Pulp Empire

Fantastic effort. My only criticisms are that you can still faintly hear the Williams music in a few moments, but it's forgivable and I really did not like how the Vader/Luke bespin fight was handled. It felt almost too music video-ish. But it's immediately followed up by the Prequel flashbacks set to Neil Young which might be my favorite moment in the whole thing. It's a very fun watch overall. Captures that exploitation style while still retaining all the substance and gravitas of the core Star Wars story. As someone who's favorite director is Tarantino and who's favorite film is The Empire Strikes Back, my fanboy funny bone was satisfied. Wouldn't mind seeing a Return of the Jedi one? Do the Kill Bill Vol. 2 to this movie's Kill Bill Vol. 1? Not losing sleep over that, but it'd be cool to see.

As a fan of both Tarantino and Star Wars, I found this concept both entertaining and fascinating. It was great to see Empire in a new light, and with such damn style too! Great inclusion of the animated scenes from "Clone Wars", and Vader's montage introduction was stunning (of course, each montage was pretty damn impressive). Soundtrack was great, although I could see one or two songs that Tarantino would never touch himself. This edit is definitely going to stay in my collection!

The opening of this edit really surprised me. Opening a Star Wars movie in medias res is a new one - and it fits the Tarantino style perfectly. I actively felt myself wondering how we got here. Even though we already know, the movie forces you to look at the narrative in a new way. Probably the best opening scene to a fan edit I've seen yet.

The majority of the film is pure QT style. The music choices and editing style are a near perfect match, and provide a take on Empire that's equal parts humorous and legitimately cool. Some portions of the film feature an abundance of slow motion and montage - the purpose appears to be to maintain sync with the musical choices. It may be a tad jarring in places, but the artistry of these sequences is very good. They may disrupt the pacing a but, but in and of themselves, they're quality. The use of title cards and a nonlinear narrative really complete the experience. The way Yoda was handled was nothing short of inspired.

But the real standout of this edit is the ending. The Empire Stikes Back has one of the most powerful endings in the history of cinema. I like this version better. I don't say that lightly. The way in which it is presented here adds a tremendous emotional punch that surpasses the original film. I was amazed. I sat in silence, jaw agape as the credits rolled.

You're doing yourself a disservice if you don't set some time aside to watch Pulp Empire.

Warning: Contains spoilers

I watched the 720p mkv. Video quality is largely excellent.

Complaints: Some of the slow-mo stutters. The slow-mo during the snow speeder part made the snow blur on the lower part of the screen and I think it occurred a few other times. Too much slow-mo. Too many fades. Movie is not changed as much as I expected. For being Tarantinoized, the middle section of the movie is arguably too linear. I didn't like the Ennio Morricone butchering at the end but it wasn't terrible either. Yoda's buzzing wind sound when talking is somewhat distracting, but I'm sure I only noticed it because somebody else mentioned it first.

Positive: I didn't notice any Williams sound leaking in and I listened with headphones. Maybe it wasn't up loud enough to notice? I liked all of the other songs besides the aforementioned Ennio one. New Yoda voice is great. Character montages are great.

Very Positive: I really liked the new cyclical structure to the movie. The structure parallels the father/son dark path theme that njvc highlighted. Luke's path towards the dark side is not really the focus until Jedi, but njvc successfully made it strong in Empire. While Jedi makes it very dark, njvc makes the son following in the father's footsteps more sad or even nostalgic. I really loved the video slideshow with the Neil Young song because of that nostalgic feeling it made. The brief shot of the empty jedi council chambers at sunset is what did it for me. It makes me think of Vader longing for a time long in the past that he can never return to, and here is his son possibly going down the same path. As an added bonus, you get to see Anakin's decent brooding acting without any of his terrible dialogue or delivery.

Conclusion: Music is great, entertaining, probably not changed as much as people expected. I liked the ending for the way it made me feel which is hard to articulate, and I think that is a very good thing. Recommended.

Tarantino and Star Wars are probably my two favorite things and this edit brings them together like never before. Through new music, arrangement, and visuals, the viewer is treated to a version of Empire Strikes Back that evokes the tone of Inglourious Basterds or Reservoir Dogs. The sixth chapter especially deftly mimics the mix of glory and brutality with which combat is portrayed in Tarantino's oeuvre.
Noticeable cons include an excess of slow-mo and some slightly hokey moments when music and situations don't match properly, but by and large this is a top-notch edit.

Overall Rating for me is about 9 stars.