Paradise

I have to start off by first saying that I was blown away by this edit, and that it is a much deserving of the Favourite Edit of the Month win. The way that these two narratives have been interwoven is phenomenal, and it shows just how talented of an editor JobWillins is. I applaud you!

I watched the film in 1080p, and the attention to quality is perfected in terms of video and audio; it is as crisp and clear as I would have expected from the editor of Derelict.

In terms of visual editing, there is little evidence of any jarring cuts throughout - the only moments you pick up on are the time jumps, which are expertly edited around so they do not feel rushed. The inclusion of the deleted scenes/marketing material is just brilliant, and are used to reinforce the themes well. A particular favourite of mine was the deleted scene of the Prometheus crew, where the inclusion of 'Take Me Home, Country Roads' is added to setup the next scene and create a stronger connection between the two films. The initial usage of titles to aid jumping between the two time frames is done well, and sticks around just long enough to reinforce the narratives. As many have already mentioned, the intercutting during the Infection scene was flawless and easily one of the high points of the editing; it just works visually as well as thematically (Shaw and Oram's grief running parallel made so much sense). Overall, the editing has great pace and the rearranging of scenes has strengthened the narrative.

The audio editing is incredible, with the scores of each film playing off each other very well. JobWillins has edited it in a way that weaves between the leitmotifs seamlessly and manages to ensure both stories have their own identity. Adding music to scenes where there initially was none assuredly amplifies the emotion in those moments, and takes a lot of the awkwardness out of the original films (Covenant most of all). Similar to what some have mentioned, the main issue I have with the audio is the choice of The Beatles in the soundtrack - however it is only with the closing song. Their appearances for the most part are used very well (I would've believed they were always there if I hadn't seen the original films), and I loved how the shower scene is edited. As we hear The Beatles play for the first time whilst Walter is on screen, for some reason I began associating it with his character (as I associate the classical music with David), so when another of their tracks is played by David at the end it felt somewhat out of character to me. Especially since the setup of the Wagner track didn't pay off. This is just a personal gripe though. During the final scene, the background effects from the audio (Bluray extras) seems to be distracting somewhat; I think this could be fixed if you intercut more of the clip with the last scene, like how it started.

Narratively, the circularity of starting and ending the film with David watching over the cryo pods was a stroke of genius - something I only picked up on when flicking through quickly a second time. The intercutting of the white room conversation with Weyland is perfectly used at key moments; I feel like they set up the themes of the following acts clearly. It is done so well that it feels like this is how they should have been edited in the original cut. JobWillins cuts out all of the spectacle and Hollywood fluff, leaving only essential scenes. This helps the pace move along so that the story doesn't drag. The only criticism I have of the narrative is what carries over from the original films. Primarily some of the goofy unrealistic CGI effects (Covenant especially); I feel like there are moments where we could see even less of the Alien and other creatures to leave as much to the imagination as possible. There are some moments that work very well, such as the added cut of Walter seemingly killing David, although I feel like it could be strengthened by the removal of the shot where he leaves the temple and looks back. There are a few moments like this but it is nothing that ruins the film; these are tiny smudges on a masterpiece.

Overall, I am hugely impressed by the film. It feels like it does justice to David's character and Michael Fassbender's performance(s); we get to see his motivations and what impact they ultimately have. JobWillins re-structures the film into what feels more like a character study and I love it. I enjoyed it so much that I am preparing to watch his previous edit 'Man of Tomorrow', which is a big deal considering I dislike the original films it combines. Great job! I can't wait to see what is next.

I usually don't like this sort of merging of two separate stories into one feature. However, using David as the beacon and ignoring a lot of the unneeded material from both sources has surprisingly created an exciting story with a complex narrative that is still not too hard to follow and make sense out of it.
I really like the visual editing in this one. It keeps the pacing consistent enough and is done very creatively. And though the extensive cutting, there was still some development of characters present within the final product. David obviously is the focus. The short clips that preceded to the release of Alien: Covenant also helped and were wisely placed within the story.

The quality is top notch and the visual and audio editing is seamless.

The infection sequence inter-cutting between the two films is well done but not easy to follow.
Keeping track of two different crews, each with its own members, relations and journey can be quite exhausting.

The fanedit is great and the best edit of the month reward is well deserved. Good job Job!!

EDIT: watched it again and loved it even more. My enjoyment score is up to the 10

This edit takes two (at best) mediocre prequel films and constructs one new narrative out of them in a way that creates a terrific film, in my opinion. The editing was seamless and the choices made brought out David's motivations and the overall themes much better than the two separate films did. Some other reviewers seemed confused by the time jumps, but I found that they were utilized quite well. I never found myself confused by anything, nor was any of it jarring. I didn't notice anything that would have required me to have seen the original films.

I loved how you used the conversation between Weyland and David in the piano room. I also loved that you had Vickers die before she could even get off the ship, completely avoiding the infamous "running in a straight line" bit altogether.

One piece of constructive criticism, though...While I thought the ending music choice was fine, if this were my edit, I would have the end song David listens to be a little more haunting...using "Take Me Home, Country Roads" by John Denver. As I said, this by no means detracts from the edit, but it would have shown that despite his actions, David still has complex feelings about Shaw.

I actually think this will replace both films for me. Great work!

'Paradise' totally saves what I think are two visually stunning Blu-rays in my collection suffering from an overarching vagueness and the inexplicable antics of the crews with their cliched foolhardyness, incompetance and inglorious bastardy. The fantastic editorial here sweeps out the worst of this and turns what is left into impactful moments of intrigue. Bringing in an overarchingly vivid mainstay to the previously broken stories. Polishing off may be necessary on the odd dice and blend. Its heavy on the editing though. This may be as good as it gets without stock footage to string things out with. One really has to concentrate to pick out the nicks. And with the engageing plot weaving that highlights the best parts of the originals in the best ways the viewing is fully enjoyable.

It might be a good idea to offer some further textual explanations of the tooings and froings between Prometheus and Covenant but this itself will be a gripe for some (myself included) as it cant be done for the parts where the switching gets complex. Therefore it might well be left as is for the sake of consistency. It starts out a bit confusing with only the oringal mission info blurbs and some very brief notes which kind of pass by subconsciously. I actually quite liked the fact I was getting a bit lost as it adds a puzzle aspect. Its a mystery unravelling. It all pays off beautifully in the end!!

It was my first time watching a fanedit actually and already was as good as an edit of those movies can be I think.
Considering how mediocre (and disappointing) they are, i's not a small task to make a good fusion.

Fantastic job, did not feel the almost 3hrs of runtime. Audio/Visual quality is top notch. Essential viewing in my opinion, and the only way to watch Prometheus and Covenant for me now. Original material can't be totally saved, but you still did a damn good job, can't go back to the theatrical cuts. Thanks.