Shadow Strikes!, The

I hadn't seen the original since it was released and seeing this brought back memories.

In saying that, it was okay. I would prefer colour, and some other reviewer said something about the quality of the B&W which I agree with. It's not entirely consistent.
My feelings of nostalgia are no longer strong now as I see it for the weak movie that it really is.

Bad guy who can control minds steals building and builds bomb. okaaaay then. I could think of more cool things that I'd rather do.

This is a good fanedit, just not a good movie. Thanks for making it.

The Shadow Strikes!
Bionic Bob edit

A slew of retro movies came out in the 90s, doubtless inspired by the Indiana Jones series. Where the Jones’ movies were rooted in action oriented cliffhangers, the 90s era films, Dick Tracy, The Phantom, Rocketeer, and The Shadow, among others, harked back to 30s pulps and comics. I saw the later films theatrically and was disappointed by each. Eventually, I bought Tracy and Shadow on laserdisc for a buck each.

The Shadow could have, and ought to have been, an excellent ride. Alec Baldwin had more screen charisma in his role than Beatty, Zane, Campbell, or much later, Jude Law. He and Penelope Miller also sparked undeniable chemistry, perhaps not romantic, but they definitely worked as a couple. Then there was the set design and costumes, all top notch.

Unfortunately, the movie was undermined by poor writing and sloppy direction. The Shadow seemed aimed at eight year olds, circa 1950s. The narrative was gauzed in fuzzy, misplaced nostalgia. No one bought in, not adults, not teens, not children. By the 90s, we were all much too sophisticated.

Bionic Bob has done a remarkable job, raising the enjoyment several levels. The black and white sheen is perfect, not only with the Manhattan set design, but with characters, especially in gowns and tuxedos. What cuts Bob made, I could not tell, yet the narrative flows quicker and seems less silly than I remember.

The sound mix was a dynamic, often aggressive, two channel LPCM. Too loud during action sequences (drew comments from others in the room), too quiet with dialogue. I ended up using headphones. I hate suggesting this, especially as a music geek, but I think normalized audio might have worked here.

The black and white seemed inconsistent. Pristine sharp in some scenes, soft focus in others, and scratchy and dirty in others. I didn’t mind, but every time a scratch appeared I noticed.

Aside from those quibbles, BB’s The Shadow Strikes! is a classy improvement, easily recommended.

bionicbob is not only a very active member of the fanediting community but a very prolific releaser of high quality edits of films that I often find near and dear.

It has been many a year since I last watched the original film, but I remember enjoying it on VHS more than once; and while it features a very well constructed plot that I often found vaguely reminiscent of the serial type adventure of the Indiana Jones entries from the 80s, it is elevated with some great production value and quite a good direction. But flawed by a shall we say, somewhat distracted performances from the leads actors and it suffers from a few excesses that thankfully Bob has remedied with this release:


A/V quality, I have to say I really enjoyed the Black and White treatment - it fits the time period, look and film of the movie perfectly. And with it, one of the 90s excesses I mentioned has been resolved in one fell swoop: the somewhat over the top coloring of the film is thankfully gone for good, and the experience is all the better for it.

The inclusion of classic radio clips as a framing device is a dead on way to introduce a character like the Shadow and the editing is completely seamless, and given that the original source is a years old DVD encode I applaud what has been accomplished on this edit.

However I did notice some slight stretching of the frame to the sides throughout the edit, and perhaps this is an issue of the original encode and not much can be done about it. - All in all a solid 9/10.


Visual Editing - Not a single noticeable cut, the whole edit flows completely unhindered and its quite enjoyable. As mentioned,I enjoyed the The B&W treatment quite a bit, and some added effects were added on top - scratches and marks here and there that I understand are meant to give a period piece look and feel, but felt just a tad too much at times (such as when Cranston is being driven by his loyal Cabbie associate/friend), nothing too hindering but I wish they'd be toned down juuust a little bit. 9/10

Audio Edition - In a word : perfect. As mentioned, some Radio clips were seamlessly added on top of a brand new credits sequence that fits perfectly with the edit; a very few scenes from the main feature were suppressed and I couldn't find a single noticeable change. 10/10

Narrative - The narrative from the original is pretty much intact, and it's a good thing; the quite flat tension release humor is completely gone and the most over the top scenes involving Lamont Cranston's dubious past were smartly trimmed down to show the audience what is necessary to follow the plot. 10/10

Enjoyment - A real pleasure, I enjoyed the experienced thoroughly for the reasons already exposed. 10/10

In shot, another not to be missed quality release from bionicbob, congrats :)

Warning: I watched this edit in 640p. Please take that into account when reading this review.

The Shadow Strikes! is a prime example of how little really needs to be changed in order to turn an OK movie into a really good one. The switch to black and white should always have happened. Many bad lines are removed. That godawful prologue is right where it's supposed to be: gone. No more red fingernails; no more goofy as hell knife fight; no more bad wig, and Lord has the movie improved from that massive flaw alone.

A/V Quality: 9
-Visual Editing: 9
Taking FCE's limitations into account, this was fantastic. Not taking them into account? It's still fantastic. The bright colors of the theatrical release are gone here in lieu of a more classical low contrast black and white. So many people use black and white wrong: the shadows are too dark, the visuals are too sharp, etc. BionicBob nailed it. Scenes that were cut, trimmed, and added were seamless. If I had seen this the first time, I wouldn't have known the difference.
The opening crawl did seem like your basic slideshow but considering the terrible, terrible, original opening it was still a vast improvement and I did like seeing the gallery of Shadow artwork through the ages.
Possibly the only thing I would have done without was the film scratch effects during the scene transitions. For the most part these were fine, but every now and then they would noticeably fade from the screen. Removing them altogether probably would have been for the best, but now I'm just being nitpicky. They didn't ruin the movie for me at all.

Audio Editing: 10

The cut one-liners are a more than welcome removal that adds a sinister 40's serial tone that the theatrical cut had always tragically lacked. No more "Oh, that knife," either. That alone was a wonderful thing. The removal of the Shadow's one-liners during his fights also added a nice bit of intensity that the original didn't provide.

Narrative: 10

I didn't like the decision to cut the cringeworthy prologue just because it was bad and needed to disappear. I also found that the removal added something that the movie desperately needed: a sense of mystery. Suddenly the Shadow became an enigma. He still has a past in Tibet, but now that past is illustrated in hints, lines, and visions that make the viewer think. The Shadow's history is no longer spoonfed right off the bat, and as a result the sense of wonder survives to the end.
The change in color scale also served a purpose. What was once hokey and stupid in bright cartoon colors is now charming and funny in a more mature black and white. The entire atmosphere has replaced goofy camp with a certain golden-age charm that reflects a simpler time.

Enjoyment: 10

I'll admit, I wasn't too fond of The Shadow when I watched it for the first time since I was four. I snagged it out of a bargain bin and still felt jilted. Sure it picked up and improved along the way, but it still wasn't good enough for me, and the DVD just got packed away in a box.
If I'd picked up The Shadow Strikes! however, I would have had it in my DVD player far more often. BionicBob, you have turned a crappy B-movie into the love letter to old serials that the Shadow had always deserved. Thank you.

This is was a blast! I haven't watch The Shadow since it first came out on VHS in the mid-90s. The black & white look worked really well for me. It fit the tone of the movie and made the corniness of it feel natural. I can easily recommend this fanedit to anyone who enjoys the pulp fiction era of the 30s.