What Counts as the Definitive Version of a Movie?

Theatrical cut, special edition, limited extended edition, unrated director’s cut, the list goes on. Different versions of a movie often divide audiences and fans on which cut should be considered “definitive” or the best way to experience the film.

My stance on this debate is simple: the best version of a movie is what the director personally chooses, not the viewer. It’s one creative vision and as the chief architect of a motion picture, the filmmaker should have ultimate authority to decide what stays in the final release and what gets left on the cutting room floor.

The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy has its die-hard Extended Edition fans but Peter Jackson made it clear that the original cuts released in theaters are the films he intended to make. After all, those were the versions that received exceptional praises especially The Return of the King which swept the Oscars with 11 nominations and wins.

Ridley Scott’s sci-fi horror classic Alien has a 2003 Director’s Cut featuring new scenes not in the theatrical version yet Scott has said he is content with the movie as it premiered in 1979. He has also made similar remarks for Gladiator which received an Extended Cut on DVD in 2005. As for Blade Runner its 2007 Final Cut gave Scott a decisive victory over studio executives since the movie’s 1982 theatrical release.

The original Star Wars trilogy is well known for the many notorious changes George Lucas implemented across its re-releases from the 1997 Special Editions to the 2004 DVDs and the 2011 Blu-rays. As much as people love to complain about these alterations, they need to accept that Lucas was never satisfied with the unaltered theatrical versions of these films and repeatedly modified them until he could no longer do so thanks to the Disney buyout.

Movie buffs can debate all they want but facts are facts. The director has final say on what is part of the finished film and we have to come to terms with it, for better or worse.