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Eternals: The Apostasy Edit
Updated
Faneditor Name:
Original Movie Title:
Genre:
Franchise:
Fanedit Type:
Original Release Date:
2021
Original Running Time:
156
Fanedit Release Date:
Fanedit Running Time:
142
Time Cut:
14
Subtitles Available?
Available in HD?
Available in 4K?
Additional Links:
Brief Synopsis:
This edit focuses the narrative on the renunciation, criticism, and eventual opposition to the goals of their god Arishem. IMO this movie was a metaphor for the different ways of questioning authority - misguided soldiers, missionaries, colonizers, etc… these basic concepts are I wanted to elevate.
Using Pink Floyd's "Time" as a jumping off point, this edit also includes new songs from Pearl Jam, Massive Attack, Tool, and the Alan Parson's Project.
Using Pink Floyd's "Time" as a jumping off point, this edit also includes new songs from Pearl Jam, Massive Attack, Tool, and the Alan Parson's Project.
Intention:
I was underwhelmed by the original release of this movie. I didn’t hate it, but nothing in it made me actually get INTERESTED. It all just felt… fine. I just never really “felt” for the characters. I mostly wrote the movie off, but after a failed experiment trying to remove the third act all together, I started to care more about the characters while I was playing around, and started to see more of the ‘turning from religion’ similarities. So my first official fanedit dip into the MCU was born.
Additional Notes:
I also have been doing a little researching, and came across this reddit post by someone who also noticed the "missionary" parallels that expresses a sentiment I love:
What I didn’t expect was that the film would lean into the idea of Eternals as missionaries. Not the kind of missionaries that we see today, but something from a century or two ago. Small groups of fervent followers of some offshoot sect huddled in meeting in small rooms a la something out of The Master, or settling across the frontier spreading the gospel, bound by a common dogma and spiritual zeal. In that environment, the religious group becomes a sort of extended family, with generations, divisions of labor, relationships, and expectations, both of oneself and others. The Eternals present as one of these ‘missionary families’ and I think the movie does a good job of illustrating the sense of loss and disorientation that happens once that religious mission has no meaning.
Ajak is at the top of this family, the spiritual leader who holds the complete faith of her disciples and her directives hold the weight of God itself. (...) All of the personality traits, relationship roles and expectations that the Eternals have ever known have been tightly connected to their faith in Arishem and the mission that he gave them through Ajak. Now that that’s over, who are these people? Who are they to each other? What are they supposed to be doing? Ajak gives the directive to ‘go out and live your lives (I’m paraphrasing)’ but would any of us know what that means if all we had known is one life, one faith, and one mission? The looks on the faces of the rest of the Eternals seems to betray this sense of dislocation and disassociation.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a mainstream superhero movie take something like that on, particularly in a way that provides such murky answers. Three of the characters die in the process, one disappears before the big battle, and in the end the group splits. (...) That’s heady stuff, and to me, it’s what makes Eternals such a fascinating movie.
Special Thanks:
Lapis Molari for the inspiration and motivation for a "Battle of the Eternals Edits", and Artisdead, SIUse, Addiesin, LifeInContext for great feedback and ideas!
Release Information:
Digital
Editing Details:
I really wanted to highlight the stages of apostasy for many people, and through new section title cards and a more chronological scene order, I hope that is achieved. I am also reducing the Deviant plot significantly to reduce the scope of the narrative and keep it more focused.
Cuts and Additions:
Original introduction explanatory text removed, new production credits text added
Arishem’s explanation of the universe used as the intro, some shots slowed with Topaz for better pacing
Angelic chants added to Domo introduction
Removed Sersi first dialogue “It’s Beautiful”
Removed father putting obviously fake fish in a bag (he just killed it, and not even a wiggle)
Tightened up initial fight scene to remove lingering camera shots of Eternals (we’ll get to know them all soon enough)
Removed Ajax healing Icarus (for pacing)
Removed Ajax allowing Sersi to reach out to humans
Moved Babylon Scenes to right after Marvel Intro reel, continued Pink Floyd’s “Time” song
Added “575 BC Babylon” text to beginning of Babylon fight scene
Added more sound FX for Kingo’s fireball shots.
Removed the original “575 BC Babylon” text with Topaz, added Eternals Title at same point
Added more angelic tones for Ajax’s scene with Arishem, and trimmed the dialogue a tiny bit to remove the “status update.”
Added “Stage One - Truth” title card to transition from Ajax and Arishem to The Domo
Added a guitar cover of “Clair de Lune” for the scene inside the Domo when Phastos introduces the steam engine.
Moved up some shots of Icarus and Sersi flirting before Icarus asks Ajax for permission
added score "The Epic Of Gilgamesh In Sumerian" flowing from Sersi and Ikaris flirting into the party scene, leaving only the admission of feelings until after.
removed Ajax telling Icarus to admit his feelings to Sersi
Removed “I am beautiful” translation error interaction between Icarus and Sersi” and her gift of the rock, and removed their sex scene. (Hopefully implying their love grows slower)
Moved Tenochtitlan scenes to right after the wedding
new title card “Stage Two - Doubt” added to Tenochtitlan scene introduction
Tenochtitlan scenes brightened
Recut scene with Gilgamesh assuming responsibility for Athena after Ajax tells the rest of the Eternals to go live their own lives (for better pacing and easier transition to modern times.)
Moved Present Day London Scenes to after Tenochtitlan scene
used Pearl Jam’s “Release Me” as the transition music to Present Day London
added “Stage Three - Growth” title card to London introduction
Added Massive Attack’s Angel intro beats to Deviants first London intro with the bum and his dog
Slightly tightened when a Deviant first spots Sersi, Sprite and Dane (for pacing)
Added Massive Attack’s “Angel” to London Deviant encounter
Trimmed Sersi and Sprite jumping up to bridge level a little bit
Removed Sersi turning bus into flower petals
Added laser eyes to Ikaris exiting damaged shop
Used Topaz to enlarge and recross shot of Dane, Sersi and Sprite regrouping after Ikaris’s arrival
Removed Dane introducing himself to Icarus, cuts straight to “Well, I guess you must be the pilot.”
London scenes followed by South Dakota
“Stage Four - Questions” title card to present day South Dakota
South Dakota present day scenes brightened
South Dakota’s “Present Day” text removed with Topaz and After Effects
Added Angelic death song theme to Ajax’s death
Trimmed out Ikaris insinuating that Sersi’s interaction with Arishem was just mahd wy'ry
South Dakota scenes followed by Mumbai
Mumbi “Present Day” text removed with Topaz Upscaling to crop out text, and added "Mumbai" back in
Some Mumbi scenes brightened
Removed on plane Sersi’s mention she changes rocks into wood (too close to turning a deviant into a tree)
Sersi and Arishem scene tightened, universe origin removed from here and moved to intro
trimmed some of Arishem’s exposition to Sersi
Added “Stage Five - Answers” card after Arishem’s revelation
Kingo’s mention about memories trimmed out of candlelit scene
Dane trying to call Sersi the first time in the Amazon removed
Amazon scenes after Druig church room discussion brightened
Amazon fight scene with Deviants rescored with Tool’s “Schism” until Sersi turns a Deviant into a tree
Amazon fight scene re-edited for pacing, Kingo and Sprite against a deviant now comes before Sersi and Druig's followers sequence
Trimmed Sprite saying "Young Man" to Karun
Trimmed Sprite's time stabbing the Deviant, and removed Kingo's "Dashoom" line for better pacing
Trimmed Druig telling his followers to head to the caves
Enhanced scoring for Gilgamesh’s fight with the Deviant when saving Thena
Removed any of Gilgamesh’s dialogue after the Deviant sinks the power-sucking tentacles (to match Ajax’s quick death)
Deviant dialogue removed from Amazon scene when it evolves
Angelic death song theme added to Gilgamesh’s death after fight
Removed Sersi looking at Icarus during funeral shots
Removed Sersi discussing Deviant consciousness with Druig
Added Japanese music during Hiroshima flashback
Removed Phastos saying he was the cause of the atom bomb, instead just being disappointed by humans
Removed “Present Day” from Chicago intro scene by cropping and up scaling with Topaz
Trimmed “superman” reference in Chicago
Removed Ikea reference, added frames of hallway to extend Phastos’s reaction to the broken table
Added “Stage Six - Apostasy” title card as Eternals arrive in Iraq
Removed comment that Makkari disappeared for centuries
Removed Makkari and Kingo discussion about DVDs
Removed mention that Phastos was inspired by Deviants stealing their powers
Added deleted scene of Sprite and Makkari in Iraq, used Topaz to upscale to 4K, and enhanced audio from Stereo to 5.1
Trimmed Sersi and Icarus discussion in the canyon
Moved Ajax and Icarus flashback in South Dakota to after Sersi asks why Ajax didn’t choose Icarus to replace her
trimmed Ajax explaining why the changed her mind about humans
Removed Ajax and Ikaris walking in the Alaska forest
Trimmed Ikaris and Ajax dialogue in Alaska
removed Phastos working alone on the Unimind
Removed team suiting up in the Domo before final fight
Removed shot of Druig being buried by Icarus eyebeam
Removed Thena, Phastos and Sersi fighting debris
Tightened interaction of Sersi and Phastos before she takes off alone to Tiamut
Removed some parts of fight with Icarus
Removed most Deviant talking to Thena as she enters the cave, added line from Amazon here - “I will kill you all for what you have done to my kind”
Tightened dialogue with Deviant and Thena just before she kills it, removed her “I remember” line after (in favor of silent reflection)
Slightly reordered scenes when Thena leaves the cave
trimmed ikarus escaping Phastos’s chains
Reordered of shots of Icarus remembering times with Sersi, and removed Sersi initiating Ikaris to remember
removed Ikaris looking back at the earth before flying into the sun
Added “Stage Seven - Dawn” title card to South Dakota epilogue scene
Removed babysitting dialogue between Phastos and Thena
Removed Sersi berating Sprite about her phone addiction
Removed Kingo seeing Dane
Sersi and Danes dialogue about a giraffe removed.
Swapped shots of Eternals with Arishem so that we see Phastos first, then Kingo. Their eyes are whitened to seem like they are in robot mode, so Arishem is only talking to Sersi now.
Arishem’s dialogue to Sersi trimmed to be more threatening.
Dane’s reaction from the ground removed.
“To be continued” text added
Alan Parson's Project’s “Games People Play” song used for first half of credits.
Credits reordered and speed sometimes changed to better match the music
Removed Thena saying they need to go back to Earth.
Arishem’s explanation of the universe used as the intro, some shots slowed with Topaz for better pacing
Angelic chants added to Domo introduction
Removed Sersi first dialogue “It’s Beautiful”
Removed father putting obviously fake fish in a bag (he just killed it, and not even a wiggle)
Tightened up initial fight scene to remove lingering camera shots of Eternals (we’ll get to know them all soon enough)
Removed Ajax healing Icarus (for pacing)
Removed Ajax allowing Sersi to reach out to humans
Moved Babylon Scenes to right after Marvel Intro reel, continued Pink Floyd’s “Time” song
Added “575 BC Babylon” text to beginning of Babylon fight scene
Added more sound FX for Kingo’s fireball shots.
Removed the original “575 BC Babylon” text with Topaz, added Eternals Title at same point
Added more angelic tones for Ajax’s scene with Arishem, and trimmed the dialogue a tiny bit to remove the “status update.”
Added “Stage One - Truth” title card to transition from Ajax and Arishem to The Domo
Added a guitar cover of “Clair de Lune” for the scene inside the Domo when Phastos introduces the steam engine.
Moved up some shots of Icarus and Sersi flirting before Icarus asks Ajax for permission
added score "The Epic Of Gilgamesh In Sumerian" flowing from Sersi and Ikaris flirting into the party scene, leaving only the admission of feelings until after.
removed Ajax telling Icarus to admit his feelings to Sersi
Removed “I am beautiful” translation error interaction between Icarus and Sersi” and her gift of the rock, and removed their sex scene. (Hopefully implying their love grows slower)
Moved Tenochtitlan scenes to right after the wedding
new title card “Stage Two - Doubt” added to Tenochtitlan scene introduction
Tenochtitlan scenes brightened
Recut scene with Gilgamesh assuming responsibility for Athena after Ajax tells the rest of the Eternals to go live their own lives (for better pacing and easier transition to modern times.)
Moved Present Day London Scenes to after Tenochtitlan scene
used Pearl Jam’s “Release Me” as the transition music to Present Day London
added “Stage Three - Growth” title card to London introduction
Added Massive Attack’s Angel intro beats to Deviants first London intro with the bum and his dog
Slightly tightened when a Deviant first spots Sersi, Sprite and Dane (for pacing)
Added Massive Attack’s “Angel” to London Deviant encounter
Trimmed Sersi and Sprite jumping up to bridge level a little bit
Removed Sersi turning bus into flower petals
Added laser eyes to Ikaris exiting damaged shop
Used Topaz to enlarge and recross shot of Dane, Sersi and Sprite regrouping after Ikaris’s arrival
Removed Dane introducing himself to Icarus, cuts straight to “Well, I guess you must be the pilot.”
London scenes followed by South Dakota
“Stage Four - Questions” title card to present day South Dakota
South Dakota present day scenes brightened
South Dakota’s “Present Day” text removed with Topaz and After Effects
Added Angelic death song theme to Ajax’s death
Trimmed out Ikaris insinuating that Sersi’s interaction with Arishem was just mahd wy'ry
South Dakota scenes followed by Mumbai
Mumbi “Present Day” text removed with Topaz Upscaling to crop out text, and added "Mumbai" back in
Some Mumbi scenes brightened
Removed on plane Sersi’s mention she changes rocks into wood (too close to turning a deviant into a tree)
Sersi and Arishem scene tightened, universe origin removed from here and moved to intro
trimmed some of Arishem’s exposition to Sersi
Added “Stage Five - Answers” card after Arishem’s revelation
Kingo’s mention about memories trimmed out of candlelit scene
Dane trying to call Sersi the first time in the Amazon removed
Amazon scenes after Druig church room discussion brightened
Amazon fight scene with Deviants rescored with Tool’s “Schism” until Sersi turns a Deviant into a tree
Amazon fight scene re-edited for pacing, Kingo and Sprite against a deviant now comes before Sersi and Druig's followers sequence
Trimmed Sprite saying "Young Man" to Karun
Trimmed Sprite's time stabbing the Deviant, and removed Kingo's "Dashoom" line for better pacing
Trimmed Druig telling his followers to head to the caves
Enhanced scoring for Gilgamesh’s fight with the Deviant when saving Thena
Removed any of Gilgamesh’s dialogue after the Deviant sinks the power-sucking tentacles (to match Ajax’s quick death)
Deviant dialogue removed from Amazon scene when it evolves
Angelic death song theme added to Gilgamesh’s death after fight
Removed Sersi looking at Icarus during funeral shots
Removed Sersi discussing Deviant consciousness with Druig
Added Japanese music during Hiroshima flashback
Removed Phastos saying he was the cause of the atom bomb, instead just being disappointed by humans
Removed “Present Day” from Chicago intro scene by cropping and up scaling with Topaz
Trimmed “superman” reference in Chicago
Removed Ikea reference, added frames of hallway to extend Phastos’s reaction to the broken table
Added “Stage Six - Apostasy” title card as Eternals arrive in Iraq
Removed comment that Makkari disappeared for centuries
Removed Makkari and Kingo discussion about DVDs
Removed mention that Phastos was inspired by Deviants stealing their powers
Added deleted scene of Sprite and Makkari in Iraq, used Topaz to upscale to 4K, and enhanced audio from Stereo to 5.1
Trimmed Sersi and Icarus discussion in the canyon
Moved Ajax and Icarus flashback in South Dakota to after Sersi asks why Ajax didn’t choose Icarus to replace her
trimmed Ajax explaining why the changed her mind about humans
Removed Ajax and Ikaris walking in the Alaska forest
Trimmed Ikaris and Ajax dialogue in Alaska
removed Phastos working alone on the Unimind
Removed team suiting up in the Domo before final fight
Removed shot of Druig being buried by Icarus eyebeam
Removed Thena, Phastos and Sersi fighting debris
Tightened interaction of Sersi and Phastos before she takes off alone to Tiamut
Removed some parts of fight with Icarus
Removed most Deviant talking to Thena as she enters the cave, added line from Amazon here - “I will kill you all for what you have done to my kind”
Tightened dialogue with Deviant and Thena just before she kills it, removed her “I remember” line after (in favor of silent reflection)
Slightly reordered scenes when Thena leaves the cave
trimmed ikarus escaping Phastos’s chains
Reordered of shots of Icarus remembering times with Sersi, and removed Sersi initiating Ikaris to remember
removed Ikaris looking back at the earth before flying into the sun
Added “Stage Seven - Dawn” title card to South Dakota epilogue scene
Removed babysitting dialogue between Phastos and Thena
Removed Sersi berating Sprite about her phone addiction
Removed Kingo seeing Dane
Sersi and Danes dialogue about a giraffe removed.
Swapped shots of Eternals with Arishem so that we see Phastos first, then Kingo. Their eyes are whitened to seem like they are in robot mode, so Arishem is only talking to Sersi now.
Arishem’s dialogue to Sersi trimmed to be more threatening.
Dane’s reaction from the ground removed.
“To be continued” text added
Alan Parson's Project’s “Games People Play” song used for first half of credits.
Credits reordered and speed sometimes changed to better match the music
Removed Thena saying they need to go back to Earth.
Trailer 1
Trailer 2
User reviews
13 reviews
Overall rating
9.5
Audio/Video Quality
9.7(13)
Visual Editing
9.7(13)
Audio Editing
9.0(13)
Narrative
9.9(13)
Enjoyment
9.3(13)
(Updated: September 19, 2023)
Overall rating
9.4
Audio/Video Quality
10.0
Visual Editing
10.0
Audio Editing
9.0
Narrative
10.0
Enjoyment
9.0
I'm not a big fan of non-chronlogical storytelling, and having not grown up reading the Eternals comics, the original movie had two big things going against it. It was serviceable, as most MCU movies are, but nothing that stood out. Keo's edit was a vast improvement, his trims and the reordering of scenes allowing a better and more natural flow. The chapter cards were a neat inclusion that helped set it apart from other MCU films, and while there was some audio issues, I preferred Keo's choice of music over the original songs.
This edit will definitely be my go-to version of "The Eternals" for future viewings. Highly recommended!
This edit will definitely be my go-to version of "The Eternals" for future viewings. Highly recommended!
User Review
Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
B
Overall rating
8.2
Audio/Video Quality
9.0
Visual Editing
10.0
Audio Editing
8.0
Narrative
10.0
Enjoyment
7.0
I wonder if there is any edit left from Wakeupkeo that I haven't seen...
Just trying to say to say that I'm a big fan! What Keo has done for the super hero genre in this community is incredible!
When Eternals came out, although I was hyped, I did not like it. It wasn't a movie I wanted to see ever again. It wasn't Thor 4 level bad by any means, but I just didn't like it. When the first fanedits came out, I saw that most of them were focusing on making the story flow chronologically. I thought to myself, was that really the issue? I tried watching the most popular edit and I simply checked out after half an hour or so, it simply did not work for me at all. And then I read what Keo did with his edit and I'm like, huh, this actually makes a lot of sense. And after watching it, I can confirm that it did indeed!
To take the usual staff out of the way, technical wise is almost flawless. The narrative is levels above the original and all the cuts were seamless, you don't miss a thing and nothing feels off or something. There are some small issues with the volume of the songs, as someone else mentioned in his review. Other than that, as always, excellent work!
Story wise, the apostles theme clicked for me instantly. Seeing the movie from that perspective in combination with all the changes that Keo did, elevated the movie to a whole other level. Suddenly everything made more sense, you could see the purpose behind all the characters and the plot was evolving naturally. Be that as it may, unfortunately, this edit did not salvage the movie for me. It is not the editor's fault however, it just seems that nothing can be done for me to really like this film. I did enjoy this edit to a degree, but that's it.
Also, there was another big problem for me and it is something that most reviewers praise. The music..With the exception of some chant like themes (don't know if they are Keo's choice though or from the original), I was annoyed by the music. It was too loud, too on the nose and too often used, it really took me out of the moment.
Other than that, I can't recommend it enough! If you found the original film at least ok or fine and you don't mind the choice of music in this edit, I guarantee you it will be your go-to version of the movie from now on! For me, I'm just done with Eternals..
Thank you Wakeupkeo for all your hard work and thanks to anyone who read my review!
Just trying to say to say that I'm a big fan! What Keo has done for the super hero genre in this community is incredible!
When Eternals came out, although I was hyped, I did not like it. It wasn't a movie I wanted to see ever again. It wasn't Thor 4 level bad by any means, but I just didn't like it. When the first fanedits came out, I saw that most of them were focusing on making the story flow chronologically. I thought to myself, was that really the issue? I tried watching the most popular edit and I simply checked out after half an hour or so, it simply did not work for me at all. And then I read what Keo did with his edit and I'm like, huh, this actually makes a lot of sense. And after watching it, I can confirm that it did indeed!
To take the usual staff out of the way, technical wise is almost flawless. The narrative is levels above the original and all the cuts were seamless, you don't miss a thing and nothing feels off or something. There are some small issues with the volume of the songs, as someone else mentioned in his review. Other than that, as always, excellent work!
Story wise, the apostles theme clicked for me instantly. Seeing the movie from that perspective in combination with all the changes that Keo did, elevated the movie to a whole other level. Suddenly everything made more sense, you could see the purpose behind all the characters and the plot was evolving naturally. Be that as it may, unfortunately, this edit did not salvage the movie for me. It is not the editor's fault however, it just seems that nothing can be done for me to really like this film. I did enjoy this edit to a degree, but that's it.
Also, there was another big problem for me and it is something that most reviewers praise. The music..With the exception of some chant like themes (don't know if they are Keo's choice though or from the original), I was annoyed by the music. It was too loud, too on the nose and too often used, it really took me out of the moment.
Other than that, I can't recommend it enough! If you found the original film at least ok or fine and you don't mind the choice of music in this edit, I guarantee you it will be your go-to version of the movie from now on! For me, I'm just done with Eternals..
Thank you Wakeupkeo for all your hard work and thanks to anyone who read my review!
User Review
Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
P
Overall rating
9.8
Audio/Video Quality
10.0
Visual Editing
10.0
Audio Editing
8.0
Narrative
10.0
Enjoyment
10.0
First, a couple of things:
1. This review contains spoilers for the movie (duh) and the specific changes made to the film by Wakeupkeo.
2. For context, I'm not a filmmaker of any kind. Not as a hobby or a profession. I have written comics for fun and very little profit, so I know a something about story, and I enjoy books and videos about the making of movies, but at the end of the day I'm really a layman when it comes to all that.
So...
I checked out this edit because of what Wakeupkeo's stated was their intention on IFDB. The Apostasy Edit delivers on everything that was promised. Wakeupkeo has centered (in their words) "illustrating the sense of loss and disorientation that happens once that religious mission has no meaning".
In the original version of the film puts a lot of obstacles in its way. It struggles to convey theme and follow the characters. The main cause of this is the non-chronological structure. I can't say for sure what Chloé Zhao intended by structuring the movie this way, but my guess is to keep focus on the characters and their relationships throughout the majority of the runtime of the movie, rather than confining it to the beginning? That makes sense on paper, but when you have a cast of ten (at least) new characters, I think there's a certain amount of pragmatism you have to surrender to if you're going to also be working with such deep themes.
Right off the jump, the Apostasy edit fixes this. Wakeupkeo takes roughly the first half of the famously long exposition dump from the middle of the movie and places it at the beginning. No more big blocks of text. I can't believe how much this single change set the movie up for success. Instead of reading a not particularly interesting prologue, we get most of the same info in the form of a really exciting visual sequence that shows instead of tells.
Then, the edit uses the flashback scenes that are sprinkled throughout the original movie to set the table at the beginning of this version. Within 20 minutes or so (just a guess, I didn't time it out or anything) we have a good idea of who each character is, what they want, and their relationships to each other. Give the original some credit, too. All of this is buried in there, but it took some real skill to bring it all out.
Music is a huge part of this version of the film. Wakeupkeo has added tons of needle drop cues. The songs are well chosen to set the mood of the scenes where they appear. There's a certain "on the nose" feeling to the original score in certain places that fails to evoke the sense of grandeur that it aspires to. The visuals are usually enough to convey what needs to be conveyed without gilding the lily with and overwrought score.
Don't get me wrong. The movie hasn't been turned into a rock opera or a series of music videos. Wakeupkeo has left the score when it's needed, particularly in the third act. The addition of the new music vs. the scenes that retain the score makes the tone feel balanced. I also really enjoy the "angelic chanting" that Wakeupkeo added for certain scenes. That actually does add a lot of gravitas.
The new music also pulls previously unfocused sequences together. The action scenes in particular have been given new life, momentum, and continuity.
Like I mentioned before, the big exposition dump in the middle of the movie as been cut in two. The second part, where Arishem reveals to Cersi what the Eternals really are, isn't tedious, and doesn't overwhelm the audience. Instead, it's intriguing and exciting, as I imagine it was intended.
The new title cards are another helpful signpost that guides us through the Eternals' journey. This goes hand in hand with restructuring the movie to play out chronologically. It's the same idea. There are many characters and relationships to keep straight in the movie, so it works best to streamline the other things to make room in the audience's brain. For a movie like this (a Marvel movie with ten new characters that also dips its toes into deep and new-for-Marvel themes) it feels much more appropriate to guide the audience along the Eternals' spiritual journey with a stronger hand. Its like telling the viewer "okay, heads up, lets see how each character handles this stage of loss." The names that Wakeupkeo chose for the section names are perfect guideposts. (Are these titles taken from an existing philosophical idea? If it's an original concept, holy shit.) We really do see these stages play out. It's not a gimmick. Wakeupkeo was able to pick these themes out of the original film and organize them in a way that brings everything together nicely.
All those changes are huge, and obviously alter the viewing experience in ways that anyone will instantly pick up on. What isn't quite as obvious but becomes very clear when you look at the listed changes are all of the tiny well-considered cuts that really make things flow so well. It really is my favorite part of the edit. Huge improvement. The biggest flaw with most of the latest Marvel movies is very oddball editing that can add up to a somewhat slapdash feeling throughout. That's not something I would normally be able to detect on my own, but it's been pointed out to me enough that it actually has started bugging me. Here - in virtually every single scene - the small edits that Wakeupkeo made take the movie from "serviceable" to "excellent" and everything really rolls along so nicely. Great attention to detail and super impressive skill at play.
But, there were a few small things that didn't work for me. Really small things:
During fight scenes, the music ducks in and out very quickly when loud sound or dialogue comes in. For example, a Deviant knocks Ikaris to the ground. The music ducks to highlight the sound of the impact, the comes back up to normal level very quickly, then ducks very quickly again when Ikaris hits the ground and shouts. (I just made that example up - it's not an actual moment in the film. Just an example.) It would be less distracting if the music didn't return between those two beats of the fight. I think some adjustments to the settings on the compressor (or whatever tool was used to do the ducking) would fix that.
Just my preference, but I think adding music to the Hiroshima scene took away from the impact of the situation and Brian Tyree Henry's performance. All the other new additions to the music work.
The font choice for the text that introduces each "stage" doesn't match the aesthetic of the rest of the movie. Something more understated would have been better.
Related to that, showing the title of the movie is usually something Marvel saves for the end. Showing at the beginning and the end, I wasn't a fan of. Not really important except it helps the movie feel like a true part of the MCU. But a 1/10 on the scale of stuff that actually matters.
Overall, this is without a doubt superior to the official cut. I really like the movie anyway, so I might not be the toughest to convert, but the major problems I did have with it (besides the lack of chemistry between Richard Madden and Jemma Chan) are pretty much fixed. Not only that, but Wakeupkeo has made so many improvements that bring out additional layers in the story and characters. I can't recommend this highly enough for both fans of the original and people who had bigger problems with it. I can't recommend it enough.
1. This review contains spoilers for the movie (duh) and the specific changes made to the film by Wakeupkeo.
2. For context, I'm not a filmmaker of any kind. Not as a hobby or a profession. I have written comics for fun and very little profit, so I know a something about story, and I enjoy books and videos about the making of movies, but at the end of the day I'm really a layman when it comes to all that.
So...
I checked out this edit because of what Wakeupkeo's stated was their intention on IFDB. The Apostasy Edit delivers on everything that was promised. Wakeupkeo has centered (in their words) "illustrating the sense of loss and disorientation that happens once that religious mission has no meaning".
In the original version of the film puts a lot of obstacles in its way. It struggles to convey theme and follow the characters. The main cause of this is the non-chronological structure. I can't say for sure what Chloé Zhao intended by structuring the movie this way, but my guess is to keep focus on the characters and their relationships throughout the majority of the runtime of the movie, rather than confining it to the beginning? That makes sense on paper, but when you have a cast of ten (at least) new characters, I think there's a certain amount of pragmatism you have to surrender to if you're going to also be working with such deep themes.
Right off the jump, the Apostasy edit fixes this. Wakeupkeo takes roughly the first half of the famously long exposition dump from the middle of the movie and places it at the beginning. No more big blocks of text. I can't believe how much this single change set the movie up for success. Instead of reading a not particularly interesting prologue, we get most of the same info in the form of a really exciting visual sequence that shows instead of tells.
Then, the edit uses the flashback scenes that are sprinkled throughout the original movie to set the table at the beginning of this version. Within 20 minutes or so (just a guess, I didn't time it out or anything) we have a good idea of who each character is, what they want, and their relationships to each other. Give the original some credit, too. All of this is buried in there, but it took some real skill to bring it all out.
Music is a huge part of this version of the film. Wakeupkeo has added tons of needle drop cues. The songs are well chosen to set the mood of the scenes where they appear. There's a certain "on the nose" feeling to the original score in certain places that fails to evoke the sense of grandeur that it aspires to. The visuals are usually enough to convey what needs to be conveyed without gilding the lily with and overwrought score.
Don't get me wrong. The movie hasn't been turned into a rock opera or a series of music videos. Wakeupkeo has left the score when it's needed, particularly in the third act. The addition of the new music vs. the scenes that retain the score makes the tone feel balanced. I also really enjoy the "angelic chanting" that Wakeupkeo added for certain scenes. That actually does add a lot of gravitas.
The new music also pulls previously unfocused sequences together. The action scenes in particular have been given new life, momentum, and continuity.
Like I mentioned before, the big exposition dump in the middle of the movie as been cut in two. The second part, where Arishem reveals to Cersi what the Eternals really are, isn't tedious, and doesn't overwhelm the audience. Instead, it's intriguing and exciting, as I imagine it was intended.
The new title cards are another helpful signpost that guides us through the Eternals' journey. This goes hand in hand with restructuring the movie to play out chronologically. It's the same idea. There are many characters and relationships to keep straight in the movie, so it works best to streamline the other things to make room in the audience's brain. For a movie like this (a Marvel movie with ten new characters that also dips its toes into deep and new-for-Marvel themes) it feels much more appropriate to guide the audience along the Eternals' spiritual journey with a stronger hand. Its like telling the viewer "okay, heads up, lets see how each character handles this stage of loss." The names that Wakeupkeo chose for the section names are perfect guideposts. (Are these titles taken from an existing philosophical idea? If it's an original concept, holy shit.) We really do see these stages play out. It's not a gimmick. Wakeupkeo was able to pick these themes out of the original film and organize them in a way that brings everything together nicely.
All those changes are huge, and obviously alter the viewing experience in ways that anyone will instantly pick up on. What isn't quite as obvious but becomes very clear when you look at the listed changes are all of the tiny well-considered cuts that really make things flow so well. It really is my favorite part of the edit. Huge improvement. The biggest flaw with most of the latest Marvel movies is very oddball editing that can add up to a somewhat slapdash feeling throughout. That's not something I would normally be able to detect on my own, but it's been pointed out to me enough that it actually has started bugging me. Here - in virtually every single scene - the small edits that Wakeupkeo made take the movie from "serviceable" to "excellent" and everything really rolls along so nicely. Great attention to detail and super impressive skill at play.
But, there were a few small things that didn't work for me. Really small things:
During fight scenes, the music ducks in and out very quickly when loud sound or dialogue comes in. For example, a Deviant knocks Ikaris to the ground. The music ducks to highlight the sound of the impact, the comes back up to normal level very quickly, then ducks very quickly again when Ikaris hits the ground and shouts. (I just made that example up - it's not an actual moment in the film. Just an example.) It would be less distracting if the music didn't return between those two beats of the fight. I think some adjustments to the settings on the compressor (or whatever tool was used to do the ducking) would fix that.
Just my preference, but I think adding music to the Hiroshima scene took away from the impact of the situation and Brian Tyree Henry's performance. All the other new additions to the music work.
The font choice for the text that introduces each "stage" doesn't match the aesthetic of the rest of the movie. Something more understated would have been better.
Related to that, showing the title of the movie is usually something Marvel saves for the end. Showing at the beginning and the end, I wasn't a fan of. Not really important except it helps the movie feel like a true part of the MCU. But a 1/10 on the scale of stuff that actually matters.
Overall, this is without a doubt superior to the official cut. I really like the movie anyway, so I might not be the toughest to convert, but the major problems I did have with it (besides the lack of chemistry between Richard Madden and Jemma Chan) are pretty much fixed. Not only that, but Wakeupkeo has made so many improvements that bring out additional layers in the story and characters. I can't recommend this highly enough for both fans of the original and people who had bigger problems with it. I can't recommend it enough.
User Review
Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
B
Overall rating
10.0
Audio/Video Quality
10.0
Visual Editing
10.0
Audio Editing
10.0
Narrative
10.0
Enjoyment
10.0
The edit was really well done, and some scenes I really really liked, while some I did like less, however, I realize when you take specific things out of the storyline, this would cause a disruption and probably some holes in the logic. I try to say things without spoiling anything. This movie must have been really hard to edit since there are several characters in the movie with their own story arcs as well as their own endings in the same movie, so much respect to the editor!
User Review
Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
G
Overall rating
8.6
Audio/Video Quality
9.0
Visual Editing
10.0
Audio Editing
9.0
Narrative
9.0
Enjoyment
8.0
Short review - Great edit of a not so great movie. I still don't completely enjoy the movie, but it's far better than the original. The narrative is really improved here, and just overall a better experience.
I'm not sure if it's because I downloaded the lower quality file or if it's with the 4k version as well but the audio quality wasn't the best. I'll have to download that version and compare. I did enjoy the added songs, and didn't notice them too much except for the Tool song. Though I really enjoyed having it in there.
I'm not sure if it's because I downloaded the lower quality file or if it's with the 4k version as well but the audio quality wasn't the best. I'll have to download that version and compare. I did enjoy the added songs, and didn't notice them too much except for the Tool song. Though I really enjoyed having it in there.
A