American December
There’s a lot of special editions of films out there now with an extra two minutes of film. It’s not size that matters, but I’m using it as a shorthand for how little extra value is being added to these films. (Some films have had significant additions that damage them: see Terminator 2.)
In my opinion there are exactly five films that have benefitted from the attention paid.
Aliens
An already good and much loved film (a recurring theme here) this special edition is improved not by smart guns and “bad ass marines” (though they’re fun) but the increased thematic density.
Bladerunner
It’s trendy to bag the original these days — especially the voice over — but we all used to love this film. The special edition sets up a dialogue between it and the viewers of the original version, further adding to the complexity of both.
The Exorcist
See earlier comments.
The Abyss
Why do I like this film? ‘Cause it’s longer. It’s one of those luxuriously long films that you could just let continue on and on and on. (Anecdote: I’ve never walked out of a film (that might derogate my right to rag on it). Workmates queried me on this: not even to go to the toilet? I cheekily asked if they wet their beds, given that sleep was four times longer than your average movie.)
Apocalypse Now
To be honest, I can’t remember the original well enough to comment on why the special edition works in that way. But it works in its own right. On the original, I will say, like JMS and the final season of B5 or George Lucas and Eworks, Coppola showed a surprising lack of faith in himself when the finish line was in sight.
Hmm. These are all American mainstream “alternative” films.