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

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 is 100% the right way to watch this movie! EDIT: Forget everything I said about the nuke and whatnot, DonkeyKonga specifically created a no-nuke edit and it is fantastic! They literally edited physical mouth-movement out of scenes to make the nuke removal work, and I never would have noticed if they hadn't specifically mentioned it. All the other edits are tighter, the story is more fun, and the movie is back on my list of "Indiana Jones films that I'll show my kids one day"!

Great, great work, and this is a 10/10 edit for me now.
Highly recommended, and DonkeyKonga Forever!

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 watched Crystal Skull at the cinema and was fairly disappointed - I thought the theme of Roswell/McCarthy Red Scare Era was appropriate but there was far too much silliness throughout the film.

Thankfully this edit cuts all the bits I didn’t like and has generally tightened up the entire movie - it now scoots along like one of the original trilogy, and it’s gone from a film I was never going to watch again to one that I have watched (and enjoyed) twice now.

The editing is almost flawless and I think a first time viewer would be hard-pressed to see the joins if they’d never watched the original. My only two “hmmmm” moments are at the tail end of the CIA interview where Indy asks what he is being accused of - his looking up just before the agents say he is a person of interest doesn’t match the previous shot - and the jungle car chase just prior to the crash - two vehicles swap positions and Mutt suddenly appears in a vehicle footwell - it’s a minor thing and much more preferable to CGI monkey vine swinging!

---EDIT: I've just watched the new cut (the Nuke version) and both these minor issues have been addressed - the jungle sequence now flows much better and I'd be hard pressed to point at any cuts in the interrogation scene. A few of us watched it on a movie night and the two who'd seen it at the cinema said it was much, much better ("I wish I'd seen this version at the pictures") and the one who hadn't said they'd enjoyed it. Top work from DonkeyKonga! Next time I'll watch it on my Quest 3 virtual cinema, it deserves to be on the big screen :D---

Having recently watched the Dial of Destiny, I think this edit still works with regards to Mutt & Indy - although all explicit mentions of parentage have been removed, by the end of the film it’s obvious that Indy has a strong bond with Mutt and what he says in the fifth film still makes sense.

Great edit, and one that I will be showing to a few friends who didn’t like the theatrical release - I’m glad I gave the film a second chance curtesy of DonkeyKonga, and I hope it works for my friends too!

(Watched using Quest 2 virtual cinema app “Skybox VR Player”)

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!