STACK #145 Nov 2016

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EXTRAS

The Movie That A Hollywood Film Company Destroyed

Heaven's Gate (1980) Directed by Michael Cimino Part 2 of 2

D irector Otto Preminger had best described the United Artists set-up when he stated, “Only UA has a system of true independent production. After they agree on the basic property and are consulted on the cast, they leave everything to the producer’s discrimination”.  UA had literally pioneered the notion that filmmakers should have freedom from external interference.

the huge success of his multi Academy Award- winning film  The Deer Hunter , Cimino’s name was now added to this list of innovative and creative filmmakers But unbeknownst to UA, they had signed a contract with an egotistical megalomaniac. Furthermore, his colossal extravagance and relentless pursuit of motion picture perfection would bring UA to the brink of bankruptcy and its ultimate demise. Casting the lead

Consequently, when the new UA executive struck a deal with Michael Cimino (pronounced Chi-mi-no) and his producer, Joann Carelli, to finance the director’s next movie, they naturally followed the previous regime’s proven and successful blueprint. The 1970s had seen the meteoric rise of the young  auteur  director: Peter Bogdanovich, George Lucas, Martin Scorsese, William Friedkin, Francis Ford Coppola and Steven Spielberg had created a cinematic revolution in Hollywood by directing a plethora of money-making blockbusters. Following

Michael Cimino and Kris Kristofferson on the set of Heaven’s Gate

roles is a process that always involves a delicate balance between the studio and the filmmaker. Kris Kristofferson and Christopher Walken were cast as the two lead male characters for Cimino’s now retitled movie, Heaven’s Gate . For the lead female role, UA wanted either Jane Fonda or Diane Keaton. When both actresses turned it down, Cimino suggested Isabelle Huppert. “Who?” asked the UA production heads. Huppert was a little known French actress who could only

...unbeknownst to UA they had signed a contract with an egotistical megalomaniac

NOVEMBER 2016

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