Captain Marvel: Where's the Love

This is one of the rare FanFixes that not only improves the original film, but turns it from something I rather grudgingly watched into something I really enjoy.

With calculated trims and insertion of some excellent deleted scenes, the movie is made far more consistent, and Carol is turned into a more likeable, admirable, and heroic character. Most importantly, she isn't strong because she's fed up with men telling her what to do, she's strong because she finds connection with people, and she stands up against those who would try to divide us against each other. My feelings about the film overall and its original vibe are written in more detail here: https://boxd.it/1WMyMz

I will try to only speak in MINOR SPOILERS here when I describe the film's changes. Firstly, early on we get a scene with Carol and Yon-Rog talking with and training some Kree kids. (All these deleted scenes are now in HD btw, virtually indistinguishable from the theatrical cut.) It helps to flesh out the society and allows Brie Larson to show some more personality in a friendly, relaxed situation. There's also an extended cut of their conversation after training where she jokes that when Yon-Rog visits the Supreme Intelligence, it probably takes the form of himself. And after this, there's a brief deleted scene with Carol and the Starforce joking around before their mission a bit. And there are many small trims to lines here and there where Carol seemed arrogant or looking-for-a-fight. The net effect is that early in the film, we have a better chance to bond with our heroine, and she shows more of these emotions that Yon-Rog is always telling her to control. Whereas before, she hardly showed any emotion at all!

On the Skrull ship, Earth, and thereafter, there are many small trims to moments that seemed incongruous or just made Carol come off poorly. She doesn't scream at a Skrull, doesn't confront a comicly-misogynistic biker, doesn't get interrupted by the operator when rigging up an interstellar communication device with Radio Shack parts and a payphone. Her interactions with Fury are improved too, becoming less antagonistic and arrogant. And flashback scenes are added when she visits Maria, so that we start feeling she's missing that sense of connection, of her friends and family. And Goose! I have to admit, on this recent rewatch, this brief bit of fanediting fully got me feeling the feels.

Speaking of Goose, his little scratch is just that, and a bit of movie magic prevents it from affecting Fury too much. The big ship fight is now accompanied with "Violet" by Hole rather than the very on-the-nose "I'm Just a Girl" by No Doubt. The deleted scene where Yon-Rog visits the Supreme Intelligence is reinstated, and it pays off that discussion from the beginning of the film. And then when Carol needs to stand up and fight back at the end, it's not to a montage of men putting her down, it's to a montage of all the human connections she built that the Kree wiped from her and took away from her. She reclaims her feelings in a positive way rather than the cynical, damaged p.o.v. of the theatrical release.

The end result is a real triumph. It reveals that there's lots of good acting in this movie, from Larson in particular, and there's a great story here, too. I have to blame the vison and directing of Fleck and Boden for this one. With some better editing and scene choices, (as well as different color grading and audio in parts of the film), Larson lives up to her heroic name here, and the film becomes worthy of being Marvel's first heroine. One of my favorite FanFixes on the site, and highly recommended for those who had an issue with the original tone, or just anyone looking for a great sci-fi flick!

This is a really interesting project. To paraphrase, Tremault's thesis for the project was to make Carol a more likable character, and to remove what she considered "anti-male" scenes and moments. I would characterize the original movie's take on feminism is the typical mainstream dumbing down; encouraging the oppressed to take on the role of the oppressor. To me, truly meaningful feminism rethinks gender roles and power structures altogether. To do that, it's important to remember to love and care for our fellow human beings. (And other alien life forms haha) A take on this material that centers that is a great idea, and I appreciate all the work that Tremault put in.

When I watched Tremault's edit of Captain Marvel, I hadn't seen the original version in a little while. My experience was just enjoying it as a movie, rather than looking for changes. It was really great! Overall, as just a viewing experience it was really positive. Tremault's changes were seamless, and nothing jumped out at me as awkward, missing, or superfluous. She even added some visual effects when Carol's implant was subduing her powers. Again, seamless, and very impressive.

The scenes were color graded entire movie to reflect Carol's emotional state. This is the one thing I wish I had been watching for, and I might give it another spin just to have a look at this.

Towards the beginning of the movie, Tremault re-inserted some deleted scenes (either replacing scenes from the original movie, or sometimes just adding them in), and this is mostly effective. There were a few moments that may tip audience off to the villain reveal later in the movie, but the reconfiguration of these early scenes is a net positive, as it establishes a more believable bond that Carol has with her fellow Kree soldiers, including Yon Rogg.

Throughout the movie Tremault makes snips a lot of ham-fisted "girl boss" characterization. This serves to make Carol a more competent character who is not defined by her "failure" to live up to the expectations of men. Instead, Carol's relationship to her collogues and loved ones is is emphasized, without taking anything away from her arc of self-discovery.

Tremault also did several small but cool cuts that give the movie more even pacing and suspense. I was very impressed by that and I definitely noticed it even though I hadn't seen the original in a long time.

Most importantly, Tremault replaced "Just a Girl" by No Doubt with "Violet" by Hole. Hell yes. The song is much more appropriate vibe-wise, and so much less on the nose lyrically. I'm kind of joking, but a big part of me walked away from the original movie feeling like it was corny because that dopey song plays at such a pivotal moment. It's a shame that the filmmakers put dialogue in this scene because I would have preferred a musical montage with nothing but Carol kicking ass. But what can you do? There's only so much footage to work with on a project like this.

I might have a few quibbles with some cut lines here and there, but I respect Tremault's vision for this project and that's all down to personal taste. Plus, I might not even like those moments anymore if I saw them put back in.

So... super well done! I thank Tremault for her hard work and dedication. I don't take for granted the work that all the editors out there put in to enhance and expand our enjoyment of these movies, and this is a good example of someone putting in a ton of work to pull off what seems like a magic trick to me.

First, to establish a bit of background for my viewing of this edit:

I never saw the original. I collect all MCU, but I hadn't gotten around to this.
This edited version of the character is my first impression of Danvers.
Consequently I can only evaluate the edit on its own merits.

The plot of this thing was on the weaker side, but overall serviceable.
The pacing was somewhat plodding and could use some refocusing.
I'm unsure if the editor tweaked the internal structure, but this was mostly fine.
It wasn't difficult to watch, nor did it prevent me from appreciating the changes.

I understand the editor wanted to portray Danvers as likable and warm.
In this goal the editor succeeded. Danvers was easy to root for and a badass.
There is an emotional underpinning to her powers that I kinda dig.
Her connection to the people around her is evident and clear with this cut.

Visual quality is good. Added-in footage is noticeable but not absurdly so.
The editing was seamless with exception to some music that needs leveling.
I understand the film was color graded to reflect Danvers' emotional state.
It helps to illustrate the kind of narrative that the editor was going for.

Overall this was a nicely-done film when considering the goals it set out to do.
I would say it's a worthwhile addition to the MCU timeline.
Would I watch it again? If cuts were made to help the plot get to the point.
But I definitely recommend this version of the film just on its own merits.

Captain Marvel Where's The Love have a great pacing and overall a better one than the theatrical version. The editing is amazing, it made Captain Marvel be a likeable character. All her quip which felt like everyone is beneath her is gone.

As someone who has been indoctrinated for six years to keep the emotion in check. Stoic military-type fit perfectly with Captain Marvel. With a touch of humanity, she gradually regains herself again.

For information, I have watched the theatrical version, almost forgot most of it. But, there's are several scenes in the theatrical versions that don't sit well with Captain Marvel as a superhero. such as [SPOILER ALERT?]:
1. The bike thief.
2. Captain Marvel regain her full power from superintelligence.
3. Yon-Rog (short) final duel.
4. The story behind Nick Fury's eye.
This edit fixes all of that. Suggestion, a clip when she and her friend hang out in a bar might be a good addition to the emotional scene in Captain Marvel regain her full power from superintelligence.

[SPOILER ALERT]
Although this is almost perfect, I think the fight scene in the third act could be better. Captain Marvel just regain her full power, she shouldn't be able to use it with ease. The fight in the ship (remember they are elite soldiers) should overwhelm her a bit before she were able to fend off the attacker. Maybe remove the part in which she broke a sword. Another one is when At-lass said "don't make me do this" can be removed, to make the enemy more menacing. Ronan's scene should be removed entirely. Captain Marvel is able to destroy so many warheads at once, even destroy one giant starship on its own. No matter how much I love her binary form, is too much for her first flight. How can she know the limit of her powers? Flying head-on against warhead is showing too much confidence bordering on arrogance. Suggestions, when Captain marvel punches Yon-Rog's ship scene, can be followed up with her landing near Yon-Rog. Of course, it might leave the audience clueless about how strong Captain Marvel is when she shows up in Avengers End Game.

[SPOILER ALERT END]

I can say confidently, this is the best version of Captain Marvel we can watch. It elevates Captain Marvel to the role model we can aspire to be.

Thank you very much Tremault for your marvellous work.

A solid edit that finds the "feels" within this movie!

I didn't hate the original, but I still found it one of the few obviously flawed MCU entries as it was more "fun" than engrossing. This edit unfolds in a more natural way, skipping needless parts of shallow mystery setups to stay focused on a theme of empathy and an overall better introduction of Carol! Lower Quality inserted scenes were barely noticeable.

Great work!