Rumble in The Bronx, Film Whisperer reconstruction AND Film Whisperer edit re-upload

Don't forget to ask my about my other projects!
Fist of Legend
Ong-Bak

Hello folks.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

So, it appears that my Rumble in The Bronx reconstruction remains the most famous project of yours truly (The Film Whisperer).

I was kinda hoping that fans would also like my own fan-edit of the film, the "Film Whisperer edit". I really put A LOT of work into that version!

I used to have a video on my YouTube channel explaining it, and it had a link to downloads those edits. But Warner Bros decided to be a bunch of weens and get the video taken down, and to make Mega kill the file link (I hope you'll check out my channel though   )

So, I've re-uploaded both edits.

For those who haven't heard of me, or these two "Rumble" projects, I'll explain as brief as I can.

"Rumble in The Bronx"–Film Whisperer RECONSTRUCTION

• Uncut version of the movie
  --This includes at least 3 scenes missing from the HK version (uses US English dub audio only)
  

1. A short shot of gangsters arriving for a contraband-diamond deal
   
2. Keung & Nancy escaping the gangsters from a nightclub, and Nancy kicking over the gangsters' motorcycles
   
3. A short shot of crime lord "White Tiger" playing golf (and sucking really bad at it  )
   --Also includes the Golden Harvest logo intro.
   

• 3 audio tracks
  

1. Sync-sound--most of it is from the Hong Kong Laserdisc. Very strong and robust audio. A portion in the beginning uses cleaned-up audio from the sync-sound track of the US version (a Warner R3 and Japanese R2 exclusive). Most other audio tracks for the HK version had some "popcorn effects" going on in those places, but only for that beginning portion.
   
2. Mandarin dub--exactly what it sounds like. Subtitles are included for the Mandarin dub, and those subtitles take into consideration SOME differences in the script. Also includes a Mandarin version of the theme song with a proper translation
   
3. Japanese dub--from the Japanese R2 DVD. No subtitles for this track.
   

• Subtitles (each with a "no bi-lingual" option, meaning that it displays English-only for the Chinese-language songs)
  

1. English for Sync-sound track: FPO (foreign parts only) and all-dialog options. An old Vietnamese female neighbor of mine, who also speaks Cantonese, did help me translate and correct some translations of the Cantonese dialog. Her English is kinda poor but it was good enough to help me! She confirmed that most of the English subs from the Mandarin-dubbed Taiwanese-version were accurate. My Chinese wife + an enthusiastic English-language student from NW China helped me translate BOTH the Cantonese & Mandarin theme songs.
   
2. English for Mandarin track. There are a few differences in dialog, but not much. Fun & interesting fact: my wife confirmed some of the "racially-charged dialog" from the English translations of the the Taiwanese version were accurate! Elaine does call Angelo a Chinese insult for white people, and Uncle Bill does mention how a "white robber" killed Keung's father.
   

• A mix of many sources
  --My reconstruction makes use of the following
  

1. US blu-ray. Great picture, great color-filters
   
2. Thakral/China-Star DVD. A heavily-interlaced DVD which cuts of a chunk of footage on the right side of the screen. No beginning or end credits. A 100% blank print!
   
3. HK Laserdisc. The print itself is unique to the Thakral/China-Star disc. It's probably higher quality than the Thakral disc, but that's not saying much! Its colors are certainly better though. And honestly, I would have preferred to use the LD exclusively for the cut scenes. However, I used iMovie to create this project, and iMovie doesn't let me rotoscope the Chinese subtitles (which appear only during English dialog). The Chinese subs were outside the frame but I didn't want to crop the image too much.
   

What is the "Film Whisperer edit"?

Given that many sources for the HK theatrical version are poor quality, I decided to minimize the use of low-quality footage. This means that in many scenes, I keep things as they are in the US version. I found it easy to synchronize the sync-sound audio to the US edit in many places. In fact, I chose only to keep footage from the HK version under the following circumstances:

1. The footage/scene is too important (i.e. the scene that explains why Tony's gang chases Keung in broad daylight)
   
2. The footage/scene is too cool (i.e. much of the fight between Keung & Tony's gang)
   
3. The sync-sound audio would sound choppy and wouldn't flow very well if synced to the US edit
   

I personally believe that a majority of New Line Cinema's cuts to Rumble in the Bronx weren't that brutal. They pale in comparison to what was done to other Jackie Chan films, i.e. "First Strike" or "Mr. Nice Guy". Also, New Line Cinema's dub was very well done! Jackie's English lines are improved, and so is the line delivery of the Canadian actors! Plus I like the US version's score much better. You can't deny it's less repetitive and more "epic".

Specs

• Audio
• Film Whisperer OPTIMIZED track: perfect blend of the HK laserdisc and New Line Cinema's dub. I went through great lengths to blend these two tracks together and make them sound seamless. Sometimes I even use Danny's English dub voice while keeping Jackie's original voice in the same scene! Uses the Mandarin theme song in the end credits!
  
• Film Whisperer RAW track: I use the original sync-sound track as much as possible. Only during a few scenes here & there did I have to switch to the US audio (the motorcycle scene in particular stands out   ). Uses the Cantonese theme song in the end credits!
  Subtitles (each with a "no bi-lingual" option)
• English for FW OPTIMIZED track
  
• English for FW "RAW" track
  

Future Plans?

As of right now, I'm trying to create a much better quality version of both the reconstruction and "Film Whisperer edit" of this fantastic action film. I used iMovie to create both of these edits. iMovie is great but it certainly lacks in many features compared to Adobe. I know that the proportions/geometry of the uncut footage aren't aligned very well with the US blu-ray's. But keep in mind that the Thakral/China-Star DVD and HK laserdisc are suuuuuuuuuper interlaced!

Any non-Handbrake related solutions would be helpful!

PM me if you want the project. Let me know your thoughts and stuff on this thread!

[HippieDalek]

Thanks for this! I grabbed this a few years back while the links were still available on YouTube and really enjoyed exploring the various edits. I'd really wanted to see the HK cut for so long and I was finally able to watch it thanks to your hard work.

I'm not sure which version I prefer, like you I think that the changes New Line made were pretty subtle and unobtrusive, and the English dub has been done pretty respectfully.

Keep up the excellent work!

Probably because I'm a new account but the site's not letting me PM you. I've been trying to track down the reconstructed cut if anybody could help me out. Maybe if someone is able to PM me, or if I share an email?

Would very much like a link to this too, if possible. Great film!