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ImpactNext1283 t1_j5at8xw wrote

Kingdom of Heaven, the Ridley Scott movie, has a nearly 4-hour director’s cut that’s 100% better than the original.

Ad Astra fucking slams totally psyched to find out there’s a director’s cut!

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yanbu t1_j5b993x wrote

I really liked Ad Astra as well, not sure why it gets so much hate? It’s definitely a slow burn, but overall thought it was fascinating. And it’s set in that middle ground in sci fi that’s rarely explored: the between time near future where we barely have the capability of reaching out into the far reaches of the solar system, but before the Star Trek limitless magic tech phase.

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Ozlin t1_j5cjwem wrote

I thought it was OK overall, but I also understand the criticism. It's been a while since I've seen it, but I remember the whole thing of him sneaking aboard that one ship to have issues. It also does feel a bit meandering and slowly paced. The ending too really relies on the audience being OK with the whole thing being a personal journey, which I'm not sure the film sells very well throughout. It feels a bit like a film that wanted to be one thing, but for whatever reason ended up getting pushed towards being another thing, but it never fully got to commit to either. I personally still enjoyed it overall because the visuals and concepts of the world were enough for me. But I definitely felt it a bit lacking in other ways. I do think people really laid the hate on it too thick.

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ImpactNext1283 t1_j5fu4df wrote

It’s meant to be a riff on Apocalypse Now, Pitt’s journey being a mirror for society’s. It does play fast and loose w a lot of the ‘hard’ sci-fi elements. The space travel, in particular, makes 0 sense.

That said, if you look at the whole thing as a metaphor, it’s quite brilliant imo. Grey is making a movie about fathers and sons, using the cinematic language of his ‘fathers’ - Kubrick and Coppola. Like other Gen X filmmakers, Grey is deeply indebted to these flawed men w insane, grand visions. It’s really sophisticated in that light.

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irlcatspankz t1_j5djpkf wrote

I can guess that Ad Astra, and interestingly another Brad Pitt movie Killing Them Softly, suffered from their marketing. Ad Astra's trailer makes it look more like a suspense thriller (and a car chase on the moon with guns!), and Killing Them Softly's trailer also markets a different movie than what it was. IMO both films are exceptional, but GA went in with misled expectations.

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yanbu t1_j5dkbjn wrote

Yeah, I watched Ad Astra on the plane knowing nothing other than it had Brad Pitt in it and space, so maybe you’re right.

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ImpactNext1283 t1_j5fu8xx wrote

Incidentally, both movies produced by his company. He’s not good at marketing his own movies! Despite Plan B having produced a number of successful projects.

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TheUmgawa t1_j5dpyc6 wrote

I think people don't care for Ad Astra because nobody wanted to see Apocalypse Now in space. Also, they make it a point to mention that Brad Pitt's heart rate never gets above 80 or something, and neither does the audience's while watching the movie.

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ImpactNext1283 t1_j5fud0x wrote

Apocalypse Now in Space is exactly what this is, and exactly what I want to see. I don’t know what the rest of y’all doing p

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TheUmgawa t1_j5g9pxl wrote

Yeah, if I want to watch Apocalypse Now, I’m just going to watch Apocalypse Now.

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ImpactNext1283 t1_j5gafcx wrote

Well yeah, it’s a commentary on Apocalypse Now. You were over simplifying and I was being funny. No reason to watch if you’re not interested, but it’s a really great movie about loving directors like Coppola and Kubrick - personally flawed and abusive geniuses.

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GentPc t1_j5b4js0 wrote

I literally came here to say that. The Director's Cut of KoH adds a lot of background and fills in some massive gaps.

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LittleBullBoy t1_j5bp1b9 wrote

I’ve only ever seen the Theatrical Cut, but remember really hating it honestly.

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HagbardCelineHere t1_j5bw8og wrote

The Kingdom of Heaven theatrical cut is my least favorite Ridley Scott movie, and the director's cut is my favorite.

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thinthehoople t1_j5c82br wrote

The directors cut is an entirely different and much, much better film.

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LittleBullBoy t1_j5bxumr wrote

Better than Gladiator? Alien? Black Hawk Down? Bladerunner? Body of Lies?

This is a bold claim.

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HagbardCelineHere t1_j5c9rpf wrote

As a huge fan of most of the above, as one of those people who has probably watched Alien and Blade Runner about fifty times each, yes. The Kingdom of Heaven directors cut is my number one. And I say just as emphatically that the theatrical cut is among his worst.

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Obfusc8er t1_j5cm4lz wrote

Never saw the theatrical cut. The DC feels like a modern epic masterpiece.

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jxrst9 t1_j5c1kvb wrote

Directors cut is so much better.

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lizifer93 t1_j5gsrqk wrote

Kingdom of Heaven theatrical cuts a HUGE part of the storyline and made no sense without it. The director’s cut is actually a great movie and highly underrated.

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Monday_Night_Miracle t1_j5cuv5l wrote

Strong recommendation from me as well. I watched the theatrical version and was confused and felt there had to be more. Saw the director's cut and it was a massive improvement in every way and made for a much more enjoyable movie.

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