Review Detail

It's been a while since I watched the original, so I don't remember every detail of it, but I found this a superior experience. I remember a lot of the interactions with Palmer Joss (interactions now cut) being really annoying, with him sabotaging her chances of going and all that. The rest of what was cut I didn't miss at all, and from a look at the cut scenes listed under Changes, I think it must have been a lot of unnecessary junk.

Technically, the edit was quite good, though I found the audio somewhat too quiet for the whole film, in contrast with most films I watch. Perhaps the original was that way, I don't recall now. I had to turn it up extra to hear the words I was seeing with the subtitles.

The only area of the narrative I felt was a bit off was in the last part (in Japan) where Palmer apologizes to Ellie. Presumably he was apologizing for sabotaging her chances, but with that plotline removed, it left me as the viewer wondering what he was apologizing for.

I can see how the lecture audio over the end credits might fit, though I personally didn't enjoy it as much and felt a more classic end credits bit of music would have fit better. I definitely enjoyed watching the edit, though, and find it superior enough to the original to replace it for any future rewatches.