Theatrical Version or Director's Cut Part 2
I wrote a post 18 month’s ago regarding whether a directors cut of a film is superior by default to the version originally shown in cinemas. Obviously the answer was no and I then went on to give three examples of films where I think the theatrical release is better to lengthier or substantially altered director’s cut that was subsequently made available at a later date. This time round in this post, I would like to do the complete opposite. I shall provide some examples of films that I think are significantly improved by a longer cut or a substantially, restructured edit. Note some of these examples are technically not a “director’s cuts” but a restoration or reconstruction of the director’s original vision. I shall endeavour to highlight what specific material or broader changes make each respective film “better”. As ever, all of these examples are a matter of subjective opinion and my views are presented as such, not “fact”.
I wrote a post 18 month’s ago regarding whether a directors cut of a film is superior by default to the version originally shown in cinemas. Obviously the answer was no and I then went on to give three examples of films where I think the theatrical release is better to lengthier or substantially altered director’s cut that was subsequently made available at a later date. This time round in this post, I would like to do the complete opposite. I shall provide some examples of films that I think are significantly improved by a longer cut or a substantially, restructured edit. Note some of these examples are technically not a “director’s cuts” but a restoration or reconstruction of the director’s original vision. I shall endeavour to highlight what specific material or broader changes make each respective film “better”. As ever, all of these examples are a matter of subjective opinion and my views are presented as such, not “fact”.
The Abyss: Special Edition (1989/1993) Roughly 27 minutes of material is restored by director James cameron to this underwater drama and alien encounter film. The major difference is the expanded political/apocalyptic subplot. The escalating Cold War tensions are made much more explicit and the NTIs threaten humanity with enormous tidal waves before relenting because of Bud's self-sacrifice. There is also more character material. Consequently, the Special Edition gives the aliens’ actions and the film’s anti-war theme a much clearer rationale. The theatrical ending feels considerably more abrupt. The longer cut turns an underwater first-contact adventure into a much more overt cautionary story about humanity's capacity for self-destruction.
Phase IV: Preview Cut (1974) One of the most cerebral science fiction films of the seventies, Phase IV is about the evolution of ants into an intelligent collective. This revised cut is only about five minutes longer than the theatrical, but those minutes matter enormously. It restores Saul Bass's extraordinary surreal concluding montage depicting humanity's transformation under the ants into a servitor race and the emergence of a strange new world. The restored preview version also contains small additional shots and dialogue and dispenses with explanatory narration added to make the theatrical version easier to understand. The theatrical cut has an enigmatic ending. The preview cut has a genuinely visionary, psychedelic and rather disturbing one. It makes a bold statement.
The Big Red One: The Reconstruction (1980) A hardened sergeant and the four core members of his infantry unit try to survive World War II. This is not strictly a director's cut, because Samuel Fuller died before it was assembled. Richard Schickel's 2004 reconstruction restores about 47 minutes of material, including 15 complete sequences and extensions to many others. The Infantry soldiers' journey across North Africa and Europe during WW II becomes much more episodic and detailed, with greater character development. There is more emphasis on the absurdity, brutality and psychological attrition of warfare. The theatrical version is a lean war film where the Reconstruction feels much more like Fuller's intended autobiographical wartime epic.
Touch of Evil (1958/1998 reconstruction) A Mexican official and his American wife are targeted in a Texas border town by the organised criminals he is investigating. Again, technically a reconstruction rather than a director's cut. Walter Murch and Rick Schmidlin re-edited the film according to the detailed 58-page memo Orson Welles sent Universal after the studio altered his version. Scenes are reordered, studio changes are removed or modified, Welles's elaborate cross-cutting and sound design are restored and the famous opening tracking shot loses the superimposed credits and conventional title music. It isn't radically longer so much as differently constructed. The 1998 version flows more coherently and feels much more recognisably like a Welles film.
The Shining (1980) Kubrick’s legendary adaptation of a Stephen King novel, about a family that takes a caretaker position at an isolated hotel during winter. This one is unusual because there isn't really a later “director's cut”. Kubrick himself created two theatrical versions. The original American release is around 25 minutes longer than the European version he subsequently prepared. The US cut contains considerably more exposition. Danny being examined by a doctor, more information about Jack's alcoholism and his previous injury of Danny, additional hotel-management scenes, more of Hallorann’s journey back to the Overlook and some extra supernatural material involving Wendy. The American version explains more about the family and Jack's past. The European cut is leaner, faster and more mysterious. Both were personally approved and edited by Kubrick, so neither can really be called the definitive director's cut at the expense of the other. However, the longer cut feels more comprehensive.
Star Trek: The Motion Picture - Director's Edition HD Recreation v3 (1979)
Star Trek: The Motion Picture is a wonderful paradox in the Star Trek cinematic pantheon. It is possibly the most hardcore science fiction story that the franchise has explored and is both simultaneously Trek-like and un-Trek-like. Director Robert Wise and the production team worked hard to deliver a completed film for the scheduled December 1979 release date. However, he felt that the theatrical version was only a “rough cut”. Hence in late 2001 he supervised a Director’s Edition of the film which runs 136 minutes (4 minutes longer than the theatrical release)and reinstates some additional scenes and replaces some of the optical effects with new CGI creations. Critics were divided as to whether the Director’s Edition improved the film overall but Wise felt that this version was much closer to his original vision. The Director’s Edition was released exclusively on DVD in standard definition.
Star Trek: The Motion Picture is a wonderful paradox in the Star Trek cinematic pantheon. It is possibly the most hardcore science fiction story that the franchise has explored and is both simultaneously Trek-like and un-Trek-like. Director Robert Wise and the production team worked hard to deliver a completed film for the scheduled December 1979 release date. However, he felt that the theatrical version was only a “rough cut”. Hence in late 2001 he supervised a Director’s Edition of the film which runs 136 minutes (4 minutes longer than the theatrical release)and reinstates some additional scenes and replaces some of the optical effects with new CGI creations. Critics were divided as to whether the Director’s Edition improved the film overall but Wise felt that this version was much closer to his original vision. The Director’s Edition was released exclusively on DVD in standard definition.
To date, only the theatrical version of Star Trek: The Motion Picture has been released on Blu-ray. The main stumbling block regarding the Director’s Edition appears to be the CGI FXs that were created by Foundation Imaging. There is an ongoing debate over whether the source material still exists (allegedly it does) and whether it is at a sufficient resolution for use in a high definition format. Until these matters are resolved, the Director’s Edition remains conspicuously absent on regular Blu-ray and UHD. However, never underestimate the resourcefulness of fans. I recently discovered a fan edit called Star Trek: The Motion Picture - Director's Edition HD Recreation v3. Created by the delightfully named ElectricTriangle. This is a robust recreation of the Director’s Edition but in 1080p. Like most fan edits it is not intended for commercial sale and is therefore not widely available.
I was fortunate enough to see a Star Trek: The Motion Picture - Director's Edition HD Recreation v3 recently and it achieves exactly what it sets out to do. ElectricTriangle has primarily sourced their fan edit from HDTV, which uses the same transfer as the Director’s Edition. The HDTV version suffers from a degree of low detail and compression but it has superior grain and contrast than the current Blu-ray release. The unique footage from the Director’s Edition DVD has been upscaled and some material color-corrected. To recreate some of the specific changes in the Director’s Edition, ElectricTriangle had to combine HD and upscaled SD footage and create some additional animation to seamlessly join them. There are in fact two finished versions of Star Trek: The Motion Picture - Director's Edition HD Recreation v3. A primary version uses the DE DVD effects when appropriate but also uses the original theatrical unaltered effects to preserve HD quality. And then there’s a purist edition that includes most all of the shots altered for the DE DVD. These have been upscaled. Both versions contain the additional dialogue scenes featured in the DE DVD.
Until Paramount decides to pay for a restoration of the Director’s Edition in high definition, ElectricTriangles version remains the last word with regard to Star Trek: The Motion Picture, unofficially speaking. It is as near as damn it, identical to Robert Wise’s extended cut and looks very handsome in 1080p. However, it should be noted that irrespective of the changes that both Robert Wise and in this case ElectricTriangle have made, the film remains slow and dialogue driven. That’s just the way the film was made and you cannot edit this quality away. However, the sedate pace affords the viewer plenty of time to appreciate Jerry Goldsmith’s sumptuous score, which remains one of the film’s greatest assets. To paraphrase the tagline that accompanied the film upon its original release, “the human adventure is just beginning”. It’s just that it’s not in a hurry.
I wrote a post 18 month’s ago regarding whether a directors cut of a film is superior by default to the version originally shown in cinemas. Obviously the answer was no and I then went on to give three examples of films where I think the theatrical release is better to lengthier or substantially altered director’s cut that was subsequently made available at a later date. This time round in this post, I would like to do the complete opposite. I shall provide some examples of films that I think are significantly improved by a longer cut or a substantially, restructured edit. Note some of these examples are technically not a “director’s cuts” but a restoration or reconstruction of the director’s original vision. I shall endeavour to highlight what specific material or broader changes make each respective film “better”. As ever, all of these examples are a matter of subjective opinion and my views are presented as such, not “fact”.