsis:
This is a sequel to THE WAR OF THE STARS: A NEW HOPE GRINDHOUSED, released in 2010. The goal is now to mix “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Return of the Jedi” while taking care of the changes made for the first edit. A lot of deleted scenes are also back in this edit. Some hopefully intertaining twists and more than 90 new special effects turn this project into something that I think is special even if maybe not as “fun” as the first edit. Or fun in another kind of way.

(This is not a “grindhoused” version, although some of the deleted scenes are looking old and the main sources used are from the Original Theatrical Cuts released in poor quality in 2006 as a “bonus” to the special edition DVD).
Intention:
With the incredible praise following the release of the first edit (thank you all!), a lot of people asked for a sequel. But I already made my “silent Star Wars” before and I thought that it was enough Star Wars for meand so I made various edits of other movies for a while, and I’m glad I did that.

But the question was brought back each time I finished a new edit: “Will your next one will be Empire Strikes Back grindhoused?" At one point I thought about making a “VHS style” version of ESB but I did not have many ideas back then. Then, the Bluray box set of Star Wars was released with a lot of deleted scenes and I thought that an edit mixing ESB and ROTJ along with those deleted scenes would be great. But I also wanted to keep a “Star Warsy” length. Meaning not much more than 2hrs 20mins max. So a lot had to be cut. It was an interesting challenge and I also thought the “grindhouse aspect" had to go. But to really make a sequel to my edit, a lot more work was needed.

The fanedit where I used special effects the most was ALIEN-ATE, my version of Alien 4; 18 effects, and it was tiresome to do. “The Future in Motion” has more than 90 special effects… I started with a few in mind, then the number could not stop to grow and grow! Now, I’m proud on most of them, they are not all 100% amazing but for an edit that is not supposed to be “better” but more an “alternate take”, I think they are good.
Other Sources:
The new music used are mainly from Gustav Holst’s The Planets, Ulysse 31 (revisited by Parallax),
and also I used a theme from War Horse, by John Williams.
Few shots (special effect changed) from koyaanisqatsi and Avatar.
Special Thanks:
Special thanks to:
L8wrtr, Angel and Neglify for previewing my workprint (Angel also provided solid bases for two of the new special effects);
thanks to Serling1979 for the making of the German subtitles;
and to everyone’s support at fanedit.org and originaltrilogy.com
Release Information:
  • DVD
  • Digital
Special Features:
NTSC SL DVD
Animated menus
Extra:
- 10 minutes slideshow about the new special effects (before / after pictures)
- Subtitles french, english, german.
(some typos can remains and the english subs were done with the script of the movie so they are
most of the time too long I’m afraid. Sorry for that)
- Trailer.

Xvid:
Movie + the 10 minutes slideshow bonus.
(with .srt subtitles french and english)
Editing Details:
Main original source used: the Theatrical cuts of ESB and ROTJ from the official 2006 bonus DVD releases.
The version I use in my edit are from a “restored” version made by Dark Jedi (he made several versions, this is his version3).
So don’t look for a perfect quality since the 2006 theatrical release was in 4:3 letterboxed. Dark Jedi made wonders, but it’s obviously not
as clean as the special edition DVDs and a lot more grainy. I used those versions because I feel the original colors of the theatrical cuts are
truer to what I remember when watching Star Wars for the first time and I somehow wanted to have a little nostalgia feeling for this edit.
Cuts and Additions:
There are too many cuts to make a real cutlist. But I would say that most of the edit is from “Empire Strikes back” and the last 30 minutes or so are from “Return of the Jedi”. But there are scenes from ROTJ reorganized to appear during the events of ESB.

The 24 minutes added time is counting:
The deleted scenes of ESB and ROTJ (about 10 of them. Some very short.)
Some Star Wars prequels scenes
Some scenes from A New Hope
Some short shots used from other movies, and most of the time changed with new special effects or heavily color corrected.
Shots from two fan films: IMPS the relentless Chapter 2, and Boba Fett Chronicles The Hunt for Varrada.
Cover art by The Man Behind The Mask (DOWNLOAD HERE)
image

Trusted Reviewer reviews

Overall rating
 
9.3
Audio/Video Quality
 
9.0
Audio Editing
 
9.0
Visual Editing
 
10.0
Narrative
 
9.0
Enjoyment
 
10.0
This has got to be one of the most impressive fanedits out there, even more so than the first edit. TMBTM has crafted a completely new narrative from The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi using some very impressive special effects. A lot of imagination and unique ideas - truly spectacular work, This was a lot of fun, as I honestly no idea what direction things were going, which is a unique achievement among fanedits. I highly recommend watching this if you haven't already.
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Overall rating
 
10.0
Audio/Video Quality
 
10.0
Audio Editing
 
10.0
Visual Editing
 
10.0
Narrative
 
10.0
Enjoyment
 
10.0
Overview - Fuse the strongest of the original trilogy with the weakest, redraw Luke’s character so he now carries Anakin’s bad seed, alter Vader’s character, juice the mojo for Fett, those are just elements of an exceptional edit.

Video - Quality choices top to bottom. Now, I KNEW when an alteration was made, but my reaction was always Ooh or Whoa. War Of The Stars is an genuine alternative, not a nip n tuck edit, the flow twists in unexpected directions. The editing was seamless, which I appreciated more during repeat viewings.

Audio - Great sound. Loved the musical alterations (Planets repeated perhaps once too often). Aside from that, again there are countless modifications and the audio editing is demonstration time.

Narrative - The first two thirds of War Of The Stars is inspired. Changes in story structure, character behaviour, Luke’s peccadillo, Darth’s red-eyed fury. Fun times. Jedi is what it is, though TMBTM minimized the Ewoks, brutally truncated all threads (in the best way), slammed the action. Jedi roared past and I did not cringe once. That is a feat.

Enjoyment - A terrific version. Truly. Must see for Sith faithful. Have rewatched a couple of times, this will be going to Star Wars buddies who think they have “seen it all.”

User Review

Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched
DVD
Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 1 0
Overall rating
 
10.0
Audio/Video Quality
 
10.0
Audio Editing
 
10.0
Visual Editing
 
10.0
Narrative
 
10.0
Enjoyment
 
10.0
So, in the alternate universe where Star Wars was War of the Stars, it too was an outstanding success. So, with a higher budget, the broke out of the Grindhouse and made... something truly amazing. While perhaps not as hysterically funny as the original, this is an amazingly unique take on Empire and Jedi. It preserves the altered character personalities and plotline of the previous edit, and takes them in some really interesting directions. The use of footage from a variety of sources, a lot of very impressive special effect work, and a quality new soundtrack only enhance this altered reality version of these movies. This is a worthy followup. Another must-watch.

User Review

Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched
DVD
Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 0 0
Overall rating
 
9.0
Audio/Video Quality
 
N/A
Audio Editing
 
9.0
Visual Editing
 
8.0
Narrative
 
10.0
Enjoyment
 
8.0
I write this review with mixed emotions. The original War of the Stars remains one of my favorite fanedits ever, and so I was beyond excited for the sequel. However, as much as it pains me to do so, I have to consider this a slight disappointment.

Don't get me wrong, there is plenty to love in this edit. The reworked narrative is amazing, especially the new journey that Luke goes on. I also enjoyed Boba Fett's new fate. There were some great new special effects, and it was a treat to see the new deleted scenes inserted into the movie.

But I couldn't help but feel that some of the fun was missing this time around. It just wasn't as wacky or silly, and while I know that was TMBTM's intent, I still felt let down a little. I also felt the deleted scenes weren't as well integrated visually this time, due to the improved source used for the main movies. Finally, there were a few wonky effects shots that stood out (such as the new Wampa head while Luke was being chased).

This was a really difficult edit to rate for me. I'm sure if I had seen this before the first War of the Stars, I would have rated it higher. As it is, I gave it an 8/10, because it's still a worthy watch and a great achievement.

(Note: I did not rate A/V quality as I only watched this on my phone.)

User Review

Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
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(Updated: September 12, 2012)
Overall rating
 
10.0
Audio/Video Quality
 
10.0
Audio Editing
 
10.0
Visual Editing
 
10.0
Narrative
 
10.0
Enjoyment
 
10.0
What can I say? TMBTM played a blistering main set with TWOTS, answered the call for an encore and blew the audience away with TWOTS2. We leave dazed and awed, jaws agape over the ride we just took.

This is what fanediting is all about.
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37 reviews
 
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22%
5-7 stars
 
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Overall rating
 
9.1
Audio/Video Quality
 
8.9(19)
Audio Editing
 
8.9(20)
Visual Editing
 
9.3(20)
Narrative
 
9.3(20)
Enjoyment
 
9.4(37)
View all user reviews View most helpful
Overall rating
 
8.6
Audio/Video Quality
 
10.0
Audio Editing
 
9.0
Visual Editing
 
10.0
Narrative
 
6.0
Enjoyment
 
6.0
I thoroughly enjoyed the first War of the Stars fanedit, a grindhoused version of Star Wars: A New Hope. An imaginative alternative take on the original film.

This one finishes the original trilogy in a 2 in 1 cut of Empire and Return. It's impressive because it's narratively coherent too. There's some interesting alternate takes on the Vader/Luke reveal, Boba Fett's demise, and others. But overall the story is mostly the same.

While keeping some special effects, deleted scenes, and score changes, it’s ultimately a bit of a disappointment jettisoning much of the surprise and the fun of the original, fully jettisoning the Grindhouse idea. It leaves a mixed bag in terms of overall experience.

It starts off strong with a solid 40 minutes before a long slog and basically watching pieces of Empire and Jedi before ending with a “What If '' alternative universe style ending.

It’s still impressive what’s accomplished here mixing new f/x shots, different shots from the newer prequel films, and creating a brand new ending, it’s just not enough of a change and the deleted scenes aren't enough to make me not wish I was watching the original films.

User Review

Format Watched
Digital
Report this review Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 1 0
Overall rating
 
9.3
Audio/Video Quality
 
9.0
Audio Editing
 
9.0
Visual Editing
 
9.0
Narrative
 
10.0
Enjoyment
 
10.0
Didnt think a part 2 would even be possible but here we are lol. This is another ride of adventure but without the vaporators. I get a kick out of these cuts. There r a very fun ride and being an 80's man grindhouse and mixtapes bring back the memories. Very enjoyable entertainment.

User Review

Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched
Digital
Report this review Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 0 0
Overall rating
 
10.0
Audio/Video Quality
 
10.0
Audio Editing
 
10.0
Visual Editing
 
10.0
Narrative
 
10.0
Enjoyment
 
10.0
I have said it before and I will say it again. This along with "War of the Stars", is the reason I love watching fanedits. And even though there are 100 million Star Wars edits watching a new POV is always fun. I wish I had the patience to do a few myself. Thanks for a great afternoon.

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Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched
Digital
Report this review Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 0 0
Overall rating
 
10.0
Audio/Video Quality
 
10.0
Audio Editing
 
10.0
Visual Editing
 
10.0
Narrative
 
10.0
Enjoyment
 
10.0
What TMBTM has done with this edit, editing The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi into a single 2 hour 15 minute film with a completely coherent narrative is simply remarkable.

User Review

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Digital
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Overall rating
 
8.8
Audio/Video Quality
 
8.0
Audio Editing
 
8.0
Visual Editing
 
10.0
Narrative
 
9.0
Enjoyment
 
10.0
War of the Stars II is a worthy sequel to TMBTM's hilarious first edition. It has hilarious twists and turns, shockingly funny special effects sequences, and some hilarious dialogue. If you haven't seen the first War of the Stars, watch it first then come see this, they will be both worth your while.

Technical stuff:
This time around, TMBTM opted not to go for the grindhouse look for this movie, but deleted/alternate footage is much easier to spot due to the sudden drop in video quality, this of course is not the editor's fault, but still is a little bothersome. The audio also seems quite choppy when it comes to dialogue battling the musical score.

User Review

Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched
DVD
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