Star Wars: Episode III - Labyrinth Of Evil

All of the prequel edits by HAL9000 are brilliantly done and my favorite of those that I've seen. This honestly beats out every other cut of these movies by far.

This movie in particular does a great job of creating a more believable and troubled Anakin as he finally succumbs to the dark side. Palpatine feels much more like a master manipulator, the jedi feel more naive and less idiotic, Padme gets to be a character, Obi-Wan and Anakin's relationship feels more natural, and the politics are at the forefront whre I think they belong in this trilogy. While I know not everyone will enjoy it, the final scene of this movie (no spoilers) is great in my opinion and a very creative idea. A fantastic end to this new definitive version of the prequels.

This is amazing, I enjoyed this movie before but now I love it. I think that Anakin Skywalker descent to the dark side being motivated from more of a political view is great. Also love how Padme did not die at the to fix a plot hole created by this movie. However I wish some dialogue was kept from Palpatine I feel you cut more than was necessary, also I wished you kept the high ground line. Other than those two minor complaints I think this was an amazing edit. Job well done.

I think that the most improved film in the prequel trilogy of Hal9000's edits is Attack of the Clones. But by a landslide, episode 3 is the best one in his trilogy. I truly believe this to be a genuinely great Star Wars movie. I think that in his prequel trilogy, episodes 1 and 2 go from bad to enjoyable. But with episode 3, I'd say it goes from good to great with this fanedit :) I'll just list off the amazing things done to episode 3 by Hal:

-He restructured the narrative so that Anakin experiences his political/philosophical motivations for joining the dark side first and THEN we see him have his vision of Padme dying. This makes his fall to the dark side more believable and logical. It provides a more solid foundation upon which all of his brutal actions take place. So when Anakin begins murdering Jedi in this fanedit, as an audience member it is far more logical because of the reordering of some scenes.
-He reinstated the subplot of deleted scenes with Padme and her fellow senators. This adds political tension between her and Anakin and gives Padme something to do for this third entry in the prequel trilogy.
-Anakin never murders children. This makes his fall more gradual and makes Padme look like less of an idiot. Great change.
-All awful dialogue/scenes are removed. This speaks for itself. It helps quicken the pace of the movie and improves the experience.

But for all these great things I disagree with Hal on one decision he made in the end. That is of keeping Padme alive. I totally understand where him and many other faneditors are coming from. It completely solves the plot hole in Return of the Jedi. But it brings about issues that I can't ignore. The addition of footage from a separate film is distracting because of the distinct color grading differences. It also has us lose the tragic irony of Anakin killing exactly who he was trying to save. And we lose the awesome moment of Padme taking her last breath and Vader taking his first. Again, this ain't a problem with the edit. It's done very well, I just disagree.

But in conclusion, this edit is an absolute home run. I really enjoy popping this in and watching such an improved version.

I wholeheartedly recommend Hal9000's trilogy of Star Wars prequel edits. The editor does such a good job with the material that I honestly enjoyed all three movies. Trimming a lot of the idiotic, childish humor and shortening overlong battle sequences the films are more tight and show a kernel of greatness in the muck and mire of the prequels. Especially redeemed is the character of Anakin, who comes off less as a whiny brat and more of a tragic figure. Great job in every aspect!

I watched this immediately after Hal 9000's version of Ep. II, which I thought managed to make a film that was simply a little dull out a film that was absolutely awful. A very substantial accomplishment, but here he is given a lot more to work with, and he does not disappoint. Labyrinth of Evil (aside from the title) is an absolute tour-de-force that achieves everything the original did and goes beyond that to make a film which is genuinely superb. My few concerns when reading what edits he had made were laid to rest - the scene with the younglings is gone, but it's still very clear he killed them. Subtlety is the name of the game here, allowing Anakin's transformation much more finesse and making every character more interesting and effectively portrayed. I loved how Palpatine just straight-up *lied* to Vader about Padme dying - this is just as twisted of an ending and it completely works!

Overall, everything about this edit looks completely professional - the only thing that gives it away as an unofficial cut is the fact that it's so much better than one would expect from Lucas! Even the changes I was hesitant about are executed so well as to completely sell me on them. Highly recommended!