Heavy Star Wars: Episode III

Continuing my ventures through the Heavy Star Wars edits, we arrive at Episode III. After my "ehh, okay" feelings on Heavy Star Wars II, this one is a massive improvement, and a nice return to form!

With the exception of Marvin Gaye's "Sexual Healing," the song choices are back in full swing, and I can totally imagine a lot of them being played in the film, Heavy Metal (And for those who have seen the film, Journey's Open Arms is played at the end of this edit. A nice little easter egg that I appreciate).

My only big issue from the edit is that the ending is a little too abrupt, and I feel like I would have enjoyed it more if it had been extended. But with that said, I'm still glad I saw this, and it's a lot more fun than the previous entry. Heavy Star Wars III is a nice return to form, and a (mostly) worthy take on the darkest and best film of the prequels. Now I want to see how the heavy versions of the original trilogy will compare with these three.

This was a pretty enjoyable Star Wars music party. I dug almost all the tracks and I thought the film was cut down nicely. There were a handful of audio cues I felt could have been handled better, in terms of reducing background noise/music and smoothing out some transitions between songs and dialogue. And I wasn't a huge fan of the ridiculous Frink style sight gags, but they were harmless.

Overall, I recommend this to SW rock fans.

Watched the movie. Overall reaction. I liked it.

Note: I have since watched V3 of this edit fixing all previous known audio issues.

The Good:

1. Unique choice of music. Yes, very much in the vein of Heavy Metal.
I would have preferred the use of Frankenstein for the Darth Vader rebuild
instead of Mr. Roboto.

2. Some actions when synched to the music reminded me of Flash Gordon
and the use of Queen's music. (FLASH! ... ah ahhhhhh!)

3. The pacing of the movie was improved a lot.

4. Shows how dialogue can be minimal and still be effective.

The Bad.

1. Not a big fan of the song Sexual Healing. Blah.

Final thoughts - A unique and FUN twist on a known movie. I'm glad I watched it.
I am more likely to re-watch this version then the original. Go figure.

Audio/Visual Quality: Evidently sourced from the Blu-Ray, this ~1080p MP4 version is presented in the film’s original aspect ratio, sans letterboxing, at the original frame rate. Visually, this edit looks spot-on. Minimal signs of compression. The audio is presented in a stereo mix, which allows the wide assortment of music to be enjoyed in its original format. There are instances of the original John Williams music being partially audible in some short segments, but it is likely impossible to have been removed entirely. This kind of music bleed is eliminated as often as would seem possible.

Visual Editing: A very good first effort! No flash flames, no jump cuts, no ghosting. There are frequent cropped shots, designed to create a certain rhythm to the music. There’s also a few simple sight gags that are well-executed.

Audio Editing: As previously mentioned, there are moments where the original John Williams music clashes with the new stuff, but these are short, never lasting more than a minute. Selectively muted sections and isolated dialogue / sfx are used wherever possible. The choice in music is always in tempo with the corresponding footage, and occasionally exhibits some lyrical connection to what’s occurring.

Narrative: It never really feels like the film Heavy Metal to me. At least, beyond the notion of Science Fiction combined with rock music. And even then, I found the titular genre to be under represented. There’s probably more hard rock and psychedelic rock in there than heavy metal proper. Even a bit of r&b and rap thrown in as well. It all fits, but I feel this project may have worked better with a different title / stated concept. The editor has also removed some bits and pieces of the film, but nothing of consequence – the plot still stands up just fine, the action is intact. Some particularly goofy or awkward moments of the original film have been removed, but don’t think for an instant this is a humorless project. There’s some sight and sound gags created that should amuse many viewers. Some wouldn’t be out of place in TV’s Frink’s Ridiculous series. Unlike Frink’s cleaner style, however, there is one moment that is particularly raunchy. That isn’t to say I disliked it – it left me in stitches! However, I would say that this edit is for (im)mature audiences only because of it.


Enjoyment: John Williams’s music is so intertwined with the movies that an alternate score is a difficult task, but this editor has done an admirable job. The music choices may seem odd at first glance (first listen?) but the scenes chosen to accompany each, as well as the tempo set by the editing, it all works rather well. I don’t think this was quite as effective as the likes of Conan: Man of War or Pulp Empire, but I did have an enjoyable experience with this edit. All in all, this was a terrific first submission! Technically competent, and with an artistic vision. I expect more good things from the editor in the future.