Originally, Frank Oz wanted Little Shop of Horrors to feature the same ending of the Off-Broadway show that inspired the movie. The only problem was that in this finale, everybody dies. Bummer. But Oz filmed footage of mean green mothers from outer space taking over the world anyway, only to have his intended conclusion shot down by studio execs after a disastrous test screening forced him to do reshoots that resulted in the film as we know it. When the movie originally came to DVD in 1998, it featured black and white workprint footage of the plant-induced carnage that has been on YouTube for years. Producer David Geffer was displeased at the shoddy nature of this material and had the DVD recalled (with rumors abounding that he was planning on a re-release that featured a color version of the original ending). That never happened until yesterday when Little Shop of Horrors: The Director's Cut Blu-ray was released. As you can see above, this weird alternate ending completely changes the tone of the entire movie...though the model work is stunning. Admittedly it's nice to finally see this footage in color and with completed music and sound effects. But I'm firmly in the camp that believes that the theatrical version is way better. Now that you've seen this alternate version, what do you all think? (Via Yahoo)
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This movie has just crossed The Godzilla Threshold!
(I now have a need to go rewatch Godzilla vs. Biollante...)
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This could have been easily added to the movie in the scene where the hero confronts the plant. The plant laughs and says something like "Okay LOSER! GUESS WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN NOW!" and gives a long laugh... Then it fades to this scene. After it ends, it fades back to the flower shop with the hero yelling "I'M NOT GOING TO LET THAT HAPPEN!" and attacks the plant.
The "downer" ending comes from the original Roger Corman film. It's a retelling of the old Faust story, with a Sci-Fi/Horror twist. The ending released in theaters simply doesn't work. That said, the "giant plants smashing buildings" scenes go on for far-too-long and should have been trimmed a bit.
Wow that's pretty amazing stuff! Such hard work went into it. Reminds me of the Stay Puft attack in Ghostbusters. I miss miniature cities being destroyed, especially when done that well. I do think the original ending works better though. They made those characters so loveable it would be such a downer to see them lose.
I think both endings could work together, as all the destruction could be a fantasy sequence in Seymore's mind, which gives him the strength to kill Audrey II as he does in the original ending...
I always liked how the plants took out the Roxy Theater.........
By the way, I posted the whole ending (Seymour & Audrey getting eaten......the great Paul Dooley .....Don't feed the plants) on the DVD/BluRay post earlier this week
Not a surprise that it didn't fly with test audiences. It's a good ending but I find in sampling things you get certain traits. With most Off-Broadway groups who see things in theater the fact that everyone dies would not throw anyone. Most movie people like to see some sort of hope or triumph of their heroes.
In the movie, "The Great Escape." based off a true escape from a German POW camp. Test audiences actually rated the movie better when the end had sounds of Steve McQueen bouncing a baseball off the wall and catching it to show there was still hope and they wouldn't be kept down.
Either way they end though, I like it. I'll think of them like the twist-O-plot books of my youth.
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There is a scene at about 0:39 that should be mandatory in every giant-monster-destroying-the-city movie ever - a guy poking up out of the bottom corner of a scene of wanton destruction in about a 3/4 view, eyes wild with fear as a scream escapes his widening mouth.
Absolutely perfect. Think I'll have to pick this bluray up.
given how much i have heard about the alternate ending and one reason it got changed was back then the film goers wanted seymour and audrey to be together and did not like that they got eaten. i actully think the original ending works better for it gives into the horror part of little shop not to mention the hilerity of the world being taken over by ma eating plants . glad its finaly shown in color
I love the film but I hardly would call the alternate ending "silly". It's epic and over the top yes, but it made a sappy ending into an 80's effects orgy of destruction!
And anyway, the ending they went with is left ambiguous... although the hero gets his girl, we're left with the image of a little Audrey II clearly intending to move forward with its sinister plot. So who knows- the original ending may have taken place ANYWAY, but at least Seymour got to live happily with Audrey for a while.
I personally think Seymour and Audrey deserved a happy ending, considering all the shit they went through. The original ending, while edgier I suppose, was just too much of a downer.
I saw the original ending a long time ago, and I can understand people not liking it. Only because the movie makes Audrey and Seymour sympathetic characters, so it's kind of a kick in the nuts to have them perish, then the end of the world happens. I like this ending, even if it goes on a little long. From what I understand, Frank Oz just wanted to indulge in some monster rampage that expanded on the musical. I thought Warner's would have kept it just because the sequence cost something like 5 million to do.
@GarethPrime No, the entire plot (from stage play to film) was designed from the beginning to be a modern-day Greek tragedy, complete with Chorus, hubris, deals with unknowable forces with promise of fortune, and eventual downfall. Without the "downfall" aspect, the rest of the film makes very little sense from that perspective.
@Mike_Pants @GarethPrime Yet, even with Greek Tragedies, it was the main characters who paid the price. The unknowable forces didn't end up destroying the world.
While I totally enjoy watching this ending just for the mayhem of it, it doesn't really follow from the rest of the story. At no point is the fate of the world brought into play, until the very end -- the whole time it's been a story about people in Skid Row and the choices and consequences to their lives. It would be like Oedipus does his mom and then the Kraken comes to swallow Greece. It's an ending, but not one that really fits the tone or scope of the story.
The original original ending, where they do get eaten but become part of Audrey II and sing about their downfall is consistent. As fun as Crush, Crumble, and Chomp is, it's not the right ending for the musical.
@Mike_Pants No, that's cool. I don't exactly agree with the changes made just for art's sake. Audiences just don't have thick enough skin and the movie was pretty expensive at the time. So they blinked after testing. It would have probably held up better over time with the tragic ending in tact. The revised ending is kind of worse, because, well, Seymour got away with feeding people to a plant scott free. Hell if they had to change it, they could've had Seymour's death not been in vain or something.
