Top 10 Movies Ruined in the Editing Room
Top 10 Films Ruined in the Editing Room
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These films had the potential to be fantastic… until they faced a particularly harsh editor. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’ll be counting down our picks for the Top 10 Films Ruined in the Editing Room. For this list, we’ll be looking at those legendary behind-the-scenes debacles, disagreements, and disasters that result when studios clash with visionaries, or when those visionaries are just plain wacky.
#10: “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” (2016)
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When it was announced that Zack Snyder would be helming “Batman v Superman,” fans were understandably concerned given his track record. They were right to worry, as what should’ve been an epic crossover is a bloated mess, taking a fairly straightforward story and convoluting it. Several iconic characters are shoehorned in just to tease future movies and many scenes feel unnecessary in the long run, most notably the whole “Lois is the key” fiasco. One can’t help but feel that there’s a better movie buried in its slipshod editing - or at least better scenes. The Ultimate Edition did fix a few problems with the theatrical release. Much like its director, though, the extended cut was still more concerned with looking cool than making narrative sense.
#9: “Bohemian Rhapsody” (2018)
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Although “Bohemian Rhapsody” won an Oscar for its editing, many have cited it as a masterclass in how not to edit a movie. The Queen biopic faced its fair share of behind the scenes drama with Dexter Fletcher assuming directorial duties from Bryan Singer towards the end of shooting. With that in mind, editor John Ottman does deserve some credit for getting a troubled production past the finish line. Nevertheless, “Bohemian Rhapsody” manages to break every rule in Editing 101, especially when the band first meets their manager, which has an excessive 60 cuts made in 104 seconds. Even Ottman expressed dissatisfaction, saying, “If there’s ever an extended version of the film where I can put a couple scenes back, I will recut that scene!”
#8: “Live Free or Die Hard” (2007)
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When one thinks of a “Die Hard” movie, they think of hardcore shootouts, inventive kills, and vulgar one-liners uttered by a smirking Bruce Willis. That’s what director Len Wiseman initially intended with “Live Free or Die Hard,” the fourth entry in the franchise. While it’s often debated where the film ranks compared to the other “Die Hard” sequels, we can all agree that the studio made a bad call when they insisted on a PG-13 rating. Many of the franchise’s R-rated trademarks were thus left on the cutting room floor, much to Willis’ dissatisfaction. Though the unrated version isn’t perfect, at least it retains more of the bloodshed and John McClane’s iconic catchphrase - uncensored.
#7: “Kingdom of Heaven” (2005)
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When you hire Ridley Scott, it’s best to leave him to his own devices. This is a man who brought us classics like “Alien” and “Gladiator,” after all. But rather than releasing Scott’s three-hour-plus movie about the Crusades, 20th Century Fox decided that it could stand to lose 45 minutes. This cut vital character developments and left important plotlines dangling, infuriating Scott and viewers alike. It also resulted in a movie that wasn’t particularly well-liked, with the director blaming the film’s failure on the reliance of test audiences. It wasn’t until Scott released his director’s cut that “Kingdom of Heaven” was seen in a new light. The additional footage added the depth that the theatrical cut so sorely lacked.
#6: “Once Upon a Time in America” (1984)
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By 1984, the crime genre had been solidified by directors such as Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola. Spaghetti western favorite Sergio Leone was ready to leave his own mark on the genre by adapting “The Hoods,” an American crime story about greed, violence, and their uncomfortable place in history. “Once Upon a Time in America,” the four-hour-plus cut that debuted at Cannes, received an ovation unlike any other. With such high praise, Warner Bros.’ decision to virtually cut the movie by half is downright baffling. It’s also re-ordered, eliminating the flashback-style in favor of a linear narrative. But it’s not over: a restored print was screened in 2012 at Cannes and there are still efforts to restore it further.
#5: “Suicide Squad” (2016)
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While the MCU took its time carefully stacking a deck of heroes and villains, DC spent just a few years trying to catch up and distinguish itself. The DCEU wanted to have a grittier tone than Marvel, but David Ayer’s “Suicide Squad” is an outlier: a film too gritty to be cartoonish and too silly to be serious. That disconnect is, in large part, due to the disappointment of “Batman v Superman,” which came out almost five months earlier. Warner Bros. seemingly lost confidence in Ayer’s vision, especially after the trailer promised something more along the lines of “Guardians of the Galaxy.” Rumors of heavy reshoots and edits damned the film before its release, most contentious being the redacted appearance of the Joker.
#4: “Fantastic Four” (2015)
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When Josh Trank landed the directing gig for Fox’s “Fantastic Four” reboot, he was seen as a wunderkind. After all, he had only one feature under this belt, the found-footage superhero riff “Chronicle,” and now he was helming a major franchise film. However, reports have painted Trank as an enfant terrible who supposedly trashed his rented house with dogs and nearly came to blows with Miles Teller. His alleged poor behavior aside, Fox wasn’t pleased with Trank’s film, ordering significant reshoots. The day before its release, Trank tweeted that he’d made a great film — we’ll just never see it. Whether you blame Trank or the studio for the final product, their feud shines through in this poorly-paced, horrendously-edited train wreck.
#3: “Justice League” (2017)
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The history behind Zack Snyder’s “Justice League” is one plagued with production delays, tragedy, and vain mustaches. The film had weak foundations before cameras rolled, trying to move past the disaster of “Batman v Superman” while still acknowledging it. The studio was hoping “Justice League” would be the soft reboot their universe needed. Due to the tragic suicide of his daughter, however, Snyder left the project amid post-production. The studio quickly hired the almost always reliable Joss Whedon to fill in. The tonal shift between the two directors, however, is noticeably awkward. While diehard fans claim the Snyder Cut would be superior, past evidence suggests otherwise.
#2: “Alien 3” (1992)
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“Alien 3” is what happens when B-Movie marketing meets an A-Picture release. Like old monster movies, “Alien 3” had a poster and a tagline before it had a script. The initial promise was ambitious: after over a decade since the first film, audiences would see the Xenomorphs on earth. But the script underwent numerous drafts and passed through various directors until it resembled nothing like the teaser image. The script was written on-set while a then-newcomer David Fincher thrust into the major cinema system. What results is a film fans consider a major misstep in the franchise. Fincher has refused to participate in retrospectives of the series, even for an “assembly cut” that differs greatly from what was released.
#1: “Blade Runner” (1982)
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To date, there are seven known cuts of Ridley Scott’s sci-fi cult classic available, with a rumored eighth, four-hour cut the director screened for studio personnel. Like it or hate it, there’s no denying Scott was the cinematic forefather of dystopian cinescapes. “Blade Runner” is a visual delight, but what narrative you get differs greatly depending on which cut. Much has been written on Scott’s vision, and the ultimate question is if Rick Deckard is human or replicant. At first, however, Warner Bros. was unsure how to sell it, making changes due to test screenings. Ford was particularly irritated, lamenting the inclusion of a voiceover. The film was later salvaged through Scott’s “Director’s Cut” and “Final Cut,” through which the auteur restored his original vision.
