Reddit reviews The Battle of Brazil: Terry Gilliam v. Universal Pictures in the Fight to the Final Cut (Applause Books)
We found 5 Reddit comments about The Battle of Brazil: Terry Gilliam v. Universal Pictures in the Fight to the Final Cut (Applause Books). Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
The Battle of Brazil Applause Books Series Softcover Written by Jack MathewsThe totally restored, revamped and researched blow-by-blow recounting of the most spectacular title bout in the blood-soaked history of HollywoodThis book documents in rare detail the back-room haggling and the attempted ego-bashing that is part of the movie business- Gene Siskel; Told with the passion of an advocate yet with the objectivity of a crack reporter, The Battle of Brazil is a chilling, inevitably hilarious account of a great film that almost got away- USA Today
He does.
The LCA version was not actually created for TV, though that's the only place it aired. The head of Universal at the time was convinced Gilliam was making an unmarketable downer of a film. He kept trying to push his own vision into Gilliam's production, even going so far as to have the LCA edit made without Gilliam's permission with the intent of it being used as the theatrical release. Egos and lawyers became involved. Eventually Gilliam's cut was the one released theatrically, but Universal aired the LCA version on TV as a final fuck you to Gilliam.
The book The Battle of Brazil covers it all very well and is a great account of what happens when auteurs and money men collide. I highly recommend it.
Edits to fix crosslinks. Thanks to /u/few23 for making the distinction between "cut for TV" and "aired on TV", and the YouTube link to the Battle of Brazil documentary.
You might like The Battle of Brazil. I know I did.
There is a long history of not necessarily creative suits deciding they can improve a movie. They say they love the movie, like Terry Gilliam ‘s Brazil, which was improved by one suit by chopping off 20 minutes, and instead of the original dark ending creating a happy ending.
Or Harvey Weinstein who loved Shaolin Soccer so much he tried taking the axe to it to so as to improve that movie. Same with Snowpiercer.
Fortunately these films are available in their original, pre-suit improvement, versions.
The Battle For Brazil
Remember when they drive on a road at the end surrounded by billboards? That's the American ending. I have the special edition with both versions. Crappy cut. There was even a lawsuit that was big enough for its own book: http://www.amazon.com/The-Battle-Brazil-Universal-Screenplay/dp/1557833478