Star Trek 10 “Through A Glass Darkly”

Great edit, well done! So much has been removed and the compact result feels like a really good two-parter like "The Best of Both Worlds" or something. Some quick comments:

- There's one transitional scene where the enterprise goes to warp with no sound effects, that was a bit odd

- Maybe I'm not remembering, but I feel like Troi had very few lines up to the point she was suddenly saving the day by sensing the Reman. It felt a little out of nowhere for her to be able to do this. I assume there's an explanation for it in the unedited film, but I suspect it's related to the mind rape scene and therefore I can live without it.

- Data having the transporter prototype on him didn't bother me and I could have done without the flashback, but I admit I tend to be pretty oblivious to plot holes. The flashback was tastefully done and mostly works. And others are right in saying there'd be some pretty big plot holes without it.

- I did not like the ending at all, even barring the obvious quality difference. I would have just ended the movie on the zoom out ship shot right after riker says he "can't remember the tune." The added deleted scenes after that I felt took away from the gravity of losing Data. Closing on the remembering Data scene is poignant and I think it would work really well. Not the traditional happy ending we'd hope for, especially for the last TNG-era movie, but it would have real depth.

I haven't mentioned much technical stuff and I don't plan to--the technical work on this edit is excellent. There were very few moments when I knew I was watching an edit at all. I remember many scenes from the original film and yet have no clue where they belonged. The edit is virtually seemless.

So yeah, a vast improvement over the original! A very watchable, even enjoyable movie now! Personally, I plan to just trim the ending and call it a day. Great work!

Most everything worth saying has already been said in the other reviews. But seriously Bob, great job on editing one of the worst Star Trek films to date. The only other one i hate more is Insurrection. I was a little worried about how the edit would play out based on the cut list. But I have to say you pulled it off almost perfectly. As pointed out in other review's there are some narrative issues with the edit. But the edit added so much positive to the movie that the few negatives it has are not important. This is my go to for this movie now.

Great job Bob

April 5, 2012

I had never watched Nemesis until yesterday. Man that movie was lame.
Thankfully Bob’s edit fixes the vast majority of problems with the pacing. It’s leaner, faster and much more thrilling.
And this is by far, technically speaking, the best Bionic Bob edit yet. All the cuts and transitions were perfectly executed (from what I could tell). Sure, the deleted ending is lower quality, but the content of the scene itself is what mattered to me. The final line of the film really made me smile.

Bravo!

This was a fantastic edit.

I've had it sitting on a disc waiting for me to watch it for some time now, and I just couldn't bring myself to do it. The original film had left such a bad taste in my mouth that it put me off Star Trek for quite a long time.

This edit redeems the original film, and then some.

A lot has been cut, many things have been rearranged. Nearly every cut and nearly every line feels natural and original. The removal of the B4 subplot was well needed and well executed. The inclusion of the new ending was amusing and served the film well.

The picture quality of the newly added deleted ending was significantly below that of the rest of the film. This is a real shame, because otherwise there would be little left to indicate that this wasn't the way the film was originally released.

As several others have pointed out, the flashback was slightly awkward, but it didn't feel unnatural. I've always found flashbacks in films to be slightly mentally jarring, and this one specifically was done as well as any.

The film is much more melancholy than the original, which might turn some viewers off, but I found it to be a fitting fair-well for the crew of the enterprise.

In the end, I was pleased. This was a great edit.

Review by LastSurvivor — April 22, 2012 @ 12:16 pm

BionicBob, probably the most prolific faneditor out there at the moment, brings us his first and maybe only edit on The Next Generation Star Trek franchise in the form of possibly the worst Star Trek film of all, Nemesis. Okay, that dubious honor might actually go to JJ Abrams’ over-rated reboot, but hey, before I start a war let’s get onto Bob’s Through a Glass Darkly ;)

It’s difficult to know where to start with the problems which plague Nemesis. I think Bob actually puts it very well in his “About this Edit” feature, in that here in Stuart Baird was a director who knew little of the Star Trek universe, pandering to the main stars prima donna style requirements within the script to keep a happy ship (dune buggy racing anyone? Data singing? Um, no thanks). Also, what’s evident here is that for the final voyage of TNG cast, there is a distinct lack of that “family” feel which one has come to love and expect from the Trek universe. Perhaps this darker style of Star Trek just doesn’t work? Maybe that’s why I don’t like Abrams’ version too? I digress.

Thankfully, Bob has certainly taken the full blooded fanediting approach here. A massive 32 minutes of footage is ruthlessly cut, leaving us with a fast-paced 82 minutes (about 76 if you take out the incredibly long end-credits) of treachery, deceit, adventure and a chance to see in Shinzon a darker flip-side of our beloved Captain Jean-Luc Picard. The decision to remove the horrible B4 concept is this edit’s most obvious saving grace and it’s executed with some skill. Some reviews have pointed towards the awkward way in which a flashback is inserted to explain the “beaming device” which Data places on Picard, but I take my hat off to Bob here, as he pulls it off perfectly. I’ve seen Bob try and use some flashback-style techniques before, but this is by far his most natural and best attempt.

Of course, trimming Nemesis down to this extent does result in it feeling like a feature-length TV episode and I actually would have liked Bob to have applied the same TV-style fade outs and title sequence which he used so well on his classic Trek edits.

Unfortunately, as impressive and enjoyable as Through A Glass Darkly is, it’s still unable to completely rescue the film. The trimmed wedding scene is still horribly scripted and acted with about as much warmth and sincerity as a wet space blanket. Baird’s direction remains flat (surprising when you consider his overall solid filmography as an editor) and the uninspired performances from nearly all the cast make you wonder if First Contact was but a dream.

Still, some of the scenes between Shinzon and Picard hint at what could have been and the ever reliable Jerry Goldsmith was still able to shine with another impressive music score. The use of the original ending is also a definite improvement, despite the obvious drop in quality, and gives some hope of further adventures with Picard and a new number one.

Audio – would get a solid 9/10. Only when the Enterprise was banking away (the second time) to go into warp did it feel as if the sound was a little out of synch.

Picture quality – 10/10. As good as the original DVD from what I could tell.

Editing – 9/10. Nearly perfect for me, but I’m sure Bob used the same shot of the Enterprise going into warp twice? If I’m wrong, I apologise!

Overall – An excellent attempt to rescue a pretty poor movie, Through A Glass Darkly sees BionicBob at the top of his game. I personally think it’s a difficult challenge to make cuts of some 30 minutes and still manage to have a movie which manages to hold together in its storytelling – but Bob manages it here very well. So, whereas the original movie I would give 5/10, Through a Glass Darkly would receive 7/10. As an overall score for the way in which this was fanedited however, I would give this 9/10.

If this is the final Trek edit for BionicBob, he’s gone out in more style and honor than the TNG cast did on the final day of shooting of Nemesis. :)