Eric Fellner: 4 Hr. LES MIZ Film Extended Cut?

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 12/28/12 at 2:11am

Sorry for yet ANOTHER thread, but just wanted to hear opinions on this... The article title does say "unlikely" but Fellner says it's a possibility, but it would take a lot of work.

C: How long was your first cut on this thing?

Fellner: About four and a bit.

C: [Laughs] Now the big question is if this is a huge hit in theaters is there the possibility of doing a re-release extended cut?

Fellner: There’s always that possibility. But, it would take a hell of a lot of work. Because unlike a movie where you just have to do a little ADR and then some mixing, we’ve actually got to bring the orchestra back because there is music, as you probably noticed, right the way through the film so you have to orchestrate all of that extra time. It wasn’t like we cut songs out; we cut bits of songs, bits of action or bits of whatever. So we would have to go back in get a full orchestra re-orchestrate it, re-score it, re-record it. It’s a massive job. But, if there’s a demand we can always discuss it.

C: Is there the possibility of doing an extended cut on the Blu-ray down the road? Are there deleted scenes that came out at the last second that you had scored?

Fellner: No, we only scored the very finished film. For one thing Tom did an amazing thing. We screened the film at 2:46 or 2:47 to the studio and then to a little bit of a wider audience, but not that much wider, and it went down incredibly well and everyone really, really liked it. We said, “It would be great if it was shorter, how could we try and make it shorter? But it works pretty well as is.” Tom, to his credit, and I’ve worked with many, many directors and they would have just gone locked; he came back to London and said “Ok, let’s go.” And he cut seventeen minutes out of it in a matter of two weeks and I watched the film and I could hardly see the cuts. It was incredible what he did. It was literally him and his editor and they just kind of shaved it, shaved it, shaved it and the film suddenly had a…because you would notice, it motors, the film. It literally just sprints from one scene to the next. I think for a musical you’ve got to do that, because otherwise people who aren’t used to musicals could find themselves getting bored or whatever. So he cut it down, and I think it’s good at that length. So the answer ultimately is no, we never orchestrated that longer version. But we could, we might do. There’s one song that Sacha [Baron Cohen] sang in the sewers that’s not in the movie, that’s the only song. That would be very doable to put that back.

http://collider.com/eric-fellner-les-miserables-rush-interview/220158/#more-220158

[DEClarke]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 12:49am

I, for one, would totally pay to have a 4+ hour cut on my Blu-Ray!

[sabrelady]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 3:19am

so "Dog Eat Dog" exists in the same netherworld as "The Tale of Sweeny Todd" sung by the 4 ghosts. We'll see that one b4 we see DED>

[My Oh My]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 3:33am

It's upsetting that they think they have to rehire the orchestra and do it all from scratch as the only option. I am vehemently against canned orchestras in live shows but I'm more flexible, as I'm sure most people would be, when it comes to films. Nowadays, the advancement in orchestral sample libraries is so vast and so realistic, you can put two recordings--one real orch, the other sample-based--and even the most unforgiving, nit picky ears won't be able to tell the difference. The reason being, those samples no longer are electronically rendered or synthetic; they are actual instruments played by real musicians, so it's like a meticulous jigsaw puzzle of sounds pieced together into a real, living orchestral score.

I use nothing but real orchestral samples in my tracks that I've created. That means human musicians actually played an actual orchestral instrument note by note and had every single one of those notes recorded in a professional studio. I've then taken those huge collections of single notes and, with the help of sophisticated software, have connected them seamlessly into scores. Some people even think I play instruments and that's me performing each one in the tracks. I can't even play the piano, lol. Should any of the instruments in my tracks sound 'fake' or synthetic, it's due to the mixing, which leaves much to be desired because all my tracks are currently a work in-progress.

But I suspect they did not hire a real orchestra for the film and did what most every film does these days--use high quality orchestral sample technology.

I'd happily settle for that, if they think hiring a whole orchestra is too much work.

Updated On: 12/30/12 at 03:33 AM

[NoName3]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 4:30am

The article says, or at least implies, that Dog Eats Dog was filmed but not used, so it could be restored. The Ballad of Sweeney Todd was never filmed, though the music and vocals were prerecorded with the rest of the score. So it will never be put back since it doesn't exist.

[DEClarke]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 9:36am

In the making of stuff for LES MISÉRABLES they show that they used a full orchestra in the recording of the music. On set, it was an ear piece and a guy with a piano. The full orchestra was hired as the last piece of the film.

In all actuality, I don't miss "Dog Eat Dog," but I'd love to see the 4+ hour cut of the film. I'd love to see how the full score was filmed and edited. I'd be willing to pay extra for a "special edition" that gave the opportunity to see both the theatrical cut and the 4+ hour cut. So, I really hope this happens.

"Ballad of Sweeney Todd" wasn't filmed because Depp's daughter got ill and he had to leave set to be with her. I have never heard of the ghost in the netherworld part. I guess I didn't follow the filming of SWEENEY TODD too closely.

[Auggie27]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 9:59am

Off topic, but maybe not.

Anyone else feeling more love (and respect) for the Burton SWEENEY, post all this MIZ shtus? I've found myself more admiring of the cinematic techniques, the storytelling, and especially the way Burton made the escalating crises in the 2nd act work. I still have problems with Bonham-Carter in the front end, "Worst Pies" disappointing to me for its avoidance of music hall (though she's deeply moving with Tobias late in the tale), and miss the "Kiss Me" music terribly. But Burton's work seems so powerfully in control of the material, now. More so. I still have my screener, and plan to watch it again today.

Sidebar: I think it was Stephen Holden in the Times who felt the problem with Bonham-Carter's Mrs. Lovett was that it was too close to Burton's Sweeney in style and tone -- another strung out Zombie -- and the missing difference eliminated dynamic and contrasting sparks. (I still think Tracy Ullman or Toni Collette would've found the "Lansbury" in the role; but Burton clearly didn't see it there to begin with).

Updated On: 12/30/12 at 09:59 AM

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 10:03am

It may be worth it, theoreticaly, just so that "One Day More" comes just before an intermission (leaving aside that it may need to be refilmed to have that act finale kind of impact).

[jdtp12]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 12:57pm

I honestly wouldn't even mind if they had an extended version on the DVD/Blu-Ray that just had their vocals and the piano track they sang to. It could be kind of interesting to hear the stripped down version. Of course, it'd still be preferable to hear it with the entire orchestra.

[darquegk]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 12:58pm

As was discussed in the previous thread, the focus shift to Javert for the second half of the song was One Day More's only real saving grace on film. Its dramaturgical purpose for the film is to show the scene "Javert devises a plan to stage a counter-revolution by disguising himself as one of the revolutionaries and infiltrating the barricades." Onstage, this point is relatively moot within the song- it's more about the characters turning out and singing to us of the current stasis.

[JP2]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 1:04pm

The "4 hour cut" was simply the assembly. That would never be released. Hooper says his initial directors cut was about 3 hours. If anything, we'd get the latter.

[jdtp12]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 1:29pm

I'd be good with the three hour version too. It just seems like scenes like "Fantine's Arrest" and "Attack on the Rue Plumet" were so short and chopped up, they could've benefited from being in full.

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 1:29pm

"I'd love to see how the full score was filmed and edited."

Wasn't the final cut of the film the only thing orchestrated? Wouldn't these extended cuts need to have the orchestra come back in for the score?

[Plum]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 1:57pm

Auggie, yes, when I thought over why Les Mis felt both long and rushed, I remembered how Burton's Sweeney was at least an adaptation - it hacked and slashed, but I could see why. The cuts in that movie were never my problem (though I, too, missed "Kiss Me") so much as the casting and the utter lack of humor in everything except "By the Sea".

If Hooper had taken a similarly ruthless approach there's a chance he could have created something amazing. As it is, though, I'd really like to see a cut of, say, 3.25 hours or so, which - forget "Dog Eat Dog" - would let the existing emotional beats breathe instead of going songbeatsongbeatsong.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 2:22pm

I'd like to see them actually pulling Hathaway's teeth out instead of cutting away to save time. I think it's important to how we feel about the character to actually see the rusty tools being used to excise her teeth. It's important.

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 2:56pm

Sidebar: I think it was Stephen Holden in the Times who felt the problem with Bonham-Carter's Mrs. Lovett was that it was too close to Burton's Sweeney in style and tone -- another strung out Zombie -- and the missing difference eliminated dynamic and contrasting sparks. (I still think Tracy Ullman or Toni Collette would've found the "Lansbury" in the role; but Burton clearly didn't see it there to begin with).

I've never even rewatched SWEENEY TODD and the above is precisely why. Without Mrs. Lovett's loony capitalistic excess, the central couple doesn't have enough energy to kill with such enthusiastic abandon.

(It isn't just the lack of contrast between Todd and Lovett in the film, though that too is a problem. It's that Lovett makes the story something other than yet another revenge tale. We have lots of movies about serial killers with a grudge against the world; movies about successful restaurants are much harder to find.)

Why they let Mrs. Burton take so much thorazine I'll never understand, but apparently she still has her prescription, if LES MIZ is any indication.

Updated On: 12/30/12 at 02:56 PM

[willep]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 3:13pm

"Wasn't the final cut of the film the only thing orchestrated? Wouldn't these extended cuts need to have the orchestra come back in for the score?"

I think that when the previous poster said "full score" they meant the full libretto of the show, before all the bits and pieces that got cut. But yes, they would have to rehire an orchestra for all those pieces. I think the poster was aware of that though.

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 3:28pm

Thanks! I just misinterpreted, I guess.

[RooMcGoo]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 5:04pm

An Incomplete History of Les Miserables

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 12/30/12 at 5:11pm

Thanks, Eric, I'm all set.