Still finding its audience 35 years later.
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — Heaven's Gate
Mickey77 — 10 years ago(July 15, 2015 04:01 AM)
Heaven's Gate is seriously flawed - miscasting, uneven pace etc.
But it does have a quality that is unique.
A stronger producer would have ensured a more organised production while allowing Cimino to still achieve his vision.
The FATAL ERROR was the withdrawing of the film after its initial opening in 1980. I think it would have found its audience in its original form over time. Initial reviews for the film were woeful - but that's not unique. When ROCKY first opened the reviews were luke-warm at best - but the film was allowed to find its audience over the first month - and it went on to be a smash. I'm not saying that this would have happened to Heavens Gate - but Cimino's pulling it for theatres after a week killed any hope of the film ever finding an audience. And postponing the worldwide release compounded the error.
I saw it in 70mm on a giant screen in 1983 (after having seen the awful short version the year before). There is no comparison - original with all its flaws it still a thing of beauty - short version is an incoherent mess.
"Thank God For Darwin"