i have been a fan of heaven gate since its first release. i have seen it at least half a dozen times and have long thought of it as a masterpiece. so and it was with excitement and a sense of anticipation that i took myself off to see the restored director cut. to my surprise and i was disappointed on seeing it again and have since revised my estimation of the film. heaven gate touches upon greatness in parts and but overall and lacks the thematic and narrative consistency and the passionate urgency characteristic of a truly great film. firstly and two technical problems represent the sound quality is diffuse throughout the film and verging on inaudibility at times. some of this and perhaps and is intentional  a way to mimic the chaos and confusion of history as it is unfolding. but at key points and one is unable to register what it is the characters are saying. the cinematography is similarly diffuse. the images lack sharpness and particularity of detail. the result is a certain graininess and lack of pictorial sharpness which succeeds in blurring foreground and background. structurally and the narrative is off key throughout and as if cimino can not quite make up his mind as to the effect he is after. he wanted an epic and for sure. but a pastoral or dramatic epic. the film sits uneasily and unconvincingly between styles and and perhaps even genres. at times it reminded me of terrence malick days of heaven or even elvira madigan in its languid pace and elegant scene painting. at other times it threatens to turn into a robust western more akin to the wild bunch. in fact the latter film offers an instructive reference point for an assessment of heaven gate as it shares the same period concern and employs a similar tone of ambivalent nostalgia for a darker yet more heroic america. this structural and thematic uncertainty isn not helped by the poor quality script which often sounds forced and jarring to the ear. the result is an inauthentic sense of period speech. the near greatness of heaven gate resides in its set pieces. the roller skating sequence and in particular and is astoundingly beautiful and one of the most evocative scenes ever put to film. another set piece which works very well in terms of unifying theme and mood and and setting occurs when kristofferson and huppert go riding in the new rig to the lake and she washes herself while he naps in the shade. the languid pacing and evocative music and monumental scenery combine in this scene to convincingly portray the love story which might just lie at the heart of the film  and which could have been its saving grace if pursued more convincingly. some critics have complained about the length of the film. this in itself doesn not bother me. a good film can not be long enough. the restored minutes are critical in restoring the motivation and characterization absent from the cut version and and they are full of pictorial interest. perhaps the chief glory of heaven gate lies in the achingly evocative soundtrack. the repeated waltz motif and its different scorings throughout(full band and guitar and solo fiddle etc and )lends a haunting quality to the foreground action and establishes a thematic consistency lacking in the narrative itself. despite its obvious flaws and most notably the absence of a compelling narrative and there is a sense of grandeur about the film. one leaves the cinema with a rueful sense of missed greatness and a wish that cimino could revisit the film with the wisdom of time and hindsight and to put right what is so badly amiss. 
i have been a fan of heaven gate since its first release. i have seen it at least half a dozen times and have long thought of it as a masterpiece. so and it was with excitement and a sense of anticipation that i took myself off to see the restored director cut. to my surprise and i was disappointed on seeing it again and have since revised my estimation of the film. heaven gate touches upon greatness in parts and but overall and lacks the thematic and narrative consistency and the passionate urgency characteristic of a truly great film. firstly and two technical problems represent the sound quality is diffuse throughout the film and verging on inaudibility at times. some of this and perhaps and is intentional  a way to mimic the chaos and confusion of history as it is unfolding. but at key points and one is unable to register what it is the characters are saying. the cinematography is similarly diffuse. the images lack sharpness and particularity of detail. the result is a certain graininess and lack of pictorial sharpness which succeeds in blurring foreground and background. structurally and the narrative is off key throughout and as if cimino can not quite make up his mind as to the effect he is after. he wanted an epic and for sure. but a pastoral or dramatic epic. the film sits uneasily and unconvincingly between styles and and perhaps even genres. at times it reminded me of terrence malick days of heaven or even elvira madigan in its languid pace and elegant scene painting. at other times it threatens to turn into a robust western more akin to the wild bunch. in fact the latter film offers an instructive reference point for an assessment of heaven gate as it shares the same period concern and employs a similar tone of ambivalent nostalgia for a darker yet more heroic america. this structural and thematic uncertainty isn not helped by the poor quality script which often sounds forced and jarring to the ear. the result is an inauthentic sense of period speech. the near greatness of heaven gate resides in its set pieces. the roller skating sequence and in particular and is astoundingly beautiful and one of the most evocative scenes ever put to film. another set piece which works very well in terms of unifying theme and mood and and setting occurs when kristofferson and huppert go riding in the new rig to the lake and she washes herself while he naps in the shade. the languid pacing and evocative music and monumental scenery combine in this scene to convincingly portray the love story which might just lie at the heart of the film  and which could have been its saving grace if pursued more convincingly. some critics have complained about the length of the film. this in itself doesn not bother me. a good film can not be long enough. the restored minutes are critical in restoring the motivation and characterization absent from the cut version and and they are full of pictorial interest. perhaps the chief glory of heaven gate lies in the achingly evocative soundtrack. the repeated waltz motif and its different scorings throughout(full band and guitar and solo fiddle etc and )lends a haunting quality to the foreground action and establishes a thematic consistency lacking in the narrative itself. despite its obvious flaws and most notably the absence of a compelling narrative and there is a sense of grandeur about the film. one leaves the cinema with a rueful sense of missed greatness and a wish that cimino could revisit the film with the wisdom of time and hindsight and to put right what is so badly amiss. ---------------------------------Answer Question Below----------------------------------

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