Film modification
Encyclopedia
The term film modification can be used in general for any form of modification of a film to suit the distributor or the audience's politics or age.
, who regularly stole prints of American movies from European countries during their Blitzkrieg
raids. They would then either cheaply reanimate the movie (see Hochzeit im Korallenmeer
), or they would change the names in the credits (as with Max and David Fleischer's cartoons).
As theatrical movies began to air on television, networks successfully sought permission to air shortened versions of movies. These TV version of theatrical films had scenes or sections of movies cut out, in order to provide a length short enough to fit in fixed number normal television half-hour-based time slots (often 4 half-hour slots). This also allowed scenes unsuitable for television to be cut or trimmed such as those with sex or graphic violence. On the other hand, networks would also often add footage deleted from a film's theatrical release to pad out a certain running time (3 to 4 hours).
At the end of the 1990s, some small companies began selling copies of movies, without the violent, indecent or foul language parts, to appeal to the family audience. By 2003, Hollywood reacted against these unauthorized modifications, as it considered them to be a destruction of the filmmakers work, and a violation of the controls an author has over his or her works. Famous directors and producers, such as Steven Spielberg
, have publicly criticised this practice in magazines.
Less controversial than external bodies editing movies were the rise of director's cut
editions of movies, which flourished with the advent of DVD
s. These restore (and occasionally also shorten or omit, as in the case of Alien
) scenes or footage from movies which had been shortened for whatever reason (including studio interference with the directors creative vision, inability to finish what was intended due to technology, or even the reactions of test audiences).
Background
Early cases of this practice go back to the NazisNazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
, who regularly stole prints of American movies from European countries during their Blitzkrieg
Blitzkrieg
For other uses of the word, see: Blitzkrieg Blitzkrieg is an anglicized word describing all-motorised force concentration of tanks, infantry, artillery, combat engineers and air power, concentrating overwhelming force at high speed to break through enemy lines, and, once the lines are broken,...
raids. They would then either cheaply reanimate the movie (see Hochzeit im Korallenmeer
Hochzeit im Korallenmeer
Svatba v korálovém moři is a 1943 Czechoslovak animated short film. It was written, animated and directed by a group of Czech cartoonists including Jiří Brdečka, Jaroslav Kándl, Eduard Hofman, Břetislav Pojar, Václav Bedřich, Stanislav Látal, Jaroslav Doubrava and Josef Kluge in German-occupied...
), or they would change the names in the credits (as with Max and David Fleischer's cartoons).
As theatrical movies began to air on television, networks successfully sought permission to air shortened versions of movies. These TV version of theatrical films had scenes or sections of movies cut out, in order to provide a length short enough to fit in fixed number normal television half-hour-based time slots (often 4 half-hour slots). This also allowed scenes unsuitable for television to be cut or trimmed such as those with sex or graphic violence. On the other hand, networks would also often add footage deleted from a film's theatrical release to pad out a certain running time (3 to 4 hours).
At the end of the 1990s, some small companies began selling copies of movies, without the violent, indecent or foul language parts, to appeal to the family audience. By 2003, Hollywood reacted against these unauthorized modifications, as it considered them to be a destruction of the filmmakers work, and a violation of the controls an author has over his or her works. Famous directors and producers, such as Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
, have publicly criticised this practice in magazines.
Less controversial than external bodies editing movies were the rise of director's cut
Director's cut
A director's cut is a specially edited version of a film, and less often TV series, music video, commercials, comic book or video games, that is supposed to represent the director's own approved edit...
editions of movies, which flourished with the advent of DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
s. These restore (and occasionally also shorten or omit, as in the case of Alien
Alien (film)
Alien is a 1979 science fiction horror film directed by Ridley Scott and starring Tom Skerritt, Sigourney Weaver, Veronica Cartwright, Harry Dean Stanton, John Hurt, Ian Holm and Yaphet Kotto. The film's title refers to its primary antagonist: a highly aggressive extraterrestrial creature which...
) scenes or footage from movies which had been shortened for whatever reason (including studio interference with the directors creative vision, inability to finish what was intended due to technology, or even the reactions of test audiences).
Opening Disclaimers
In any case, theatrical films that aired on television in the 1970s and most of the 1980s would simply have an "Edited For Television" disclaimer superimposed right after the opening credits. However, today, when a theatrical film or television special is aired on network or syndicated television or is re-issued on video in a form different from its original version, variations of the following disclaimers appear:- "This film has been modified from its original version. It has been formatted to fit this screen."
- Depending on content and time, the disclaimer will add: "...to run in the time allotted and for content.", or, "...and to run in the time allotted", or, "...and edited for content".
- Disney films prepared for television by Disney-ABC Domestic Television and other select TV stations will have: "This film has been edited for television", or "This film has been modified from its original version. It has been edited for television and formatted to fit this screen."
- Many DVD releases that contain versions of films different from the theatrical releases, such as Universal Studios Home VideoUniversal StudiosUniversal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
's LegendLegend (film)Legend is a 1985 fantasy film released by Universal Pictures, directed by Ridley Scott and starring Tom Cruise, Mia Sara, and Tim Curry. Though not a very notable success when first released, it received a single Academy Award nomination for Best Makeup, and since its initial release, has developed...
director's cut DVD will have: "This film has been modified from its original version to include additional material not in the original release."