THX 1138: The Hybrid Cut

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Faneditor Name:
Original Movie Title:
Fanedit Type:
Original Release Date:
1971
Original Running Time:
88 minutes
Fanedit Release Date:
Fanedit Running Time:
86 minutes
Time Cut:
9 minutes
Time Added:
7 minutes
Available in HD?
Brief Synopsis:
This "Hybrid Cut" combines as much HD material from the CGI "Enhanced" 2004 Blu-Ray Director's Cut, with as little SD material from the 1978 Laserdisc cut as possible, while still trying to recreate the original version very closely.
Intention:
Using the Laserdisc 1978 Cut as a blueprint, I've conformed the Blu-Ray to it, shot-by-shot, down to the exact frame. Where material was missing, I've restored it from the Laserdisc, or the original trailer. When the CGI additions were bad, I've replaced them, where they were reasoanably subtle I've left them in (Hence the "Hybrid" title). Throughout, I've sought to remove or change shots that significantly differ from the Laserdisc, while trying to keep as much HD as I possibly could.

The film has also been re-graded shot-by-shot to rebalance the greys and whites, re-saturate flesh tones and general colours and remove unnatural tinting. Although in a few cases the Laserdisc shots have been tinted to match the Blu-Ray (Such as with the gold robot-factory shots). The soundtrack is the original mono mix and is unchanged.
Other Sources:
Video Sources:
"1978 Restored Cut" Laserdisc (approx. 7mins)
"Director's Cut" Blu-ray (approx. 79mins)
Original Theatrical Trailer DVD (Less than a minute)

Audio Source:
"1978 Restored Cut" Laserdisc (Mono)
Special Thanks:
Special thanks to originaltrilogy.com members 'SilverWook' for help with the trailer and 'CSD79' for preserving the Laserdisc-Cut and making it available to the public.
Release Information:
Digital
Special Features
1280x548 MP4 (2.8GB)
Editing Details:
- Conformed the Blu-Ray version perfectly length-wise to the shots from the Laserdisc (To the frame)
- Used the original Laserdisc mono soundtrack
- Added in missing material/shots from the Laserdisc (Upscaled as best I can)
- Added in 9 missing shots from the original trailer
- Removed the god-awful new CGI establishing shots
- (Here's the Hybrid bit) Retained the shots that have minor FX changes, or slightly altered the shots to look more like they originally did. What you'd define as "minor" is down to my personal taste
- Created "new" composite shots by blending sources when needed
- The Blu-Ray transfer has been entirely re-graded shot-by-shot using the laserdisc as a guide
- This edit is 720p (Not 1080p), which allows the Blu-Ray and Laserdisc to be blended quite well
Cuts and Additions:
00.00.00 - Added FE.org title
00.00.12 - Added TM2YC title
00.01.26 - Adjusted credits to fill frame
00.03.54 - Created new HD version of original colour "grid" shot
00.04.28 - Removed 2 CGI shots of the factory and restored 2 original shots
00.04.38 - Brightened shot of robot
00.05.06 - Cropped control room shot to better match original framing
00.05.14 - Restored closeup of SEN
00.05.19 - Removed 6 DC shots
00.05.51 - Removed CGI shot of the factory and restored original video shot
00.05.58 - Brought forward closeup of SEN
00.06.02 - Restored original video shot
00.06.02 - Restored original shot and regraded it to match rest of "gold" robot shots
00.06.40 - Restored second half of LUH closeup shot by blending, regrading and a minor FX tweak
00.06.42 - Removed 2 DC shots and restored 2 original shots
00.06.47 - Restored original shot and regraded it to match rest of "gold" robot shots
00.06.48 - Restored both original monitor feeds by layering on top of DC HD shot
00.06.51 - Restored 1 shot of videofeed
00.06.53 - Restored both original monitor feeds by layering on top of DC HD shot
00.07.22 - Removed DC monitor shot and brought forward original SEN shot
00.07.24 - Regraded shot to tone down inconsistent blue tone
00.07.51 - Removed extened CGI matte of garage and restored original garage closeup
00.07.56 - Regraded shot to tone down red hue
00.08.06 - Cropped attrium shot to better match original framing
00.11.16 - Removed 1 frame of lizard
00.11.46 - Removed DC insert shot of LUH and blended back in uncut shot of THX
00.11.55 - Moved shot of LUH forwards and brought forward shower shot to original position
00.12.46 - Adjusted colour grade on monitor shot
00.12.54 - Restored original video projection shot
00.13.00 - Restored original video projection shot
00.13.15 - Restored original video projection shot
00.13.21 - Restored 4 original video projection shots
00.13.32 - Restored 3 original video projection shots
00.13.53 - Restored original video projection shot
00.14.04 - Restored original video projection shot
00.14.27 - Restored original video projection shot
00.14.35 - Restored original video projection shot
00.14.51 - Restored original video projection shot
00.14.54 - Restored left half of shot that features a projection
00.14.59 - Restored original video projection shot
00.15.24 - Removed DC shot of LUH and blended back in uncut shot of THX
00.17.34 - Removed 2 DC insert shots
00.17.44 - Removed DC insert shot of SEN
00.18.20 - Restored fade to black on LUH
00.19.37 - Resaturated the 2 sex scene shots
00.20.13 - Restored 2 shots of THX entering chamber
00.20.25 - Restored shot of THX looking outwards using trailer footage
00.20.39 - Restored shot of THX looking outwards
00.20.49 - Restored 1 frame of theatre wide shot
00.21.23 - Removed 2 frames
00.21.43 - Moved 2 minute scene between LUH and THX forwards
00.21.49 - Restored shot of car rounding turn
00.23.09 - Restored corridor shot
00.23.15 - Moved 3 minute talk between THX and SEN backwards
00.23.20 - Restored original video projection shot
00.23.39 - Removed DC room shot and added one frame of THX
00.24.13 - Restored SEN shot to original length
00.24.17 - Removed DC shot of THX and restored original one
00.24.25 - Removed 6 DC shots and restored 4 original shots of SEN and THX
00.25.26 - Removed 7 DC shots and restored 3 original shots of SEN and THX
00.26.20 - Removed 3 DC shots and restored 2 original shots of SEN and THX
00.26.45 - Removed 2 DC shots of SEN and city
00.26.46 - Extended and blended in start of LUH shot to match original
00.26.50 - Put two halfs of LUH back together to restore it to original length
00.27.08 - Shortened end of LUH shot to match original
00.27.08 - Restored original video projection shot
00.27.16 - Restored original video projection shot
00.27.22 - Restored original video projection shot
00.27.32 - Restored original video projection shot
00.27.32 - Restored original longer video projection shot
00.28.58 - Restored 15 frames of black
00.28.59 - Restored shot of THX showering
00.29.06 - Removed 3 DC shots of the city
00.29.38 - Removed CGI wall monitor to keep continuity with next shot
00.29.49 - Removed CGI wall monitor from closeup
00.29.50 - Removed insert shot of monitor and restored THX shot to original length
00.30.11 - Restored original robot shot and regraded to gold
00.30.29 - Restored original robot shot and regraded to gold
00.30.36 - Restored original robot shot and regraded to gold
00.30.51 - Restored original robot shot and regraded to gold
00.31.03 - Restored original robot shot and regraded to gold
00.31.09 - Restored shot of THX working
00.31.25 - Adjusted colours of monitor graphics to be closer to the original
00.31.34 - Restored original robot shot and regraded to gold
00.31.38 - Restored original shot of THX working and regraded to gold
00.31.39 - Adjusted colours of monitor graphics to be closer to the original
00.32.16 - Restored original shot of THX using trailer footage and removed 3 DC shots
00.32.20 - Restored 2 original shots using trailer footage and removed 4 DC shots
00.32.27 - Removed DC shot
00.32.33 - Added pupils back to THX side shot
00.32.36 - Restored original shot of THX using trailer footage
00.32.48 - Restored original longer robot shot
00.32.56 - Restored 2 original shots and removed 2 DC shots
00.33.10 - Restored 2 original shots and removed 4 DC shots
00.33.41 - Adjusted colours of monitor graphics to be closer to the original
00.35.18 - Adjusted colours of monitor graphics to be closer to the original
00.37.23 - Restored original fade-to-black instead of fade-to-greyscale
00.39.20 - Adjusted colours of monitor graphics to be closer to the original
00.39.32 - Removed 2 frames of THX in the scanner
00.42.06 - Removed 2 frames of THX lying down
00.44.57 - Removed 8 frames of black
00.49.08 - Added 2 frames of the long shot
00.50.57 - Removed 1 frame of THX lying down
00.54.24 - Restored fade to white
00.56.13 - Flipped shot horizontally to match original
00.56.34 - Flipped shot horizontally to match original
00.58.17 - Restored original top-down shot
00.59.17 - Removed 16 frames of black and restored blended frame
01.00.35 - Removed DC shot of train station
01.03.13 - Removed DC shot of a CGI "thing" and replaced it with original longer shot of a rat
01.03.14 - Cropped train shot to match original framing and replaced background to match earlier shot
01.03.25 - Removed 1 frame of train driver
01.04.07 - Restored original overhead shot
01.08.51 - Adjusted colours of monitor graphics to be closer to the original
01.11.00 - Removed 14 second DC station shot
01.12.11 - Removed 9 second DC underground shot
01.12.23 - Replaced 2nd half of garage pan with original shot
01.14.10 - Replaced 2nd half of garage pan with original shot
01.14.20 - Restored original garage shot using Laserdisc and Trailer footage
01.15.44 - Removed 28 second DC driving sequence
01.17.32 - Removed DC shot of car
01.17.46 - Restored original long shot of car
01.19.20 - Removed DC shot of car and restored 2nd original shot
01.19.23 - Horizontally flipped bike shot to match original
01.19.25 - Adjusted colours of monitor graphics to be closer to the original
01.19.33 - Horizontally flipped bike shot to match original
01.20.45 - Replaced DC shot of workers with original
01.21.01 - Blended in original shot of scaffold to correct DC version
01.21.03 - Restored original shot of scaffold
01.21.04 - Restored original shot of scaffold using trailer footage
01.21.12 - Restored original shot of scaffold
01.21.17 - Restored original shot of scaffold using Laserdisc and Trailer footage
01.21.24 - Fixed single mis-cropped frame
01.21.26 - Removed 1 frame of THX running
01.21.34 - Blended original and DC shots of dwarf to remove CGI "goblins"
01.22.02 - Restored original long shot of cops
01.22.09 - Restored original long shot of cops
01.22.14 - Restored original shot using Laserdisc and Trailer footage and removed DC CGI "goblin" shot
01.22.19 - Restored original shot using Laserdisc and Trailer footage and removed DC CGI "goblin" shot
01.22.25 - Restored original shot and removed DC CGI "goblin" shot
01.22.32 - Restored original shot and removed DC CGI "goblin" shot
01.23.12 - Corrected DC colour change to tunnel exit
01.23.56 - Corrected DC colour change to tunnel exit
01.24.03 - Corrected DC colour change to tunnel exit
01.26.10 - Blended in original THX figure over sunset
01.26.14 - Added FanEdit credits titlecard
Cover art by TM2YC (DOWNLOAD HERE)
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Alternate Laserdisc Style Cover art by TM2YC (DOWNLOAD HERE)
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Alternate Italian Poster Style Cover art by TM2YC (DOWNLOAD HERE)
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The Hybrid Trailer (A "recreation" of the original trailer)

User reviews

6 reviews
 
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5-7 stars
 
0%
3-5 stars
 
0%
1-3 stars
 
0%
Overall rating
 
9.1
Audio/Video Quality
 
8.5(6)
Audio Editing
 
9.7(6)
Visual Editing
 
9.7(6)
Narrative
 
8.8(6)
Enjoyment
 
8.7(6)
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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
Huge fan of this film, and this edit markedly improves on what is already a fantastic movie. Across the board. This is my definitive go-to version of the film. Check it out, you will not be disappointed!

User Review

Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
Y
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(Updated: April 11, 2023)
Overall rating
 
9.0
Audio/Video Quality
 
8.0
Audio Editing
 
10.0
Visual Editing
 
10.0
Narrative
 
8.0
Enjoyment
 
9.0
Another splendid act of version preservation/assembly from TM2YC, this is the ideal way to watch Lucas' strange, spartan commentary on the future but also Vietnam but also McCarthyism but also an artifact of early 70s retro-futurism (witness the Buck Rogers clip that starts the whole thing off). As a step toward Star Wars, it's an important footnote, but as a bizarre and idiosyncratic bit of Baby Boomer filmmaking, it's equally-if-not-more remarkable, certainly of a piece with Lucas' follow-up American Graffiti. Also, with its meticulous attention to detail and large-scale crowd scenes, suggesting an epic that's not quite there, THX-1138 is perhaps equally worth watching in the context of producer Coppola's ouevre, suggesting some of the paranoiac claustrophobia and widescreen bravado of The Conversation and Apocalypse Now, respectively.

Having watched all the versions, this is certainly the one to go with, occasionally unavoidable spotty video quality aside, this is a terrific cut of a fascinating movie.

User Review

Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
R
Top 10 Reviewer 156 reviews
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Overall rating
 
8.6
Audio/Video Quality
 
8.0
Audio Editing
 
10.0
Visual Editing
 
10.0
Narrative
 
8.0
Enjoyment
 
7.0
Having watched Star Wars I knew I had to see this early work of George Lucas, but with all the reported "enhancements" I once again bought the blu-ray and didn't watch it until after seeing the fan-restoration. While not a massive fan of the film in any form, with TMY2C's cut the aesthetic is maintained in the way that it isn't in the Director's Cut (where the added elements feel alien among the low-budget original footage) and you are not distracted from the story, even when the video quality unavoidably takes a hit.

Even with that I would think that one would be unaware that they are watching a fan effort (such issues crop up too in official restorations), this is definitely the version I would recommend to somebody else.

User Review

Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
P
Top 50 Reviewer 81 reviews
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Overall rating
 
8.8
Audio/Video Quality
 
8.0
Audio Editing
 
10.0
Visual Editing
 
9.0
Narrative
 
8.0
Enjoyment
 
9.0
TM2YC has done yet another amazing job on yet another great fan-edit of an already great work of filmmaking. They've done a really fantastic job of putting together the highest-quality possible version of the film's original theatrical cut, creating what is by far the definitive version of the film. Excellent work.

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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
 
8.6
Audio/Video Quality
 
9.0
Audio Editing
 
8.0
Visual Editing
 
9.0
Narrative
 
9.0
Enjoyment
 
8.0
This was a real treat. TM2YC has done an excellent job recreating the theatrical cut with the highest quality material. A few shots stand out in terms of color and clarity, but the faneditor has done an excellent job trying to make things gel as seamlessly as possible. Some of the transitions between sources is quite impressive. This is my go-to version of the film now. Thanks!

User Review

Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
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