Batman Begins: Dark Cut
Hot
Updated
User reviews
46 reviews
Overall rating
9.3
Audio/Video Quality
9.5(17)
Audio Editing
9.2(17)
Visual Editing
9.6(17)
Narrative
9.1(14)
Enjoyment
9.0(46)
(Updated: August 20, 2012)
Overall rating
9.0
Audio/Video Quality
10.0
Audio Editing
10.0
Visual Editing
8.0
Enjoyment
8.0
This was a pretty awesome edit. The video editing was smooth, with no hard cuts. The cuts themselves are well thought out and improve the movie experience. Not a lot else to say here.
The audio, on the other hand, had some issues. I downloaded the DVD version and burned it on a dvd. When I played it on my plasma tv via blu-ray player (tv speakers only) there was a noticeable dissonance in some of the audio elements; a kind of dual-voice or overdub effect, perhaps resulting from slightly out of sync audio channels. The dissonance seemed to occur mainly in the bass range. Also, some of the voices added from the game seem muffled.
However, when I used handbrake to encode an x264 .mkv of the film, I set it for an AAC stereo mixdown. The stereo mixdown eliminated, or at least severely reduced, the effect. This would also seem to indicate a problem with the 5.1 dvd native soundtrack.
Edit: 4/5
Video: 5/5
Audio: 2/5
Disc Features: 4/5
Overall: 7.5/10
(added July 9, 2010)
...turns out that my TV speakers decided to start to go out. Odd that it happened all at once like this. TV is just out of warranty too :(
In any case, disregard my review above. Played in a pair of high end headphones, the audio track is perfect.
Again, apologies for the invalid review!
The audio, on the other hand, had some issues. I downloaded the DVD version and burned it on a dvd. When I played it on my plasma tv via blu-ray player (tv speakers only) there was a noticeable dissonance in some of the audio elements; a kind of dual-voice or overdub effect, perhaps resulting from slightly out of sync audio channels. The dissonance seemed to occur mainly in the bass range. Also, some of the voices added from the game seem muffled.
However, when I used handbrake to encode an x264 .mkv of the film, I set it for an AAC stereo mixdown. The stereo mixdown eliminated, or at least severely reduced, the effect. This would also seem to indicate a problem with the 5.1 dvd native soundtrack.
Edit: 4/5
Video: 5/5
Audio: 2/5
Disc Features: 4/5
Overall: 7.5/10
(added July 9, 2010)
...turns out that my TV speakers decided to start to go out. Odd that it happened all at once like this. TV is just out of warranty too :(
In any case, disregard my review above. Played in a pair of high end headphones, the audio track is perfect.
Again, apologies for the invalid review!
D
Overall rating
9.4
Audio/Video Quality
10.0
Audio Editing
10.0
Visual Editing
10.0
Narrative
9.0
Enjoyment
8.0
Finally got around to watching this,
When the thread was still going on about the edits I couldn’t wait for it, but for some reason I just downloaded and impatiently skipped to the newly edited things.
But after taking some time to watch it I must agree with everyone else here: this is a tremendous fanedit.
From a technical standpoint there are almost no problem (except at the end the new batmobile lines were a little low and the scene with Rachel at the end had noticeable louder music, but that’s just nitpicking) and the only things that detract from this edit are my personal opinions.
I love Batman Begins, I love extensive driving on the top of roofs, I love the fact that Gordon and Batman work together at the end since Gordon until then never had a shining role in Batman movies
But personal preferences aside: does this edit work?
Yes it does. Not having Gordon is my problem, the new take works as well as the original, it changes the mood of course, but it works nevertheless, same goes for the shortened chase sequence, I’m pretty sure that if you’ve never seen Begins you won’t notice the edits.
Katie Holmes’s voice works in 98% of the cases, only when the original voice tries to talk in a deep voice the new pitch sounds a bit awkward. A lot of cringy Rachel lines are thankfully gone as well and most of the things you don’t even miss.
Will this replace my DVD? No
But it is a very good alternate take on the source material: 8/10
When the thread was still going on about the edits I couldn’t wait for it, but for some reason I just downloaded and impatiently skipped to the newly edited things.
But after taking some time to watch it I must agree with everyone else here: this is a tremendous fanedit.
From a technical standpoint there are almost no problem (except at the end the new batmobile lines were a little low and the scene with Rachel at the end had noticeable louder music, but that’s just nitpicking) and the only things that detract from this edit are my personal opinions.
I love Batman Begins, I love extensive driving on the top of roofs, I love the fact that Gordon and Batman work together at the end since Gordon until then never had a shining role in Batman movies
But personal preferences aside: does this edit work?
Yes it does. Not having Gordon is my problem, the new take works as well as the original, it changes the mood of course, but it works nevertheless, same goes for the shortened chase sequence, I’m pretty sure that if you’ve never seen Begins you won’t notice the edits.
Katie Holmes’s voice works in 98% of the cases, only when the original voice tries to talk in a deep voice the new pitch sounds a bit awkward. A lot of cringy Rachel lines are thankfully gone as well and most of the things you don’t even miss.
Will this replace my DVD? No
But it is a very good alternate take on the source material: 8/10
S
Overall rating
9.3
Audio/Video Quality
10.0
Audio Editing
9.0
Visual Editing
9.0
Enjoyment
9.0
Batman Begins: Dark Cut by JMB
review by blueyoda
Prologue:
Let me begin by saying that I only saw Batman Begins once. I’m one of the few who was annoyed by the movie. Although it was undeniably the best, most faithful adaptation of the comic book ever commited to screen in terms of tone, some things irked me enough that I never felt the need to see it a second time; Kathy Holmes’ atrocious performance and Batman’s cluelessness being two major points.
I am a huge fan of the Batman, mostly because of the comic book; The Dark Knight Returns, Year One and The Killing Joke are the “definitive” comics that left their mark on me when I was younger and shaped my idea of who Batman is and why he does what he does. I was really hoping that movie would capture the essence of what has made Batman such an enduring character for more than 70 years and although it succeeded in many aspects like the music, lighting and overall mood it let me down so hard on other, much more important elements like Bruce Wayne’s whole character arc and the way he becomes Batman that I never went back to it. This edit completely changes that.
The edit:
There are many, many small changes in this movie that completely change our perception of it. Batman is a much leaner, much more focused and dangerous character than in the theatrical version of the movie. I remember not thinking much of the dock fight in the theater but here the scene is incredibly effective, almost playing out like a horror movie. Batman is now a force of vengeance, the symbol Liam Neeson taught him to be, a shadow from which no criminal is safe. Like the best boogeymen in movies he is unseen but terrifying and from then on it is clearly established that this is a man who has become “more than a man”. He has become fear itself.
One of the biggest change in this edit is to Kathy Holmes’ character. JMB, in a stroke of genius, has altered her voice in every single one of her lines of dialog to make her sound deeper and more intelligent. Gone is the giggly cheerleader voice that took me out of the movie and made me cringe at every single one of her appearances; her character now has depth. Saying her character is improved would be a gross understatement; her performance is completely transformed into something that, not only no longer sticks out like a sore thumb, but is actually believable and up to par with the other great performances in the movie. This is truly the essence of fanediting; being able to think outside of the box to create a better viewing experience for the audience.
The other major change is the Batmobile. It now has a life of its own, quite litterally; Gordon no longer drives it at the end, it drives itself. Like Batman, it has become much more dangerous and is now a symbol of fear, becoming more than just a vehicle. It is now a monstruous beast, Batman’s faithful stead born out of the same darkness and who’ll follow him thru hell. I cannot underline how big an effect this change makes to Batman’s character who is now completely in control of the situation. No longuer dependant on other’s collaboration, Batman knows exactly what he’s doing and you better not stand in his way.
Editing: 10 of 10 – Seamless. No lost frames, not hard cuts and a much tighter movie and it is hard to believe this is a firstling effort.
entertainment: 9 of 10 - see below.
Image and video quality:
Perfect image quality. If the avi looks this good, this will simply look stunning on DVD.
Video quality: 10 of 10
Audio editing and audio quality:
I did not notice the other reviewers’ qualms about the videogame audio used; everything flowed beautifully to me. Perhaps a second viewing would make me notice it but in the heat of seeing this new take so masterfully done, it has gone by unnoticed by this reviewer. One part, which only lasted a few seconds, could have been more “rounded” but it came and left so quickly that it didn’t have time to really draw me out of the movie.
audio editing: 9 of 10
sound quality: 9 of 10
Presentation:
The avi is as good as an avi can get. I did not care much for the end credits which to me felt a little too bold and in your face, giving it a TV feel, but by then the movie was over and this is honnestly just nitpicking.
9 of 10
Final result: 9 of 10
This is a replacement disc for me. This movie was enjoyed with someone who is not a fan of superhero movies and who had not seen Batman Begins. Typically she will talk endlessly during any movie that doesn’t draw her in but here she was silent the whole way thru – except during the dock fight when Batman takes out the first thug where she burst out in exitement: “You’re all f*cked!”.
This is the Batman I’ve always wanted to see on screen. The whole story now makes sense and respects its own plan laid out in the first part; for Bruce Wayne to instill fear into the hearts of criminals, he must become more than a man. He must become a symbol. Fear itself. And this is exactly what this edit achieves to make us believe. Batman Begins: The Dark Cut is now a movie worthy of its best source material and along with Donner’s Superman movies, one of the best superhero movies I’ve seen.
review by blueyoda
Prologue:
Let me begin by saying that I only saw Batman Begins once. I’m one of the few who was annoyed by the movie. Although it was undeniably the best, most faithful adaptation of the comic book ever commited to screen in terms of tone, some things irked me enough that I never felt the need to see it a second time; Kathy Holmes’ atrocious performance and Batman’s cluelessness being two major points.
I am a huge fan of the Batman, mostly because of the comic book; The Dark Knight Returns, Year One and The Killing Joke are the “definitive” comics that left their mark on me when I was younger and shaped my idea of who Batman is and why he does what he does. I was really hoping that movie would capture the essence of what has made Batman such an enduring character for more than 70 years and although it succeeded in many aspects like the music, lighting and overall mood it let me down so hard on other, much more important elements like Bruce Wayne’s whole character arc and the way he becomes Batman that I never went back to it. This edit completely changes that.
The edit:
There are many, many small changes in this movie that completely change our perception of it. Batman is a much leaner, much more focused and dangerous character than in the theatrical version of the movie. I remember not thinking much of the dock fight in the theater but here the scene is incredibly effective, almost playing out like a horror movie. Batman is now a force of vengeance, the symbol Liam Neeson taught him to be, a shadow from which no criminal is safe. Like the best boogeymen in movies he is unseen but terrifying and from then on it is clearly established that this is a man who has become “more than a man”. He has become fear itself.
One of the biggest change in this edit is to Kathy Holmes’ character. JMB, in a stroke of genius, has altered her voice in every single one of her lines of dialog to make her sound deeper and more intelligent. Gone is the giggly cheerleader voice that took me out of the movie and made me cringe at every single one of her appearances; her character now has depth. Saying her character is improved would be a gross understatement; her performance is completely transformed into something that, not only no longer sticks out like a sore thumb, but is actually believable and up to par with the other great performances in the movie. This is truly the essence of fanediting; being able to think outside of the box to create a better viewing experience for the audience.
The other major change is the Batmobile. It now has a life of its own, quite litterally; Gordon no longer drives it at the end, it drives itself. Like Batman, it has become much more dangerous and is now a symbol of fear, becoming more than just a vehicle. It is now a monstruous beast, Batman’s faithful stead born out of the same darkness and who’ll follow him thru hell. I cannot underline how big an effect this change makes to Batman’s character who is now completely in control of the situation. No longuer dependant on other’s collaboration, Batman knows exactly what he’s doing and you better not stand in his way.
Editing: 10 of 10 – Seamless. No lost frames, not hard cuts and a much tighter movie and it is hard to believe this is a firstling effort.
entertainment: 9 of 10 - see below.
Image and video quality:
Perfect image quality. If the avi looks this good, this will simply look stunning on DVD.
Video quality: 10 of 10
Audio editing and audio quality:
I did not notice the other reviewers’ qualms about the videogame audio used; everything flowed beautifully to me. Perhaps a second viewing would make me notice it but in the heat of seeing this new take so masterfully done, it has gone by unnoticed by this reviewer. One part, which only lasted a few seconds, could have been more “rounded” but it came and left so quickly that it didn’t have time to really draw me out of the movie.
audio editing: 9 of 10
sound quality: 9 of 10
Presentation:
The avi is as good as an avi can get. I did not care much for the end credits which to me felt a little too bold and in your face, giving it a TV feel, but by then the movie was over and this is honnestly just nitpicking.
9 of 10
Final result: 9 of 10
This is a replacement disc for me. This movie was enjoyed with someone who is not a fan of superhero movies and who had not seen Batman Begins. Typically she will talk endlessly during any movie that doesn’t draw her in but here she was silent the whole way thru – except during the dock fight when Batman takes out the first thug where she burst out in exitement: “You’re all f*cked!”.
This is the Batman I’ve always wanted to see on screen. The whole story now makes sense and respects its own plan laid out in the first part; for Bruce Wayne to instill fear into the hearts of criminals, he must become more than a man. He must become a symbol. Fear itself. And this is exactly what this edit achieves to make us believe. Batman Begins: The Dark Cut is now a movie worthy of its best source material and along with Donner’s Superman movies, one of the best superhero movies I’ve seen.
B
Overall rating
9.0
Audio/Video Quality
10.0
Audio Editing
9.0
Visual Editing
10.0
Narrative
8.0
Enjoyment
8.0
Batman Begins: Dark Cut by JMB
review by boon23
Prologue:
I have been involved in the discussion of this project since it was announced a long time ago. I am also probably the only FE member who has watched the first release of this fanedit as it was sent to me by jmb. It was a fullscreen version, but it blew me away and I was patiently waiting for the final widescreen release with all the cool changes and improvements. JMB is one of the most devoted faneditors I have ever met. On the way to this release he went through so much fault and error, yet he never gave up and I have a huge respect for that.
I consider BATMAN BEGINS a great movie and more consistent and thrilling than DARK KNIGHT. This is not always the best premises for watching a fanedit that is supposed to even improve on the original, but because I knew the first version, I was aware that it was indeed possible.
As for all my reviews: this is just my personal opinion of this fanedit. I cannot tell anybody else, if he or she will experience it in the same way or the opposite. So my review is not objective and does not reflect the opinion of fanedit.org.
!!!!This review contains heavy spoilers!!!
The edit:
There are so many small but important changes to the movie that it is unnecessary to list them all, just that they work marvelously. Just 2 of many examples: Ken Watanabe’s appearance is a lot improved. The dock fight is so much more powerful and the lame one-liners are never missed at all. JMB managed to give a lot more depth to this movie and I enjoyed watching it for the most part.
The idea to not have Gordon drive the Bat mobile was well done and worked well, yet to me the entire final battle scene felt more flat than it was in the original. The panic over Gotham did not get to me so much, I was less thrilled and somehow pulled out of the movie.
The voices from the game did not work too well for me.
Rachel’s deeper voice is a very nice idea, however at some points she sounds artificial and there are several scenes, when an audio change (as if switching from mono to stereo) can be heard.
To me the edit was great for about 105 minutes and lost a lot of its drive in the last 15 minutes. Still it is an awesome job.
editing: 8 of 10 (beautifully edited, but the finale of the original had to me a lot more impact)
entertainment: 7 of 10 (original 9 of 10)(I love the original movie and although this one has many improvements, I will still rather watch the original).
Image and video quality:
The image quality is perfect and there are no hard cuts at all in the movie. The entire editing was done with an incredible amount of care and considering the huge changes a piece of art.
Video quality: 10 of 10
Audio editing and audio quality:
The audio was unfortunately a problem at times as mentioned above. The change of Rachel’s voice did not work perfectly IMO and lead to some occasions that pulled me out of the movie. The game voices did not match the movie voices. There are a few scenes, where an audio channel switch is noticeable. But for 95% of the edit the audio is perfect and it was a great effort to make this possible.
audio editing: 8 of 10
sound quality: 9 of 10
resulting in a 9 of 10 for overall audio
presentation:
It’s an avi and it looks great. Cover art is attached and the info given is very detailled. The DVD will come with a few nice extras and animated menus. The beginning was altered and the end credits were self created, looked great and were perfectly synced with the music.
This results in a 10 of 10 rating from me for presentation.
Final result: 8 of 10 (because I do not rate a fanedit more than 1 point higher or lower than its entertainment to me).
This is hereby approved for fanedit.org.
Thanks, jmb, for creating and releasing it. We have been waiting for this for a long time and it’s a really nice fanedit. Recommended.
review by boon23
Prologue:
I have been involved in the discussion of this project since it was announced a long time ago. I am also probably the only FE member who has watched the first release of this fanedit as it was sent to me by jmb. It was a fullscreen version, but it blew me away and I was patiently waiting for the final widescreen release with all the cool changes and improvements. JMB is one of the most devoted faneditors I have ever met. On the way to this release he went through so much fault and error, yet he never gave up and I have a huge respect for that.
I consider BATMAN BEGINS a great movie and more consistent and thrilling than DARK KNIGHT. This is not always the best premises for watching a fanedit that is supposed to even improve on the original, but because I knew the first version, I was aware that it was indeed possible.
As for all my reviews: this is just my personal opinion of this fanedit. I cannot tell anybody else, if he or she will experience it in the same way or the opposite. So my review is not objective and does not reflect the opinion of fanedit.org.
!!!!This review contains heavy spoilers!!!
The edit:
There are so many small but important changes to the movie that it is unnecessary to list them all, just that they work marvelously. Just 2 of many examples: Ken Watanabe’s appearance is a lot improved. The dock fight is so much more powerful and the lame one-liners are never missed at all. JMB managed to give a lot more depth to this movie and I enjoyed watching it for the most part.
The idea to not have Gordon drive the Bat mobile was well done and worked well, yet to me the entire final battle scene felt more flat than it was in the original. The panic over Gotham did not get to me so much, I was less thrilled and somehow pulled out of the movie.
The voices from the game did not work too well for me.
Rachel’s deeper voice is a very nice idea, however at some points she sounds artificial and there are several scenes, when an audio change (as if switching from mono to stereo) can be heard.
To me the edit was great for about 105 minutes and lost a lot of its drive in the last 15 minutes. Still it is an awesome job.
editing: 8 of 10 (beautifully edited, but the finale of the original had to me a lot more impact)
entertainment: 7 of 10 (original 9 of 10)(I love the original movie and although this one has many improvements, I will still rather watch the original).
Image and video quality:
The image quality is perfect and there are no hard cuts at all in the movie. The entire editing was done with an incredible amount of care and considering the huge changes a piece of art.
Video quality: 10 of 10
Audio editing and audio quality:
The audio was unfortunately a problem at times as mentioned above. The change of Rachel’s voice did not work perfectly IMO and lead to some occasions that pulled me out of the movie. The game voices did not match the movie voices. There are a few scenes, where an audio channel switch is noticeable. But for 95% of the edit the audio is perfect and it was a great effort to make this possible.
audio editing: 8 of 10
sound quality: 9 of 10
resulting in a 9 of 10 for overall audio
presentation:
It’s an avi and it looks great. Cover art is attached and the info given is very detailled. The DVD will come with a few nice extras and animated menus. The beginning was altered and the end credits were self created, looked great and were perfectly synced with the music.
This results in a 10 of 10 rating from me for presentation.
Final result: 8 of 10 (because I do not rate a fanedit more than 1 point higher or lower than its entertainment to me).
This is hereby approved for fanedit.org.
Thanks, jmb, for creating and releasing it. We have been waiting for this for a long time and it’s a really nice fanedit. Recommended.
User Review
Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
B
Overall rating
9.4
Audio/Video Quality
9.0
Audio Editing
9.0
Visual Editing
10.0
Narrative
10.0
Enjoyment
9.0
I was wanting to give this series a rewatch as this is my favorite version of Batman on the big screen. I have always felt that Begins was the strongest entry in the series (many people say TDK, but I've always prefered this). So I wasn't sure if it really needed an edit as aside from a line here or there, most things didn't bother me.
So as I was looking, I was checking the change list for different edits and this one really seemed different. I know it's not HD but it deserves and HD upgrade because this edit was AWESOME!
If I had to nit pick anything here I would say that the altered voice or Katie Holms was a little too artificial here and there and should have been pulled back some.
This edit is very much worth a watch!
So as I was looking, I was checking the change list for different edits and this one really seemed different. I know it's not HD but it deserves and HD upgrade because this edit was AWESOME!
If I had to nit pick anything here I would say that the altered voice or Katie Holms was a little too artificial here and there and should have been pulled back some.
This edit is very much worth a watch!
User Review
Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
L