Return of the Jedi: Remastered

Probably the best edited version of ROTJ. Not every cringe moment is cut (kind of depends on how much you like Boba Fett) but enough of them to be a major improvement. This cut strikes a nice balance between purity and revisionism. If you want something more radical, go to Spence...but if you want a version of ROTJ that is both good and true to the original film, I recommend.

Darthrush has truly done god's work here. When reading the cutlist, I did expect an improvement, but just a milder one. What I ended up watching was not a mere improvement. Darthrush has turned the black sheep of the original trilogy into a masterpiece on par with the other two movies. No longer is the whimsical tale of some ewoks messing around on Endor somehow kicking the Empire's ass, but rather the story of the redemption of Darth Vader and the victory of the rebellion against all odds.

The pacing of the movie is the most beneficial of any change. He could have left out most of his other changes he made to this edit, but it still would have been a worthy replacement to the original if the pacing was improved. Needless to say, Darthrush delivered. The movie flows like a dream, just like the other 2 movies, not only on a movie-wide scale, but even many individual scenes flow noticeably better.

My biggest fear going into this edit was the erasure of a lot of Han's scenes. Sure, the butchering his character got in the theatrical release was awful, but I was worried that the complete absence of such an iconic character from the climax of the trilogy would be just as damaging. Thankfully, even when all of the bad Han scenes are cut out, he still has a decent amount of screen time and there isn't a hint of a toned down personality. The Han in this edit is the one we all know and love, not some awkward, unfunny, jealous mess that he originally was.

The screen time given to the worst part of the movie, the ewoks, is handled masterfully. They get *just* enough screen time that they give some flavour and variety to the setting without completely destroying the tone. Making them less cuddly and cute was well done, and they're purpose as an early distraction, without actively fighting back the enemy, is well implemented. Now that their scenes gradually devolve into defeats against the empire, it actually strengthens the narrative, as both the rebellion and our new friends are being brought to their knees.

I can't talk about every little change he made in this edit due to how many there are (though I would love to if given the time), so for the sake of brevity let me just say that every tweak was done in good taste and every single one subtly improves the movie. From the music/audio ques, the tiny trims and even added vfx, the level of subtlety in this edit is masterful to say the least. Even the jumps between theatrical and special edition footage was remarkably tasteful.

To cap this review off, this ending is just perfect. The best of both versions, really. SE music, city celebrations and eyebrow-less vader face, original force ghost intact and 'wesa free' gone. Vader fading away like yoda and obi-wan is not only a great touch on it's own, it's coincidentally been strengthened by the end of Rise of Skywalker.

If you're reading this, please just watch this edit. No longer do I sigh and switch my brain off when I near the end of a star wars marathon. This edit enhances a genuinely mediocre film into a conclusion worthy of a New Hope and Empire Strikes Back. Granted, we all know that Adywan will present a superior edit when he returns from his righteous crusade to perfect this movie, but until that day, this will remain my go-to for this movie.

Let me just say this real quick: OMFG THIS IS THE BEST DAMN EDIT OF ROTJ POSSIBLE AND I AM SO FRIGGIN HAPPY IT EXISTS!!!

Ahem... sorry about that. I just got ahead of myself. Alright, let's do this. darthrush has done the best damn fan edit of Return of the Jedi I've seen, and I've watched maybe 3 or 4 versions. While the Ewoks are still in the movie, they're cut down SIGNIFICANTLY. I mean, short of refilming a bunch of scenes or CGIing the hell out of every Ewok to make them into scary awesome wookies this is the best you can possibly do with it. Also, I really appreciate how darthrush 'fixed' much of Han's clunky dialogue, looks, and actions. I mean, either Harrison Ford was phoning it in or the director was telling Harrison to 'act worse' (or both?) but darthrush did the best he/she could to trim that stuff out, making Han seem much cooler and sharper like in the previous SW films. There are a few Special Edition CGI elements (the Sarlacc) I miss but I'll take losing that to get rid of the stupid Jabba's Palace musical number (FINALLY!!!).

Does this fan edit reach the level of Empire or A New Hope? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA uh still no. HOWEVER, it does make for a SIGNIFICANTLY better cut, the story flowing more smoothly, having less of the kiddie crap, and making Han not a dumbass anymore. Additional wishes wouldn't be possible short of refilming or creating custom CGI, so this makes for a solid deal for me! There's still a few lines that could have been trimmed or re-edited (mainly about Leia's memory of her mom. Did you see Episode III?), but on the whole I have found my new definitive cut of Return of the Jedi. Thanks darthrush!

This was very well done. The film is more serious with most of the cheesy and childish parts significantly reduced. This film is much closer in tone to the other 2 and the second half no longer feels like it was made for 6 year olds. Personally i would have axed even more of the ewoks, they are just so insidiously cute even when they try to be serious. It was good seeing them get their ass kicked tho :) I also personally hate the luke/leia brother/sister thing but until we all get our collective memories wiped i don't think its going anywhere. But these are really criticisms of the source material and scriptwriting, darthrush's remastered edit is far superior to the original and absolutely canes the latest special editions travesty.

Video and audio - are both excellent, incredibly minor mismatches in only a couple of places in the whole film.
Editing - fantastic apart from one or two spots when some added fx edit just didnt quite hit the same quality as the rest of the film.
Narrative - was solid, still easy to follow without the cut scenes and made the tale more engaging.
Enjoyment - 9/10 which is as high as i ever see myself ever giving this film. In fact for it to get 10 there would have to be storntroopers with flamethrowers creating bbg'd ewoks.

Oh boy, has there been a lot of current backlash of ROTJ for awhile now, even since it's initial release back in '83. Who hasn't heard about the common complaints from this film; "the ewoks are too cutsie and don't work as a story telling element, the dialogue is reminiscent of the prequels, Han Solo's character took a massive step down and again serves no purpose..."
Well, while I can see where most complaints come from and agree with some, I still hold this film near to my heart. It has plenty of good elements to overshadow the negative attributes. The 1st and 3rd acts are some of the best SW material we've gotten so far, from the creative practical effects, character development and some pretty deep and mature emotional drama (not to mention the absolute best space battle in the saga), ROTJ is a good, just not great film.
@Darthrush has taken the film once again back into the editing process, to remove most of the genuine problems me and others share giving us a much more solid film. How does this fare? I'm proud to say that this will take a well deserved spot among my SW collection, with it's smooth and careful crafting that removes many problems such as Han and Lando's all too quick patching things up, much of the childish elements and cheesy moments thankfully gone, out of place humor that undercut some more intense and dramatic sequences, most of the uneeded expositional dialogue, and an overall tighter experience that I believe many can and will enjoy.
I do have a few squanders here and there, but nothing that immediately stands out to distract. Once or twice, I could tell when the audio transitioned from one edit to another such as the cutting out of an exposition scene with Vader and the Emperor, and I did notice when a new source popped on screen from color variation and missing film grain (from Harmy's ROTJ). But those are honestly nitpicks in the grand scheme of things, as this is a much better closing to the beloved SW OT.