Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of The Crystal Skull: The Race With The Devil Cut

So, where to start.

Perhaps at the beginning, as I still remember the disappointment when I left the cinema after watching (what was then) Indy's last outing. There were some good moments (it is Spielberg, after all), but most of it was really, really bad. I'll spare you all the details, as I know you all know it. For years I have been searching for a good fan edit, and I think I've found one!

To start with, the color grading change means the world. As the movie now looks like the Indiana Jones of old.

The cuts are also well done, from trimming the fridge scene (no, it cannot be avoided), Mack's triple agent nonsense, to most jarring of all, cutting all Mutt's escapades in the jungle (goodbye vines jumping, goodbye monkeys). I am a bit bummed that Mutt being Indy's son, is removed. Had no issues with that one. And that there are fewer Marion scenes. (well, I like the actress and the chemistry between the two). But in the chat with the editor, I realized that keeping this subplot would entail snake rope, so no, good riddance.

All in all, this edit is almost perfect, and it really makes the story flow more naturally; it keeps a degree of campiness but removes virtually all of the nonsense. Now it is actually a pleasure to watch the movie! And that s the highest compliment I can give.

From now on, every time I re-watch the original trilogy, I will re-watch this version. Hopefully, Donkey Konga will make a fan edit for Indy 5, as it desperately needs it.

Warmly recommending it to all Indy fans!

I saw CRYSTAL SKULL in theaters and, like many, was pretty disappointed. I remember rewatching the trilogy around 2011 and I thought I'd give the movie another chance. Unfortunately, I was bored out of my mind. I hadn't rewatched it since, but with DIAL OF DESTINY around the corner, I thought I'd give it one last chance with one of the many fanedits available.

I'm pleased to say that--shockingly--this was a much more enjoyable experence! The scenes removed help the pacing tremendously and the new HDR grade (from the latest 4K release) does wonders to make it feel closer to the original untouchable three movies.

The edits are for the most part flawless, aside from two moments where I found the removal of dialogue made the result a bit choppy or awkward (when Indy escapes the truck and the very end on top of the flooded temple). Nevertheless, I'm glad I chose this fanedit for what will most likely be my last time watching CRYSTAL SKULL (and I also recommended it to a friend).

I've seen a couple edits of Crystal Skull now, but this easily one of the most successful. It seamlessly removes nearly all of the worst elements (or, in the case of Mac, minimizes them as much as possible) while keeping most of what worked. The only exceptions would be that removing the entirety of Mutt being Indy's son subplot. While I understand that many didn't like this idea, it is nearly impossible to remove it without some edits being unavoidably obvious to the viewer, particularly during the coversation at the back of the truck and at the end of the film. Aside from that minor issue, I had a blast watching this edit and would recommend it to anyone looking to revisit all the films. We all all know the inevitable Dial of Destiny edits are coming ;)

This edit wound up being a somewhat odd viewing experience for me, since I couldn't help but mentally compare it to njvc's edit "Raiders of the Lost Skull" more than the theatrical edition of "Kingdom of the Crystal Skull".

My overall impression is that it feels like a sort of halfway point between "Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" and "Raiders of the Lost Skull", being better than the former but not as good as the latter. As far as I can recall, "Raiders of the Lost Skull" makes all of the improvements that this edit does (other than removing references to Mutt being Indy's son), as well as quite a few more. However, I did like that this edit kept Mac yelling "You don't know him!", a line that I find funny but which was cut in njvc's edit.

In my opinion, the tweaks to the nuclear bomb scene still don't save it. Indy still appears far too close to the bomb to survive, and even the shortened version of the flying through the air and flipping around looks like something that would seriously injure if not kill him.

The video quality was good overall, with good grain detail and color. The audio also sounded good, and the new song at the beginning was a nice touch.

EDIT: DonkeyKonga has since made an updated version of the edit that removes an editing glitch that I mentioned in an earlier version of this review.

Let me just state that I have seen so many cuts of this film that its hard to differentiate them after a while.

- That said I watched this with the Race with the Devil musical cue. The song wasn't any better or worse than the original Elvis song but I did find that when the American teens get the Soviet driver to race them, the song's solo should have been matched up for this moment. Other than being a little quiet, it wasn't bad.

- For the most part edits were invisible and a lot of it worked well. Hence I really don't have much to really praise or deride. You cut out the Roswell body in the tent and you can't even notice. Which is how it should be. I think its removal helps reduce confusion at all the alien's being superfluous distant cousins and etc. And its removal was invisible.

- The color regrade made every thing look like it was filmed entirely under an overcast sky. Which I liked. Wouldn't really call it the best visual style as it was a little dark at times, but otherwise looked good and was consistent.

- Right before the jungle chase, I like how you used Mutt's "you're not my father" bit and how you repurposed his confused look of hearing news of his actual father, and how you repurposed that shot as a son's concern as he watches his mother get gagged. Although the editing to cover up Indy's "they weren't you honey" ended up not having a lot of room to breathe.

- Spalko's close up reaction as her jeep flies through the air before running over Indy and the gang's vehicle (at the beginning of the big damn ants scene) kept her floating in the air a little too much for my taste. There were a few moments in this scene where the sound fx dropped out as well.

- Something that bothered me as well, was that Indy reiterates how Oxley says "three times it drops" but then they clearly only "drop" twice.

- I like cutting what you did at the bottom of the pyramid stairwell after they run down the receding stone steps, but Mutt states that he dropped and lost the skull. Then they start looking for it. But then you just cut to the next scene.

- I noticed that you kept the temple natives living within the stone walls. A neutral choice in my opinion. But you kind of cut away quickly in some attempt to downplay this narrative choice. Almost in an attempt to please those who hate this idea and those who find it bearable. Which I don't think really works. It's one or the other in my book, as finding a middle ground just makes it weird/unnecessary.

- The ending atop the pyramid also was a little choppy.

Conclusion: was it better than the theatrical cut? Yes. Would I recommend this to others or rewatch it again? Yes. It's not perfect but it's worth watching.