Author Topic: Final Cut: 8 part documentary on the making of "Heaven's Gate"  (Read 3109 times)

Austin From Chicago

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Final Cut: 8 part documentary on the making of "Heaven's Gate"
« on: December 27, 2011, 08:36:08 PM »
Final Cut: The Making and Unmaking of Heaven's Gate (Part 1 of 8)

All 8 parts are linked thru YouTube.

I just finished reading "Final Cut," the Steven Bach book about the making of Michael Cimino's "Heaven's Gate," and I immediately thought about Tom's quote about how there's few things funnier than seeing a guy burn through clout he doesn't have. This documentary is hilarious if you imagine Michael Cimino as a Jon Wurster character, running up huge bills, bankrupting United Artists, insisting on making violent and sometimes controversial films and then being basically blacklisted from making any more films after turning out flop after flop. I'm reminded of how Cimino set the standard for Troy Duffy-esque ego inflation and deluded self-belief for years; his Wikipedia page often reads like a lesson on how NOT to have a successful career in film directing. One can almost imagine Cimino complaining about "choke-jobs" and blaming everyone but himself for his failures.

Here's Cimino's Wikipedia page:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Cimino

"Cimino is frequently criticized by colleagues and critics as vain, self-indulgent, egotistical, megalomaniacal and an enfant terrible.[9][65] Producers and critics have tended to be harsher on Cimino than his fellow collaborators. Critics like Pauline Kael,[66] John Simon[67] and John Powers[68] have also noted and criticized these qualities in many of the films he has written and directed. Cimino has also been known to give exaggerated, misleading and conflicting stories about himself, his background and his filmmaking experiences."

He was also pulled off the production of "Footloose" when the studio realized that he was going to automatically go over budget. The section on the page above about Cimino's unreleased/unfinished projects is hilarious.

The funny thing is that now I really wanna see "Heaven's Gate."

LN5OG

Chris L

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Re: Final Cut: 8 part documentary on the making of "Heaven's Gate"
« Reply #1 on: December 27, 2011, 08:52:21 PM »
Rumor has it Criterion are working on Heaven's Gate.

Austin From Chicago

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Re: Final Cut: 8 part documentary on the making of "Heaven's Gate"
« Reply #2 on: December 27, 2011, 09:02:54 PM »
Rumor has it Criterion are working on Heaven's Gate.

After watching this documentary, I've been seeking out clips from it on YouTube; it really doesn't look bad at all! I wonder what the full 5 hour, 25 minute version would be like - I hope Criterion puts THAT out.
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B_Buster

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Re: Final Cut: 8 part documentary on the making of "Heaven's Gate"
« Reply #3 on: December 29, 2011, 04:34:29 PM »
It's a good movie. A great movie by today's standards.
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Smelodies

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Re: Final Cut: 8 part documentary on the making of "Heaven's Gate"
« Reply #4 on: December 30, 2011, 05:55:23 PM »
It's a good movie. A great movie by today's standards.

Sure, if you watch it while on vicodin.

Austin From Chicago

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Re: Final Cut: 8 part documentary on the making of "Heaven's Gate"
« Reply #5 on: December 30, 2011, 09:44:17 PM »
It's a good movie. A great movie by today's standards.

Sure, if you watch it while on vicodin.

The special Vicodin Edition stretches across 106 discs. Extras include footage of the day Cimino spent waiting for the sun to come out. The whole day.

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B_Buster

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Re: Final Cut: 8 part documentary on the making of "Heaven's Gate"
« Reply #6 on: December 31, 2011, 07:01:09 PM »
It's a good movie. A great movie by today's standards.

Sure, if you watch it while on vicodin.

Surprising, coming from one of Barry Lyndon's biggest fans.
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Kormod

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Re: Final Cut: 8 part documentary on the making of "Heaven's Gate"
« Reply #7 on: December 31, 2011, 07:51:31 PM »
That was cold, Mike.