Ahh. Hollywood. If you can make it there, you can make it anywhere. Though the same thing cannot be said for the scenes that have been cut while making movies there. Shooting a film can take many months and even more than a year, which is why it’s not surprising that a lot of these footages get axed from the script before production or don’t make the final cut.
While it can prove to be a huge waste of time and money, there are very good reasons for this. It could be because they don’t fit the overall narrative, the test audiences don’t like a particular ending, of censorship concerns, or running-time issues. The weird part is that it happens regardless if the scene is good or bad.Occasionally, filmmakers get it right by removing a scene or changing an ending, sometimes they get it so wrong that the movie would have fared better had they kept it.
Forrest Gump
Some people would argue that it was a good thing not to know about what Forrest said. But if you have been wondering about and losing sleep over it, then today is your lucky day.
In an interview with Tom Hanks, Forrest said, “Sometimes when people go to Vietnam, they go home to their mommas without any legs. Sometimes they don’t go home at all. That’s a bad thing. That’s all I have to say about that.”
Return of the Jedi
It is public knowledge that George Lucas let numerous scenes from the first Star Wars trilogy fall on the cutting room floor. One of these scenes was from Return of the Jedi, in whichYodadoes not letObi-Wan tell Luke who his real dad is. Since Yoda was interested in teaching Luke how to be a Jedi, he thought that giving him daddy issues would prove to be counterproductive.
The Shining
Hollywood’s infamously fussy director, Stanley Kubrick, originally had a two-minute scene at the end of the movie about Wendy (Shelly Duvall) being told by the police that they never found Jack’s body. However, he changed his mind about that and ordered to pull the original version of the movie after three days since it hit theaters. Up to this day, you won’t even be able to find the original version on the internet.
Thelma & Louise
In the ending of Thelma & Louise, the filmmakers figured that their audiences would benefit more if they leave the stars’ death scene to the imagination. Deemed the best female buddy movie ever made, audiences were grateful that the filmmakers chose to do so since that would just have been very tragic and morbid.
Fatal Attraction
The original ending of this movie would have involved Alex (Glenn Close) living up to her psychopathic mistress role and committing suicide in order to frame Dan (Michael Douglas) for her death. However, test audiences didn’t like that kind of ending. This is why they got Beth, Dan’s scorned wife, to kill Alex instead (which is a lot more enjoyable in a sick way, if you ask us).
Pretty Woman
Vivian (Julia Roberts), the charming prostitute that we all have come to adore, was originally portrayed as a crack cocaine addict. The original screenplay was entitled “$3,000” and presented Edward (Richard Gere) as a concerned citizen who followed Vivian all over town just to make sure that she stayed away from drugs. In one of the numerous cut scenes, Edward saves Vivian from a drug deal gone bad.
The change was probably the best idea they had, considering that Pretty Woman was the movie that sprung Julia Robert’s career to staggering heights.
The Bourne Identity
With the aim of not giving in to tiring Hollywood clichés, the filmmakers decided to change the final scene from a hot and heavy reunion on the beach at sunset between Jason and Marie to a tasteful, heartfelt, and grateful embrace.
American Beauty
In the beginning of the official movie, Lester Burnham tells us of his death through narration, but didn’t mention who killed him until it was revealed at the end that his tough guy military, closeted homosexual neighbor was the one who did it.
In the original screenplay, it was Lester’s daughter, Jane, and her boyfriend, Ricky, who was made to pay for the murder. The verdict was solely based on the evidence brought by Colonel Fitts to the police as a way to frame them. The evidence was a videotape of Ricky and Jane talking about killing the latter’s dad.
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
Most times, a little clarity goes a long, long way, especially if you are planning to shoot a larger-than-life trilogy that features thousands upon thousands of pages of source material. The scene that was cut never made it to the official movie release, but had been featured on the extended release version of the film.This infamous scene expoundson both Boromir’s and Faramir’s intentions.
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
The alternative ending to this Western film features the boys getting rained on by bullets instead of their iconic free-freeze. We are thankful that we didn’t get to see it play out in the end.
While we have accepted the fact that Butch and Sundance’s last moments ended in a blaze of glory, much like Thelma & Louise, we don’t really need to witness the gory details of their demise in order to get the picture.
These classics have become much a part of our lives as any other person who has ever seen them. And if you haven’t seen any of these Hollywood gems yet, then you have to pick up the pace.
Watch these movies in the comforts of your own home with the help of a high-quality video streaming box and a bunch of appropriate add-ons for a more pleasant HD movie experience.
