War of the Stars: A New Hope Grindhoused

BONKERS

Just had to re-watch this...

Not east to review without spoilers coz this ain't David Lean, but it is just a delicious ride with so many surprises and nice touches and flourishes.

It's just shows you what a car crash Ep IV could have been. They say a movie is crafted in the edit suite. Well, gorge on this one folks, it's just frankly tremendous and keeps you wanting more. I've lost count how many times I have watched this so apologies for the very late review.

OUTSTANDING

This fanedit is unlike anything I've seen yet. It remixes A New Hope into a Grindhouse film which plays out differently, and has a very different feel to it. There are a bunch of different scenes used and modifications made. I laughed out loud quite a few times. I recommend watching this without reading anything about it as you'll be surprised by some of the changes made.

My one critique is that, even though a lot was cut, this could've been packed even more tightly so as to resemble A New Hope even less, especially the final sequence with the attack on the Death Star. After the first 30-40 minutes, it began to feel like more like A New Hope again. However, this is only a minor criticism. The work on display here is truly imaginative and is a great example of what fanediting represents. The mind of TMBTM is something to behold.

TMBTM has crafted a genuinely unique and fascinating take on the original Star Wars. Using footage from various sources to reinsert alternate takes, deleted scenes and new music, the story that we all love has been transformed into a grungy, almost B grade, Grindhouse film.

The blood stained walls after a storm trooper is shot in the face, the funny subtitled dialogue from R2D2, the unexpected "fucking shit hole" from Alec Guinness, the red eyed and witty new dialogue from Darth Vader, all work in unison to create this weirdly funny and engaging experience.

I really loved the grain and scratches applied to the film, as well as the sudden changes to black and white for certain scenes, and while it was a bit jarring, the missing reel that burns out in the first act of the film really sells the authenticity of this edit. This doesn't feel like someone just added some grain and scratches to the movie and called it "Grindhouse"... No, no, this feels like a true Grindhouse film that you'd see in a grungy cheap cinema. I loved it!

The only real criticisms I have with this edit are:
- The music when Luke, Han, and Leia are fighting/escaping the Death Star that leads into the death of Obi Wan was a little misplaced. That's just a nitpick though, as the rest of the soundtrack is fantastic, especially when we're introduced to Han... That was amazing.

- and my final gripe with the edit is the end twist/semi twist. While it was cool and unexpected, it didn't really have any build up, it just sort of happened and then everything went back to normal and no-one acted any differently towards Luke. Obviously because there was no footage of characters acting strangely towards Luke but still. Again, this is just another nitpick so it didn't affect the overall experience/enjoyablity of the film.

Definitely recommend, for fans of the franchise, and fans of Grindhouse in general.

Man o man this is fun. I was watching this and thinking what if I was able to watch this while sitting in my 69 Malibu at a drive in. Eating some stale popcorn and drinking flat soda. Memories. This really has the feel of a film made expressly for viewing at a drive in. I stopped it a few times to rewatch a few parts. Laughed gave a few "yeahs", just had a grand time. I was waiting for the previews and intermission countdown. I downloaded the "HD" version even though it's "not"....lol Watch this along with the companion edit. A worthwhile afternoon. Oh wait I forgot to put the speaker back on the pole....damn

Brilliant.