I just read the whole full unedited script and I gotta say….
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jokeco68 — 11 years ago(October 21, 2014 12:46 PM)
That is really interesting, yes, I agree, having Del snip a $20 out of Neil's wallet would not have made him much of a sympathetic character. Hughes, I think, really had found the right balance and transforming Neal into a better man at the end was a really great payoff for a movie. Someone here, quite a while back, had mentioned that there was supposed to be a scene that explained the huge trunk, that Del was carrying around artifacts from the home he had shared with Marie, I think that would have had me bawling my eyes out so I am glad they didn't show that part either
Everyone gets everything he wants. -
avortac — 10 years ago(March 27, 2016 10:33 PM)
"..Neil's wallet would not have made him much of a sympathetic character. Hughes, I think, really had found the right balance and transforming Neal into a better man.."
Try to make up your mind.
Hint: it's NEAL, not NEIL. -
Hilwo — 11 years ago(November 17, 2014 07:20 AM)
EDIT
current location:
http://s000.tinyupload.com/?file_id=13826379601490546068 -
Hilwo — 10 years ago(January 03, 2016 02:29 AM)
Hey there,
You can grab it from my signature You can also pm me an e-mail address to send the file to if you don't trust the link. All I can tell you is that it's fine
EDIT
current location:
http://s000.tinyupload.com/?file_id=13826379601490546068 -
Hilwo — 9 years ago(July 17, 2016 05:11 AM)
Hey, I'm sorry about that! I was sure I updated my signature link, but guess something went wrong. Link in my sig in this post should work!
EDIT
current location:
http://s000.tinyupload.com/?file_id=13826379601490546068 -
woollybully07 — 11 years ago(November 26, 2014 08:52 PM)
Actually that does clear up something I always found weird about the movie. The wife's reactions always seemed so melodramatic to me. Like seriously lady your husband's just a little late, it's not that big of a deal!
But now, ok so that's why she's so happy at the end especially seeing that Del is real. I'll just keep that info for my own head cannon the next time I watch. -
Elephantlips — 11 years ago(December 03, 2014 07:51 PM)
That was always a mystery to me as well. The way they look at each other when he finally makes it home, and the way Del and her greet each other was always very strange to me. It was as if something else was going on - well now we know.
Great post - thanks! -
GForce59 — 9 years ago(November 28, 2016 05:47 AM)
Me too. In my mind, the way she and Del looked at each other, I thought perhaps THEY had an affair and knew each other! Neal is probably thinking at the end he can kill two birds with one stoneoffer a place for Del to have Thanksgiving dinner, and prove to his wife that he's real.
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mikerichter35xl — 11 years ago(November 27, 2014 07:41 AM)
After reading this I caught that bit in the diner about the pizza. I always wondered where Del got the beer from he spilled on the bed in the motel! so I guess this ties that together.
Tell your old man to drag Walton and Lenier up and down the court for 48 minutes.- Roger Murdock -
MillionaireWaltz1976 — 11 years ago(November 27, 2014 02:10 PM)
It seems like she was made out to be a real bitch who had it in her mind that the only reason Neal was late getting home is because he was having an affair and that he made up "Del Griffith" as a cover up, for this woman he was sneaking around with.
This really explains her response of
"What's going on Neal?"
when he tells her he's in Kansas - and her
"I don't see what the snowstorm in Chicago has to do with this"
line.
I always felt she sounded skeptical of Neal in that scene or odd in the context of the film, but knowing this backstory, it makes sense now. -
FlushingCaps — 11 years ago(December 01, 2014 08:45 PM)
Thanks for providing this most interesting look at how the movie was first going to be. While there were a few good laughs that were omitted from the film we know, I have to say what we saw was a true improvement over this script, overall. The principle parts I like better in the film than in this script are the way Neal and Del continue to argue and bicker almost until the ending in the script. In the movie we know, they seemed to be getting along better, understanding each other more as we progressed.
I will say the bit about them overshooting Chicago and winding up in Wisconsin helped it to make sense that it took so long for them to get back to Chicago, since they really should have made it much earlier.
I really like the ending we know, where Neal figures out that Del doesn't really have a home and goes back to find him still at the train station. In the script, Del pushes himself again into Neal's life and that makes him less sympathetic to me.
I think it was more enjoyable as a film to not be concerned that Neal's wife thinks he is having an affair, as the script indicates. Since scenes were filmed with that in mind, I now understand why she seemed as odd as she did in a couple of her scenes.
Whether book or film, a really good editor can make a huge difference in the overall quality of the product. A three-hour version matching this script would not have been nearly as good a film.
