Event Horizon does this too, it's a dark movie that ends on a semi-cliffhanger but the music that plays over the credits is some high-energy drum and bass shit that's just incredibly jarring.
'Funky Shit' by the Prodigy. I may be bias cause I like Prodigy and the album that song comes from, but I kind of see at the sounds of the fair ground after leaving the Haunted House ride. Weird I know, but it feels like a nudge to calm your nerves and go have fun. Anyway, Being There; great
I can understand Sellers' dislike. Not only because the outtakes disperse the magic, but also because they reveal something of the process, which actors strive to conceal from the audience. As a member of the audience though, when I got to see it, I experienced the outtakes as a bittersweet dessert. Because by then he'd died; the hilarious business of trying to get through the takes without laughing said everything I wanted to see in Sellers' performances.
Being There is one of my top ten films. I saw it when it was first released and watched it a few months ago with my adult daughter. I was surprised to hear you describe the ending as sad. I still have the same reaction to that final shot that I had four decades ago: smiling broadly with watery eyes. It's a wonderful end to a beautiful movie. The credit outtakes don't bother me and never have. The film ends. The credits begin. They're separate animals. It's like watching a preview for a horror movie before the comedy feature. I do have a friend who loves the film but feels as you do about the credits. The other thing I like about the character of Chance is that he has no arc. He is the same simple man from start to finish, while everyone around him changes as they are touched by his quiet strength. It's the exact opposite of Groundhog Day, where only Bill Murray has an arc. Thanks for posting the video. I welcome any opportunity to revisit this amazing film.
Peter Sellers had already had an incredible number of heart attacks by the time this movie was made. Since he died 7 months after its release, I always took this credit sequence as away to enjoy Peter the man one last time. Perhaps whoever decided to use this sequence didn't know he would die so soon, or maybe they could feel it coming, but I feel it adds a bittersweet capper to his career. Aside from how it affects your view of the film, aren't you glad to have seen Peter laugh a few last times?
Your right, it's a very fitting scene for the last time Peter sellers would appear on film and a nice goodbye. The only other time I can think of this happening is Desmond Llewellyn who played Q in the Bond films. Where in the world is not enough, he says bye to Brosnans 007 as he is retiring from MI6 and gives him some fatherly advice and shows some emotion for James Bond for the first time. In real life the actor was retiring from the franchise and was killed not long after in a car accident I think it was.
I reckon the shift must have been from some high-up who was worried that the audience would be leaving without a smile - so shoved in the outtakes to send the punters home laughing.
I agree with this theory. After all this is PETER SELLERS (aka Inspector Clouseau) and this movie is darkly comic instead of silly comic. I don't know if Ashby was given final decision on this, but this sounds very plausible that some producer or exec thought this should be done. Hollywood really hates to disappoint their audience with realistic or sad endings. Besides, look at how funny those "Smokey and the Bandit" outtakes were!
Yeah, this seems like studio meddling, possibly after a test screening. I can picture it now, "This is too much of a downer. We gotta make people laugh!".
Reminds me about the end of Dodgeball. Ben Stiller's character didn't actually step over the line in the original cut. Test Screening audiences HATED the ending of them losing to Ben Stiller's character and his team, so they reshot the ending and changed it to a happier ending with him winning and Ben Stiller actually stepping over the line.
I heard once somewhere, That american audiences always want a happy ending, and I really believe that. In every movie even if the ending is sad, there is still enough of a win that you can feel good about. I want movies that illustrate life, it doesn't always end with anything good.
Dellacondan the movie was made in america by an american studio which, at least for some time, were infamously known to work under the misconception that a movie without a happy ending could not be profitable.... so in a way, american politics are at fault for this, even if it's just american film studio politics
Much as I liked the film "Being There", which I saw when it came out, I LOVED the outtakes in the end credit sequence even more. Yeah, it took you out of the movie, but that's what an end-credit sequence is supposed to do. This one was an homage to the brilliance of Peter Sellers as an actor, and I came out of the theater appreciating his talent on a level I never had before. Since there was no question that he had nailed the very difficult part of Chance the Gardener, (I had read Jerzy Kazinski's book), watching him tackle and fail after dozens of attempts to say this one line in Chance's clueless monotone was delicious. We saw him persist again and again, not in frustration but in delight that he had come across a comic situation that he couldn't pull off. The mirth infected the whole film crew, and there was a palpable electricity on the set as all the behind-the-scenes people were pulling for him. If I recall correctly, he never did pull it off, because the finished scene wasn't even in the final cut. I can see your point, that the outtakes cleared the memory of what had gone before, but for me it enhanced it.
It is one of my favorite films. Every time I watch it, I always look forward to the credits because it brings me to tears laughing so hard. It was a hilarious moment captured forever on film that I feel privileged to have experienced. It made me feel like I was on the set, a part of the crew. Plenty of movies show "bloopers" at the end credits. It gives the movie goer a little insight as to the "behind the scenes" part of the film. Nowadays, we get this kind of insight in the bonus materials on dvds, but back then, this was the best way available to let the public see something special. In my opinion, it had nothing to do with the film or it's message. It was a completely separate entity that was a joy to watch. It's all good.
The timing of the music Also Sprach Zarathustra's first crescendo to Chance's first step out of the house is brilliant. And fortunately, they play the entire tune, culminating in the crushing of Chance's leg by Eve's limo.
I saw "Being There" in the theatre when it was released, having read the book. While the movie as a whole is a rather literal adaptation, the very end goes beyond the book in a way that is enigmatic, to say the least. When the credits began rolling, I felt that it was Mr. Ashby's way of saying, "Relax, it's only a movie." Otherwise, it might be genuinely disturbing to think that the U.S. presidency could fall to a man who perceives the world through television and who is a creation of television himself. Oh, wait...
Huh. I tried to answer before, but the page reset. Odd. I saw it in the theater, too. At the end, when everyone got up to leave, someone yelled at us to sit back down and watch. So we did. That was the first end-credit scene I ever saw, and I think it was probably the first. I think the reason for it was to get people to sit through the credits. We all had some good laughs, though, with those out-takes.
I didn't know Seller's had tried to get that scene removed-- but it makes the whole thing even more inexplicable. I mean, I'd understand if Coppola stuck a fart joke in the middle of the Godfather while putting the movie together, but I wouldn't understand if he refused to remove it after Brando pointed out that it's the Godfather and that's a fart joke.
Robot Dinosaur no, he was like that in the 70s. He was like that for a good portion of his career. It only surfaced for the public at large near the end of his career after being like that for decades.
After Peter Sellers walks on water, they can do pretty much anything. Incidentally I would have not thought about the breaking of the spell without your commentary. I guess I agree. But I have gotten great joy from those antics over the years-the clip reduces me to a mass of quivering protoplasm. We shouldn’t be deprived of Sellers’ magic; perhaps on the extras on the disk?
You're right: the spell can't last forever. So why break it sooner than your have to? Why ruin the magic of the film you've just seen, by breaking the spell IMMEDIATELY and revealing the magician's secrets to your audience?
@@Igaveyoumyfakename You share an interesting perspective, albeit one that has the benefit of seeing films with deleted scenes and a ton of extras included on a dvd. I think had they not included the clip, something so small yet so absolutely hilarious might’ve been lost on the cutting room floor. And it also stands as a bittersweet coda for a great career that most actors never get for a final film.
I've often wondered how a bloopers/outtakes might be at the end of a horror movie. Ok it would destroy the essence of it but somehow the idea entertains me.
But only tongue-in-cheek bloopers of the big bad, maybe something incredibly CG gory like ripping someone in half that they get the cleaning lady in to reset.
I always found the Japanese-accented version of "Fly Me To The Moon" that plays during the end credits of _Neon Genesis Evangelion_ to be one of the oddest tonal shifts ever.
Hugh Dingwall Very true, but then again the opening theme to Evangelion is really misleading as well, if it didn't have the cryptic lyrics to contrast with the upbeat 90s Synthesizer music, it would have set up a weird tone shift. Personally, I think the ending credits of Perfect Blue are a good example tonal dissonance. While the movie ended on a somewhat happy note, (for Mima at least.) That overtly happy cheesy 1980s "Everything's Great! Loving Life!" pop music that blares out at the end was fucking god awful. All it did was just ruin the whole realistic dark tone of the movie. Using a pop song itself, I can understand since Mima was a former pop star, but they should have at the very least chosen, a more subdued somber pop ballad type song with lyrics about identity and figuring out who you are. It would have fit the movie a lot better and that kind of music is standard for musicians anyway. I love the movie, but I always turn it off before I hear that terrible song.
Hi George, I just want to say thank you I get a lot of enjoyment out of your videos, more than you'll ever know. Last couple years I have been turning to RUclips for an escape from the rigors off everyday life. One that I can actually afford. It's channels like yours that provide me with hours and hours of entertainment that is very hard to pull off being funny and educational at the same time. I really appreciate what you've done for a lot of people like myself and hopefully soon I will be able to contribute to your patreon account. Thank you bro
Funny how the tone and style of Georg's videos have changed over the course of 4 yrs. This one is a capsule from 4 yrs ago (and it shows, but not in a bad way). A very concise, miniature topic, but very well presented. One can tell his confidence has increased a lot, up to a point whete his most recent ones are little masterpieces of absurd, tongue-in-cheek British humor. What a great YTer ....
that only reveals that the puppet show was a puppet show all along and will have no impact on the message within the puppet show. everyone already knows its a puppet show, everyone already knows this is a movie. rubbing it in their faces diminishes the parallel the show tried to make with the real world, not strengthens it
I always thought it would be great if puppet movies, like Happytime Murders, plot twisted at the end and revealed that, in universe, everyone can see it's just a guy with a puppet arm, but this is normal, accepted behavior.
Being There came on the television when I was a child and while I barely got it at all it was the first time I realized what movies were and could be. I was totally blown away by it. I recalled it years and years later and it felt fresh in my memory only after one viewing as a child. Rewatching it is always a lovely time for me. Absolutely brilliant.
Thank you and yes! I will cut it of before the ending credits. I'm so grateful you did this because I vaguely recall seeing this movie many years ago when it was featured on 'ON-TV' in a UHF special pay-per-view format (Yes! that long ago!)
I always hated these out takes at the end too, but later I came to the conclusion that the concept of seeing what you want to see and reading into deeper meanings of the simplicity of Chauncey Gardener gives us as viewer the upper hand of truly understanding what Chauncey is rally saying as opposed to the characters in the movie gives us the feeling of superiority of understanding and perception . Then its flipped on us as viewers, we too were fooled by Chauncey Gardener , he's an actor in a movie, not a saint like simpleton
Yes, I agree. Both 2001 and Being There (even using the same piece of music and similar imagery) are trying to get us to look at ourselves and our culture, and how we are influenced by what we are watching on screens. Very relevant for today, even more so than ever perhaps.
You are so right about the credits, it's like they were worried it wasn't 'funny' enough so they threw in the outtakes. Could it be that they were concerned that warm and poignant were not enough to cut the mustard. A great movie, in my top 10 of all time.
I enjoyed the credits, it gave me a sense of the satiric, nihilistic feeling the movie had in general, something so harsh taken with such lightness, Chance on T.V., with the president, and talking about the most simple, a garden, as if he was a void and all around was engaging becaus of it, he is emptyness and matter shatters and collides to nothing. The laws of the universe, chaos. And then he walks on water.... As if saying, if cognitiveness gives you weight, your life is only because you made it, particles are activated when looked upon, go to credits, he is just an actor and he us just laughing
The only thing that I can think of about it is what Hal Ashby said on the DVD extras . There's audio of him talking about the movie . He said he went to see it at the theater and everyone watched the whole credits/outtakes thing except one guy who went to walk out , but then turned around and stood there watching it till the end too !! So , for what it's worth , that's what Hal thought about it .
I have to absolutely, positively agree with everything this man says. I saw this movie on "cable" as a teenager. I was confused. Was I supposed to be laughing throughout the movie? The end credits totally ruined the feeling - especially given the somewhat sad ending. A much better way to run the credits would have been to have the "snow" on a TV set and possibly switch the channels every few seconds to some pop culture soap operas, sitcoms or TV reruns. It would have maintained the general theme that everything that Chauncey knew and learned, was from TV.
That would have been an interesting ending, but I personally think the original ending was perfection and all they need to do was fade to black. If I remember correctly the last words were, "life is a state of mind".
This is my favorite comedy of all time. I think the ending with peter breaking up is perfect. I think you hated it because it broke the spell of the film. But for me it made the experience of the movie into what it should be, something light and not pretentious. The movie really does flirt with taking on the very pretension it seeks to mock. The Jesus scene for instance was really laying it on thick at the end... The ending is a way to mock the pretension of a movie that is about mocking pretensions. Also I found the outtakes the only part of the film that made the laugh out loud.
Ashby wanted the ending to showcase Seller's talent. I think it actually took away from his performance, it didn't add to it. Practically ruined the film for me. Frankly, we didn't need to see it to see how good Seller's performance was: we say his performance.
Seeing the credits is always a return to reality. Even if they had showed a relevant scene during the credits we would understand that words don't usually fly vertically in the air and we would be aware that we would be watching a movie.Maybe the director thought that since they were going to be breaking the spell at that point they might as well go for broke and use some outtakes. Doesn't sound like it was a good idea in this instance, though.
I think the way they undermined the film during the credits is perfect. Being There clearly is a sweet version of Life of Brian. All the people Chancy meet hear what they want to hear according to their character, the president even embelleshing his quotes with economic jargon. Except for the doctor, who sees through him, representing science, I guess. Chancy walking on water at the end is already an undermining of the reality of the film and only witnessed by us, and not by any character. Nowhere else in the film does he perform any miracles. My interpretation is that we are not to believe he is Jesus but that the historical Jesus has been misinterpreted in the same way. During the credits they are making sure that Chancy is not a real person but fictional played by Peter Sellers, connecting it to the scene where Chancy sees himself on television for the first time when he is filmed from a shop window. It is not meant to be an ethereal film, but to show how stupidly people only hear what they want to hear. That's why the credit sequence is essential.
I find it to be one of the deepest movies of all-time. It is a play on the power of perception - yes; but it also exhibits, quite powerfully, the last words of the movie that "Life IS a state of mind".
This movie was so good i watched it for peter but there was so much more, I love the way it flows. Peter was a legend the pink panther movies are masterpieces id love to see you do some vids on that series.
I know this is old now, but I've just watched (and re-watched and rewatched) this movie. I love it. And I think the credit sequence at the ending is a stroke of genius, like the ending of Holy Mountain where Jodorowsky says 'It is only a film, now live your life' and pans out to show the crew and cameras. It takes us out of the movie, which is themed on the mediated unreality we live in, and shows Sellers acting the part, breaking the fourth wall and giving us even greater perspective on the movie's themes, and on Sellers own fascinating life and character, which connects so deeply with the character of Chance. Plus it's heartwarming and very funny. Until now I didn't think about these things logically, but I felt it every time I saw the ending. It's heartbreaking and hilarious at once. I think it's brilliant.
Its by no means a great film but Rock Star with Mark Wahlberg. Spends the entire film trying to convince you he's the right choice to play the lead singer of an 80's hair metal band but then turns into Marky Mark in behind the scenes footage spouting "No more metal shit, its all about Hip Hop" as 'Good Vibrations' plays in the background.
The outake was designed to lighten what was quite a heavy ending!As for Sellers Oscar nominations that was never going to happen as he had created too many enemies in Hollywood with his psychotic behaviour on set!!
This is a call-back to Bertolt Brecht's theory of Epic Theater, the distancing effect, designed to break the spell and make the watcher be critical instead of passive. Seriously, I read through the comments and no one has said this,,
It seems to me that over the course of the film, Chance the gardener gradually breaks the spell created by artificial images, culminating in the final scene where he is walking on water. The credits invite the audience to break that spell in their own lives. I'd go beyond Brecht to Plato's cave metaphor.
Are you fucking kidding me? Bro when you read thru all the comments and no one is talking about Bertold Brecht's Verfremdungseffekt, it's because it has nothing to do with it. You can pretty much count on that ALWAYS being the case. Yes, that alienation does come from breaking character and exposing the artifice of a medium, but for the enrichment or recontextualization of a message inherent to the content, not as a cheap way to include goofs AFTER a production! I see where you're coming from, attempting to justify the choice as intentional by dropping a tasty reference to a 100 year old German theater technique, but when master actor Peter Sellers requests the clips in question be removed, and the studio heads refuse, it's not because Sellers fails to appreciate experimental theater techniques, and the executives are confident their Brecht reference will pay off to 1 dude in the comments of a Yorkshire boys RUclips vid - instead, it's because he (like most ppl) realizes Brecht has fuck all to do with it, and because they were told by test audiences that the ending was 2sad so they couldn't help but add some outtakes over the credits.
Ran this picture as a projectionist for weeks, so I got to see how a lot of people reacted. I think the outtakes are in the credits for a simple reason. Peter Sellers is hilarious, and Ashby and others were enamored of him. They wanted to share with the audience some moments that only they would have otherwise been privy to. Bad decision; it only works when the outtakes are in the same tone as the film, or when restricted to home video bonus features.
I think a better judge of how they work is how it plays when you watch it alone. And they don't work at all when you do. They are a slap in the face for an otherwise perfect film, IMO.
I am 60 now and saw this film several times in the theater when it was released. I loved the movie. Frankly, the “bloopers” at the end didn’t bother me at all. First of all, it was the first time I had ever seen this type of thing. To the best of my knowledge, it was the first film to do this. The fact that it is common to see this kind of thing now might make us somewhat jaded by seeing them in the present day. I do know that it became somewhat common to see these types of outtakes at the end of movies and it got tiresome because it was so derivative. But I agree with another commenter that, in the theater at least, it did sort of lighten things up and remind you that you were watching something that was meant to be absurd.
I agree with Elwin. I also saw this film at the theater when it was released. It was a way of letting the audience down from a very emotional experience. People at the time were fascinated with Peter Sellers on TV and seeing outtakes from his movies. Especially the Pink Panther movies. Those out takes were as funny at those comedies. When I saw this credit sequence at the show everyone in the theater didn't leave. They sat through the credit sequence.
I loved it. Was this the first movie that ever did the outtakes like this? I have always thought so, but would appreciate being corrected if I am wrong.
I actually only recently saw this film for the first time. I found the end credits quite appropriate and strangely hypnotic. Unlike most post credit blooper scenes, these have an odd dramatic heft to them. One of the myriad themes of the film is the way humans create their own realities around themselves, much like a filmmaker does. It's almost like they changed the channel to a show about a genius performer. I'm certainly in the minority here but I think it works and is in line thematically.
I love this movie! First saw it back in 1980 when i was in college. I remember enjoying the ending's outtakes. But up until now I never thought of it 'spoiling the spell'. Maybe you're right. Maybe...the director didn't know how to end this film (credits)...a dark background with no music? An aerial view of the mansion estate? I placed myself in the director's shoes and couldn't think on how to end this classic. I don't think it was done before Being There...making it an original idea.
The director was probably transfixed with Sellars' technique of creating Chauncey Gardiner. Sellars had put off accepting the role for many years. The director was willing to inject bloopers in the credits as the entire film is revealed to be either a fantasy, within the mind of a madman, or the experiences of a ghost. Such a nonsensical conclusion being followed by a blooper reel is saying, "Don't take it seriously." I never thought it ruined the film. In fact, I found it the most hilarious part.
I was 19 when this movie was out and the outtakes did not bother me. Peter Sellers outtakes were very popular at the time on morning shows and the like. I remember liking the outtakes at the time and when I think of them I think of a Pink Panther scene where a guy is answering a door and Peter Sellers is there in a costume and can't get through his lines. It always made me laugh. But now, the Being There outtakes did not stand the test of time. Ashby was one of the greatest directors of the time. A meteor of brilliance that shared his vision with us for a short time before it crashed into the earth.
Thanks for reminding me I never saw this film (only bits). For the end, talk about a «break the fourth wall» scene! I was not expecting that at all. True that it breaks the mood of the film. A possible explanation for this is that maybe outtakes or bloopers were popular in the end credits at the time... Coincidence, I saw «Predator» last night (online location with itunes) and I stopped the film when the helicopter fly into the horizon, at the end. I just went back to see what you are mentioning and yes these «presentation» images are there. Again, it seems like it was used for a certain period in films. (It’s surely comes from the television world. For this medium it was a way to present the regular cast but also the guest star showing for an episode).
I saw _Being There_ in the theater when I was 14. I loved the film, and it is, to this day, my favorite Peter Sellers film. I laughed at the outtakes at the end, as a kid, but also felt pulled from the movie because of them. They really didn't belong, and I believe that some executive decision was made to bring the film down to the level of a Pink Panther movie...making it more farcical or something. Thinking, maybe, "We need to make this film more approachable and less esoteric." That's my guess. Still, like you, I love that movie.
Not quite the same, but I just watched 'Hell or High Water', and I had a similar issue. The final scene is quiet and contemplative, which I think it should have remained. But before the credits, some Southern rock begins playing. Nothing against the song, I think it would have been fine if it started up the same time as the credits. But as is, I think it had a negative affect on the otherwise meditative ending.
The 2014 movie Edge of Tomorrow has a really unusual credits where the whole film had been serious and had an orchestral score all of the sudden they played a pop song "love me again". It very vaguely relates to the film which didn't have a love story and felt incredibly out of place ruining the film for me.
cosmicrdt Wait, EoT doesn't have a love story? Haven't got around to seeing it yet but I did read the source material, which definitely had a live story that was very important for the second part of it.
The Edge of Tomorrow definitely had a love story thread... Tom Cruise's character learned a great deal of the history to Emily Blount's character from all the times resetting. So much so, when he determined there was no way forward together without her certain death... he demanded she remain behind. Who did he go see at the end that had no recollection of him? Love story.
the credit sequence is amazing, its really shows peter sellers as the amazing actor he really was. Its all heart e real. Its a part of what makes this movie so special and so memorable. no one leaves that credit scene without a smile
I could be biased because I was young when I first saw this movie, and I absolutely love this movie as well, but I felt like the somber music maintained the theme of the movie, but the outtakes made it even more real. As in, these are all actors trying to re-create this drama. To me, it was like seeing the performers of a play come out on stage and bow. We know when we are in play theater that people in front of us are not actually the characters, and they are ultimately just jumping around on a stage, and the location we voluntarily went to. It’s not 16th century Europe, it’s not anywhere else but where you are. Yet, we enjoy the experience without tarnish. I felt like the outtakes gave a bit of humanity to an otherwise kind of dark and slightly sad depressing movie. I feel like without those out takes, it would be hard for me to watch the movie again, because it leaves you in such a somber, negative mood. I would totally understand if either people did not like the rationale that I am raising, but to me, that ending credit is not a tarnishment, but a savior
I doubt missing any of Peter Seller's movies, as they warranted my attention during the first weekend of release. The ending out-of-character laugh-out-loud comedy schtick is director Ashby's salute to an impeccable professional talent that many times overflowed his key actor, sometimes bordering on over-acting, in every movie he'd ever appeared in, except this one. Ashby is also telling the audience that shooting this movie was a helluva lot more fun than anyone might expect. 1979 audiences were keenly aware they had just watched a movie. If its appropriate to lay blame for the jaded attitude of this centuries' film audiences on anyone's shoulders, my vote would go to the overzealous movie marketers who lessened the art form by placing DVD's in specially marked boxes of cereal & permitting movie rentals to cost a family less than a tenth of an adult theatre ticket.
You made a great point here. With some movies, comedies mostly I think, it can be kind of cool to have that credit roll with built-in Easter Egg/bonus stuff. However, if the mood shifts--easier to happen with a non-comedy--it can really ruin the experience. Horror movies for instance should never have this. They have to work hard enough to get your suspension of disbelief triggered so any shift on the credit roll would, of course, ruin it. Can you imagine this in say, The Exorcist? Effect...RUINED!
[Apologies in advance. This because a stream of consciousness term paper, even though I only intended an over written paragraph or two. I failed...] *This amazing tragicomedy is also one of my very favorite films, for a variety of reasons...* *_HAL ASHBY_* *But, Hal Ashby has made several of my favorite films: **_Harold and Maude_** - probably my all time favorite film; **_The Landlord_** - a film which got me suspended from school (long story); **_Coming Home_** - a film which aged surprisingly poorly; and lastly, **_Bound for Glory_** - a Woody Guthrie Almost-Biography: this, added to _Being There_, is a Full House of greatness from Ashby. Except for Coppola, nobody else on my "greats" list has as many entries. Hell, most only have one or two!* *_BEING THERE BACKSTORY_* *It is set in the time it was filmed, the late 1970s, and at the place it was filmed, New York City (where I was born, raised, and lived at the time). For those who don't know, New York City during the period 1966 through 1992(ish), was a literal war zone, and the peak period for that war zone was the five year period pf 1979 through 1984. For reference, Chicago today is **_approaching_** NYC crime levels in 1979! Both ares and times have one thing in common that outsiders can't know: they both cooked the books on their crime rates, so if you hear their respective PD's say there were, say, 3,000 murders, you should multiply whatever they say by roughly three. The PD was under such intense pressure to "do something", that they chose to do nothing and report great results. NYC simply refused to take reports, or if they took a report that didn't need to show up in the future (for an insurance claim or something), they would just deep six it at the precinct, and "BANG!", the crime rates went way down! Unfortunately, the people who live there knew and know better - the published rates are foe people who allocate budget dollars - but live in closely guarded gated communities which will **_never_** be allowed to suffer with the rest of the city!* *The reason all of that backstory is necessary is because "Being There" depicts many scenes which, when seen by "outsiders", often got a chuckle and a "well, that would never happen in real life!" - but this is wrong. In fact, the various scenes shot outside are all shot in areas that accurately depict what goes on. To put that a different way, the outdoor scenes happened at places where those scenes would/could be seen dozens of times a day, any day of the week. And they were extremely careful to not only use the actual locations, but to portray those actual locations with accurate representations of the people you would find there. I believe Hal Ashby was making several layers of movie in "Being There", and one of those layers was [an accurate] portraiture of New York City during this period.* *So, back to why I love this film SO much!* *_CHAUNCY_* *Chauncy is the perfect stand-in for the moron elite who are really running the show. I know, because I have worked with them. They would react to Chauncy **_exactly_** the way you see here! Also, the Chauncy dead-pan really does force people to project their own expectations onto Chauncy's blank, no expectation, **_no information,_** actions and statements, and we get to watch exactly that.* *_SET AND SETTING_* *Chauncy doesn't just interact with the rich, famous, and powerful. He interacts with all of the many segments of NYC "society" during this film, and watching the different ways they react to their own projections is **_hilarious!_** These changes in setting are what really makes **_Being There_** work so well: everyone gets to be played!* *_NYC HOMAGE_* *There is a clear insiders love for the city here. It comes out in many ways, but as a native, there is no missing the fact that this movie intentionally hits every important landmark and street spot which **_Being There_** touches upon, and does it with a clear insiders knowledge. While his bio never says that Ashby lived in NYC, he was clearly there a LOT - his insiders knowledge is just too perfect. This insiders knowledge coalesces into an homage to all of NYC, from the best to the very worst, with an honest love for all of it. I love it too!* *_PLOT [WHAT PLOT?]_* *As pointed out, nothing really happens in **_Being There._** Chauncy is (kind of inexplicably) put out on his own, he meanders for a bit, gets hit by a big ass limo, gets taken in by the limo, meets and befriends some folk, and since they are powerful folk, he meets and befriends **_their_** [even more powerful] friends. And in the process of meeting ever more powerful people, Chauncy moves steadily up the power ladder, eventually having real input into the running of the United States Government! Again, Chauncy is an actual moron, so his moving up the ladder is just people reading their own projections and then reacting to their very own projections - this is a pretty sophisticated kind of humor! And it IS funny! Really funny!* *Didn't you ever have a really stupid friend or aquaintance who went far beyond their expected station? Maybe **_they_** are Chauncy Gardner too!!!*
The end credits reflect how we wake up after we die. Look at the poster for the movie. Chance is walking into the sky... Something that never happened in the movie. Then we get this "blooper" scene with Sellers. It was not in the movie. Imagine waking up after you die in the Rand mansion. ...and everyone is there is laugh with you at the comic tragedy of your life. Your friends get the story and the joke of your existence. And so the black spots on your soul are healed. And your angelic film crew laugh with you... ...and tell you of what is to come.
I remember the cartoon sound credits at the movies and HBO. The VHS and DVD versions had the crap outtake credits. I was horrified first time I saw it. I found the original on RUclips. ThankGod. .
Your comparison of the Predator post-credit sequence to Schindler's List literally made me laugh out loud! I love Being There and had the same opinion of the outtakes. What the hell were they thinking? What the hell were the people in charge of Predator thinking, for that matter?
I am very late to this discussion but when I saw the film at the cinema on its first release I felt that the outtake ending was deliberately there. I found that Chance's simple, straight-line way of thinking was very seductive and felt that my own thinking was starting to mimic his. The out-take ending DID "break the spell" but I felt it was a good thing in that it freed me from this simplistic style of thinking before leaving the cinema and returning to the real world. Shortly after seeing the film I discussed this with a friend who recently saw the film and he felt the same way. That the out-take ending served as a kind of decompression after a deep dive. I don't recall ever seeing it done in a film before this but have seen it done in films since. Sellers lost out on the Oscar to Dustin Hoffman in Kramer vs Kramer, which was the darling film for Hollywood that year and that plus the Academy's preference for American winners probably accounts for the loss moreso than the outtake ending.
I've only done a couple short films, but I think I totally understand the kind of mindset that would lead to this kind of thing. I've never been moved to show outtakes during the credits, but I've definitely added or kept things not for the sake of the story or the betterment of the film, but just because I liked them for their own separate reason. Sometimes it's a soundtrack choice, or a shot to include that makes a moment feel a bit too long but shows off all the coverage you got for a scene. Sometimes it even happens before that. As a writer, I know I've written scenes or made character decisions not always in congruency with the story, but to serve the actors and give them added glory or whatnot. And I think that's what's happening here. Seeing actors having fun, laughing between takes - that's something a filmmaker would want to show off, and audiences are often more endeared to actors and characters when they see the cast having fun behind the scenes. This fact, in the mind of whoever made the decision, trumps the idea that it may not be tonally right for the end credits. I don't know who made the decision, but I could see, even from a directorial perspective, the desire to add something in to the end just to showcase it somewhere. From that level, I think I understand what happened. And it's not always a bad move, but certain films do benefit from an added amount of seriousness around them. But when you've watched a film over and over in the edit already, sometimes you forget the specific qualities of what you're making.
My guess would be they are there because as you said the movie is a comedy so therefore they put bloopers at the end to keep the laughs rolling. I watched this whole movie with a genuine smile of enjoyment on my face, I didn't laugh out loud during it - perhaps a giggle here and there, but I did view it as a comedy all the way through so when the credits rolled and the bloopers were there I found them to be completely entertaining. They didn't ruin the film for me, in fact I feel they added to the overall experience because I found myself laughing out loud through all of the credits. From beginning to end I find Being There a fun and enjoyable movie that shouldn't be missed.
Gave me the idea that instead of ending my dark but ultimately inspiring screenplay (whose set piece is a guy jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge, surviving and managing to put himself and his life back together) with a classic artrock song by John Foxx and Ultravox I'll have Porky Pig say "Th-Th-That's all folks!" Followed by the Looney Toons theme. Brilliant! Thanks! PS also might change the title to "Almost Not Being There, Or Anywhere For That Matter." Too long?
I understand why they did it. Because it was FUCKING HILARIOUS! And it is in my favorite movies. Actually, I have converted that scene to an audio file and have had it on my players and phones for over 10 years. It broke the movie open. It says "Laugh, God-dammit! Life is short. Laugh as much as you can before you're worm food". I wish they had funny outtakes for Romeo and Juliet, The Grey Zone, Life is Beautiful, Requiem for a Dream, Marley and Me, Of Mice and Men, etc.
Chiming in quite late to the party, I'm afraid. But in answer to your question, Georg, of why Sellers' outtakes were played under the closing credits... blame Hal Ashby! Recall that he began his cinema career as a film editor. Well, need I say more? Okay, I will. As an editor, Ashby just couldn't stand leaving footage on the cutting room floor; regardless of how it might cock up the vibe of a perfect ending to his film. I agree with you that it was a poor choice. And also that it probably cost Peter Sellers an Oscar award.
At the end of the movie, Chance walks on the water and shows he is doing so by standing in place and dipping his cane all the way into the water next to his feet. This act turns the entire premise of the film on its head. My take on this is that Chance indeed knows exactly what he is doing all along. He is having everyone on and having an internal laugh about everything. He is like a yogi who is both outwardly innocent and fully enlightened. He is full of the wisdom of the world but is at the same time transcendent to it. For me, that is a more brilliant interpretation of what the whole film is about. But that is my opinion and you, of course, have yours. That last scene informs me that Chance is not empty-headed at all but rather a fully enlightened being who is making his way through the world while dispensing his wisdom in an easily digestible manner for us mere mortals both by his words and his behavior.
I love this film, too. It's been important to me for many years, and is definitely one of my favorite films. I agree completely with your analysis, and had no idea that Sellers had asked to have the sequence removed. I grew up watching this film and Harold and Maude, too. When I got older and began to really feel the impact of Being There, I thought, who made this film? Realizing it was the same guy who made Harold and Maude, I set out to watch his other films, and got Shampoo since it came between the two. What a disappointment! ...The Last Detail is good, though.
The is also one of my favorite movies. I love the looks, he gives to the man in the elevator. I have the DVD and watch it frequently. R.I.P Peter Sellers.
The more attention this serious film gets the better. "Breaking the Spell" is right! For the first time I imagined the ending without the outtake credits, amazing difference, it would have had a greater impact on society; so somber, dignified, Zen (the main character being a spiritual green thumb hermit, yet gallant and Old World ...), and of course mysterious.
I studied this movie in grade 12 media. It's a chiaroscuro effect. It juxtaposes the vacuous nature of Chance with the fact that Peter Sellers IS there. It answers the question, "Okay, we know what not being there is, but what does 'being there'imply? What makes a being an actual being? The film answers that--at least in part--it is wit, intelligence and humour.
Once I realized the house in the film was the Biltmore Estate, my subsequent visits to the house (I had a season pass for a few years) felt a bit different. It was neat to think that I walked some of the same areas as Peter, Shirley, Jack, Melvyn, and the others. An epic house, film, and actors. I love it all. However... I agree with you and Mr. Sellers about the ending. I felt it did break the spell.
i remember reading somewhere, don’t recall now, that the producers were upset it wasn’t the Pink Panther style slapstick comedy they hoped for, but Kubrick and Sellers were such powerhouses also they had say on the final cut of the film itself, but not the credits (i think it’s a SAG union situation, there are rules for titles/credits) so that’s why they put the “bloopers” at the end. I wholly agree with you. This is an underrated gem that was sabotaged by the studio execs.
I remember Chris Columbus said, on the DVD commentary for Home Alone, that somebody proposed putting outtakes and bloopers in the end credits of it, but Columbus felt it would cheapen the movie, so he vetoed it.
Outtakes only work for comedy cartoons and Jackie Chan movies. I can't think of any other film where I didn't think they didn't cheapen the experience.
Excellent topic! Well I agree with some other comments: someone (either the director or a "suit") felt that this movie could be taken too literally (and of course the final scene is - if you truly think about it - some very heavy stuff and it can be read as "undoing" the whole movie already if you take it at face value). So someone, instead of having the balls to let the movie and its enigmatic ending sink in the audience's mind, they slapped "It's only a movie, don't take any of this too seriously, etc." onto the ending. Peter Seller's request to have it removed is more than proof that this was a bad afterthought, going against what he had created. IMHO this movie doesn't go very deep regarding plot, story or character arc, because it doesn't have to. It holds a mirror up to our society in a very clever way. And (yep, got that from Rob Ager) the Eumir Deodato trippy jazz-funk version of "Thus Spoke Zarathustra" is a very clear nod (and more) to Kubrick's "2001". Nuff said.
This movie is still, to this day, the funniest film I have ever seen. Don't know if similar comedy is out there, but this one is just so... perfect. Except for the outtakes, yes.
The end credits outtakes is incongruous. It's a great film, and somehow I always thought of "Chance the gardener" being an allusion to Nature's survival own process of chance and culling.
Event Horizon does this too, it's a dark movie that ends on a semi-cliffhanger but the music that plays over the credits is some high-energy drum and bass shit that's just incredibly jarring.
Three words for ya: Paul, WS, Anderson
Jeff Taylor: One name for You... Robert Altman (See "Nashville" (1976.. not that primetime soap opera.)
Music was by Johnny Mandel.
'Funky Shit' by the Prodigy.
I may be bias cause I like Prodigy and the album that song comes from, but I kind of see at the sounds of the fair ground after leaving the Haunted House ride. Weird I know, but it feels like a nudge to calm your nerves and go have fun.
Anyway, Being There; great
Deodato Zarich Acustra
I can understand Sellers' dislike. Not only because the outtakes disperse the magic, but also because they reveal something of the process, which actors strive to conceal from the audience.
As a member of the audience though, when I got to see it, I experienced the outtakes as a bittersweet dessert. Because by then he'd died; the hilarious business of trying to get through the takes without laughing said everything I wanted to see in Sellers' performances.
The outtakes could be saved for the extra features or left on the cutting room floor. It practically ruined the ending for me.
Being There is one of my top ten films. I saw it when it was first released and watched it a few months ago with my adult daughter. I was surprised to hear you describe the ending as sad. I still have the same reaction to that final shot that I had four decades ago: smiling broadly with watery eyes. It's a wonderful end to a beautiful movie.
The credit outtakes don't bother me and never have. The film ends. The credits begin. They're separate animals. It's like watching a preview for a horror movie before the comedy feature. I do have a friend who loves the film but feels as you do about the credits.
The other thing I like about the character of Chance is that he has no arc. He is the same simple man from start to finish, while everyone around him changes as they are touched by his quiet strength. It's the exact opposite of Groundhog Day, where only Bill Murray has an arc.
Thanks for posting the video. I welcome any opportunity to revisit this amazing film.
Peter Sellers had already had an incredible number of heart attacks by the time this movie was made. Since he died 7 months after its release, I always took this credit sequence as away to enjoy Peter the man one last time. Perhaps whoever decided to use this sequence didn't know he would die so soon, or maybe they could feel it coming, but I feel it adds a bittersweet capper to his career. Aside from how it affects your view of the film, aren't you glad to have seen Peter laugh a few last times?
Well, changed my mind.
Good to know that can still happen.
Your right, it's a very fitting scene for the last time Peter sellers would appear on film and a nice goodbye. The only other time I can think of this happening is Desmond Llewellyn who played Q in the Bond films. Where in the world is not enough, he says bye to Brosnans 007 as he is retiring from MI6 and gives him some fatherly advice and shows some emotion for James Bond for the first time. In real life the actor was retiring from the franchise and was killed not long after in a car accident I think it was.
Yep, it's one of my favorite films as well.... classic: "On television Mr. President, you look much smaller."
I reckon the shift must have been from some high-up who was worried that the audience would be leaving without a smile - so shoved in the outtakes to send the punters home laughing.
I agree with this theory. After all this is PETER SELLERS (aka Inspector Clouseau) and this movie is darkly comic instead of silly comic. I don't know if Ashby was given final decision on this, but this sounds very plausible that some producer or exec thought this should be done. Hollywood really hates to disappoint their audience with realistic or sad endings. Besides, look at how funny those "Smokey and the Bandit" outtakes were!
Yeah, this seems like studio meddling, possibly after a test screening. I can picture it now, "This is too much of a downer. We gotta make people laugh!".
Reminds me about the end of Dodgeball. Ben Stiller's character didn't actually step over the line in the original cut. Test Screening audiences HATED the ending of them losing to Ben Stiller's character and his team, so they reshot the ending and changed it to a happier ending with him winning and Ben Stiller actually stepping over the line.
I heard once somewhere, That american audiences always want a happy ending, and I really believe that. In every movie even if the ending is sad, there is still enough of a win that you can feel good about. I want movies that illustrate life, it doesn't always end with anything good.
Dellacondan the movie was made in america by an american studio which, at least for some time, were infamously known to work under the misconception that a movie without a happy ending could not be profitable.... so in a way, american politics are at fault for this, even if it's just american film studio politics
Much as I liked the film "Being There", which I saw when it came out, I LOVED the outtakes in the end credit sequence even more. Yeah, it took you out of the movie, but that's what an end-credit sequence is supposed to do. This one was an homage to the brilliance of Peter Sellers as an actor, and I came out of the theater appreciating his talent on a level I never had before.
Since there was no question that he had nailed the very difficult part of Chance the Gardener, (I had read Jerzy Kazinski's book), watching him tackle and fail after dozens of attempts to say this one line in Chance's clueless monotone was delicious. We saw him persist again and again, not in frustration but in delight that he had come across a comic situation that he couldn't pull off. The mirth infected the whole film crew, and there was a palpable electricity on the set as all the behind-the-scenes people were pulling for him. If I recall correctly, he never did pull it off, because the finished scene wasn't even in the final cut.
I can see your point, that the outtakes cleared the memory of what had gone before, but for me it enhanced it.
Very well said...
Well said!
It is one of my favorite films. Every time I watch it, I always look forward to the credits because it brings me to tears laughing so hard. It was a hilarious moment captured forever on film that I feel privileged to have experienced. It made me feel like I was on the set, a part of the crew. Plenty of movies show "bloopers" at the end credits. It gives the movie goer a little insight as to the "behind the scenes" part of the film. Nowadays, we get this kind of insight in the bonus materials on dvds, but back then, this was the best way available to let the public see something special. In my opinion, it had nothing to do with the film or it's message. It was a completely separate entity that was a joy to watch. It's all good.
The timing of the music Also Sprach Zarathustra's first crescendo to Chance's first step out of the house is brilliant. And fortunately, they play the entire tune, culminating in the crushing of Chance's leg by Eve's limo.
I saw "Being There" in the theatre when it was released, having read the book. While the movie as a whole is a rather literal adaptation, the very end goes beyond the book in a way that is enigmatic, to say the least. When the credits began rolling, I felt that it was Mr. Ashby's way of saying, "Relax, it's only a movie." Otherwise, it might be genuinely disturbing to think that the U.S. presidency could fall to a man who perceives the world through television and who is a creation of television himself.
Oh, wait...
Except in the case of the film, the presidency would go to a gentle man who may just be the son of God. I'll take that over the 'ol 'Rump any day.
Huh. I tried to answer before, but the page reset. Odd.
I saw it in the theater, too. At the end, when everyone got up to leave, someone yelled at us to sit back down and watch. So we did. That was the first end-credit scene I ever saw, and I think it was probably the first. I think the reason for it was to get people to sit through the credits. We all had some good laughs, though, with those out-takes.
Trump was created by TV? LOL WUT?
Whatever.
Yeah, mere moments before the Reagan years began ...
I didn't know Seller's had tried to get that scene removed-- but it makes the whole thing even more inexplicable. I mean, I'd understand if Coppola stuck a fart joke in the middle of the Godfather while putting the movie together, but I wouldn't understand if he refused to remove it after Brando pointed out that it's the Godfather and that's a fart joke.
How great would that have been... s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/8c/a5/12/8ca512d8874c3ac763c6903ad29a52cd.jpg
Robot Dinosaur no, he was like that in the 70s. He was like that for a good portion of his career. It only surfaced for the public at large near the end of his career after being like that for decades.
He would have done it to Clemenza, perhaps right after "leave the gun, take the cannolis".
After Peter Sellers walks on water, they can do pretty much anything.
Incidentally I would have not thought about the breaking of the spell without your commentary. I guess I agree. But I have gotten great joy from those antics over the years-the clip reduces me to a mass of quivering protoplasm. We shouldn’t be deprived of Sellers’ magic; perhaps on the extras on the disk?
I've always loved the end credits, for that very reason. The spell can't last forever.
Hated it.
You're right: the spell can't last forever. So why break it sooner than your have to? Why ruin the magic of the film you've just seen, by breaking the spell IMMEDIATELY and revealing the magician's secrets to your audience?
@@Igaveyoumyfakename You share an interesting perspective, albeit one that has the benefit of seeing films with deleted scenes and a ton of extras included on a dvd. I think had they not included the clip, something so small yet so absolutely hilarious might’ve been lost on the cutting room floor. And it also stands as a bittersweet coda for a great career that most actors never get for a final film.
I've often wondered how a bloopers/outtakes might be at the end of a horror movie. Ok it would destroy the essence of it but somehow the idea entertains me.
But only tongue-in-cheek bloopers of the big bad, maybe something incredibly CG gory like ripping someone in half that they get the cleaning lady in to reset.
I always found the Japanese-accented version of "Fly Me To The Moon" that plays during the end credits of _Neon Genesis Evangelion_ to be one of the oddest tonal shifts ever.
Hugh Dingwall Very true, but then again the opening theme to Evangelion is really misleading as well, if it didn't have the cryptic lyrics to contrast with the upbeat 90s Synthesizer music, it would have set up a weird tone shift. Personally, I think the ending credits of Perfect Blue are a good example tonal dissonance. While the movie ended on a somewhat happy note, (for Mima at least.) That overtly happy cheesy 1980s "Everything's Great! Loving Life!" pop music that blares out at the end was fucking god awful. All it did was just ruin the whole realistic dark tone of the movie. Using a pop song itself, I can understand since Mima was a former pop star, but they should have at the very least chosen, a more subdued somber pop ballad type song with lyrics about identity and figuring out who you are. It would have fit the movie a lot better and that kind of music is standard for musicians anyway. I love the movie, but I always turn it off before I hear that terrible song.
Ah yes, evangelion, such a nice movie
Evangelion was very comedic at first but definitely went more psychological halfway through.
@@Tokito935 I can't tell if you're joking because there were Evangelion movies.
Hi George, I just want to say thank you I get a lot of enjoyment out of your videos, more than you'll ever know. Last couple years I have been turning to RUclips for an escape from the rigors off everyday life. One that I can actually afford. It's channels like yours that provide me with hours and hours of entertainment that is very hard to pull off being funny and educational at the same time. I really appreciate what you've done for a lot of people like myself and hopefully soon I will be able to contribute to your patreon account. Thank you bro
Funny how the tone and style of Georg's videos have changed over the course of 4 yrs. This one is a capsule from 4 yrs ago (and it shows, but not in a bad way). A very concise, miniature topic, but very well presented. One can tell his confidence has increased a lot, up to a point whete his most recent ones are little masterpieces of absurd, tongue-in-cheek British humor. What a great YTer ....
Always loved this movie. In Siskel and Ebert’s review, they gush over this film, giving it lots of love.
If a puppet show is about how life is a puppet show, then what is the best way to end it? By showing the puppet strings.
Well put!
@@teddyochfreddy Couldn't have said it better
that only reveals that the puppet show was a puppet show all along and will have no impact on the message within the puppet show. everyone already knows its a puppet show, everyone already knows this is a movie. rubbing it in their faces diminishes the parallel the show tried to make with the real world, not strengthens it
"Zoom out camera!”
I always thought it would be great if puppet movies, like Happytime Murders, plot twisted at the end and revealed that, in universe, everyone can see it's just a guy with a puppet arm, but this is normal, accepted behavior.
I do like your film analyses, very well planned out, eloquent, natural, thoughtful and fair. Greetings from Scotland.
Agreed! Just started watching one last night and ended up binging on several. Subscribed today! You've got a great thing here, Georg!
Gordon Heaney Guitarologist and Flatulist Rockall is Scottish. Sgeir Rocail gu bràth!
You really like adjectives.
@@Frip36 You really like...er... Sundays?
Being There came on the television when I was a child and while I barely got it at all it was the first time I realized what movies were and could be. I was totally blown away by it. I recalled it years and years later and it felt fresh in my memory only after one viewing as a child. Rewatching it is always a lovely time for me. Absolutely brilliant.
Thank you and yes! I will cut it of before the ending credits. I'm so grateful you did this because I vaguely recall seeing this movie many years ago when it was featured on 'ON-TV' in a UHF special pay-per-view format (Yes! that long ago!)
I always hated these out takes at the end too, but later I came to the conclusion that the concept of seeing what you want to see and reading into deeper meanings of the simplicity of Chauncey Gardener gives us as viewer the upper hand of truly understanding what Chauncey is rally saying as opposed to the characters in the movie gives us the feeling of superiority of understanding and perception . Then its flipped on us as viewers, we too were fooled by Chauncey Gardener , he's an actor in a movie, not a saint like simpleton
Yes, I agree. Both 2001 and Being There (even using the same piece of music and similar imagery) are trying to get us to look at ourselves and our culture, and how we are influenced by what we are watching on screens. Very relevant for today, even more so than ever perhaps.
Never saw this movie before. But I did stop it at the credits like you suggested. What an amazing movie.
Bravo.
That's one badass cover of Thus Spoke Zarathustra
Performed by Deodato.
That’s not Thus Spoke Zarathustra.
It’s Also Sprach Zarathustra.
@@justincoleman3805 "Also" is German for "Therefore" or "Thus", so Brandon is just using the translated title above.
"Also" is German for something like how we use a colon in punctuation, so "Thus" isn't a bad translation.
You are so right about the credits, it's like they were worried it wasn't 'funny' enough so they threw in the outtakes. Could it be that they were concerned that warm and poignant were not enough to cut the mustard. A great movie, in my top 10 of all time.
I enjoyed the credits, it gave me a sense of the satiric, nihilistic feeling the movie had in general, something so harsh taken with such lightness, Chance on T.V., with the president, and talking about the most simple, a garden, as if he was a void and all around was engaging becaus of it, he is emptyness and matter shatters and collides to nothing. The laws of the universe, chaos. And then he walks on water.... As if saying, if cognitiveness gives you weight, your life is only because you made it, particles are activated when looked upon, go to credits, he is just an actor and he us just laughing
The only thing that I can think of about it is what Hal Ashby said on the DVD extras . There's audio of him talking about the movie . He said he went to see it at the theater and everyone watched the whole credits/outtakes thing except one guy who went to walk out , but then turned around and stood there watching it till the end too !! So , for what it's worth , that's what Hal thought about it .
I have to absolutely, positively agree with everything this man says. I saw this movie on "cable" as a teenager. I was confused. Was I supposed to be laughing throughout the movie? The end credits totally ruined the feeling - especially given the somewhat sad ending. A much better way to run the credits would have been to have the "snow" on a TV set and possibly switch the channels every few seconds to some pop culture soap operas, sitcoms or TV reruns. It would have maintained the general theme that everything that Chauncey knew and learned, was from TV.
Your suggested ending for this film just described the ending of Paddy Chayefsky's film "Network!" Hunt it down and see it if you don't believe me.
That would have been an interesting ending, but I personally think the original ending was perfection and all they need to do was fade to black. If I remember correctly the last words were, "life is a state of mind".
The outtakes are what I quote most often. 😂😂😂😂
I'm hearing in the intro "I'm a god now", but captions tell me it's "I'm a gardener"
This is my favorite comedy of all time. I think the ending with peter breaking up is perfect. I think you hated it because it broke the spell of the film. But for me it made the experience of the movie into what it should be, something light and not pretentious. The movie really does flirt with taking on the very pretension it seeks to mock. The Jesus scene for instance was really laying it on thick at the end... The ending is a way to mock the pretension of a movie that is about mocking pretensions. Also I found the outtakes the only part of the film that made the laugh out loud.
"The ending is a way to mock the pretension of a movie that is about mocking pretensions." Ahhh, a joke of a joke of a joke. Brilliant!!!!!!!
Ashby wanted the ending to showcase Seller's talent. I think it actually took away from his performance, it didn't add to it. Practically ruined the film for me. Frankly, we didn't need to see it to see how good Seller's performance was: we say his performance.
Seeing the credits is always a return to reality. Even if they had showed a relevant scene during the credits we would understand that words don't usually fly vertically in the air and we would be aware that we would be watching a movie.Maybe the director thought that since they were going to be breaking the spell at that point they might as well go for broke and use some outtakes. Doesn't sound like it was a good idea in this instance, though.
I think the way they undermined the film during the credits is perfect. Being There clearly is a sweet version of Life of Brian. All the people Chancy meet hear what they want to hear according to their character, the president even embelleshing his quotes with economic jargon. Except for the doctor, who sees through him, representing science, I guess. Chancy walking on water at the end is already an undermining of the reality of the film and only witnessed by us, and not by any character. Nowhere else in the film does he perform any miracles. My interpretation is that we are not to believe he is Jesus but that the historical Jesus has been misinterpreted in the same way. During the credits they are making sure that Chancy is not a real person but fictional played by Peter Sellers, connecting it to the scene where Chancy sees himself on television for the first time when he is filmed from a shop window. It is not meant to be an ethereal film, but to show how stupidly people only hear what they want to hear. That's why the credit sequence is essential.
that's some good insigjt
Interesting, I’ll buy it
Crikey.
A miracle - no
the power of ignorance - yes
I find it to be one of the deepest movies of all-time. It is a play on the power of perception - yes; but it also exhibits, quite powerfully, the last words of the movie that "Life IS a state of mind".
This movie was so good i watched it for peter but there was so much more, I love the way it flows. Peter was a legend the pink panther movies are masterpieces id love to see you do some vids on that series.
At some point I'll do a video about Peter Sellers' career, and they'll definitely be in there.
Have you ever seen the bio-pic, "The Life and Death of Peter Sellers"?
the dark ambiance of your videos reminds me of a live version of Mladic by Godspeed You! Black Emperor. a truly transcendent experience to witness.
I know this is old now, but I've just watched (and re-watched and rewatched) this movie. I love it. And I think the credit sequence at the ending is a stroke of genius, like the ending of Holy Mountain where Jodorowsky says 'It is only a film, now live your life' and pans out to show the crew and cameras. It takes us out of the movie, which is themed on the mediated unreality we live in, and shows Sellers acting the part, breaking the fourth wall and giving us even greater perspective on the movie's themes, and on Sellers own fascinating life and character, which connects so deeply with the character of Chance. Plus it's heartwarming and very funny. Until now I didn't think about these things logically, but I felt it every time I saw the ending. It's heartbreaking and hilarious at once. I think it's brilliant.
Its by no means a great film but Rock Star with Mark Wahlberg. Spends the entire film trying to convince you he's the right choice to play the lead singer of an 80's hair metal band but then turns into Marky Mark in behind the scenes footage spouting "No more metal shit, its all about Hip Hop" as 'Good Vibrations' plays in the background.
@@BaranoffIsaac hilarious.
The outake was designed to lighten what was quite a heavy ending!As for Sellers Oscar nominations that was never going to happen as he had created too many enemies in Hollywood with his psychotic behaviour on set!!
Do you think they were told by test audiences that it was too sad?
I doubt they had a test audience.
No, it was Ashby's call to showcase Seller's talent. Everyone else was against the idea. It was a terrible idea.
This is a call-back to Bertolt Brecht's theory of Epic Theater, the distancing effect, designed to break the spell and make the watcher be critical instead of passive. Seriously, I read through the comments and no one has said this,,
C. Augusto Valdés You’re so right!
It seems to me that over the course of the film, Chance the gardener gradually breaks the spell created by artificial images, culminating in the final scene where he is walking on water. The credits invite the audience to break that spell in their own lives. I'd go beyond Brecht to Plato's cave metaphor.
Are you fucking kidding me? Bro when you read thru all the comments and no one is talking about Bertold Brecht's Verfremdungseffekt, it's because it has nothing to do with it. You can pretty much count on that ALWAYS being the case. Yes, that alienation does come from breaking character and exposing the artifice of a medium, but for the enrichment or recontextualization of a message inherent to the content, not as a cheap way to include goofs AFTER a production! I see where you're coming from, attempting to justify the choice as intentional by dropping a tasty reference to a 100 year old German theater technique, but when master actor Peter Sellers requests the clips in question be removed, and the studio heads refuse, it's not because Sellers fails to appreciate experimental theater techniques, and the executives are confident their Brecht reference will pay off to 1 dude in the comments of a Yorkshire boys RUclips vid - instead, it's because he (like most ppl) realizes Brecht has fuck all to do with it, and because they were told by test audiences that the ending was 2sad so they couldn't help but add some outtakes over the credits.
@@Nathangeles Thx. You spared me a sermon. Even mentioning Brecht is out of place.
No one "has said this" because it's stupid.
Ran this picture as a projectionist for weeks, so I got to see how a lot of people reacted. I think the outtakes are in the credits for a simple reason. Peter Sellers is hilarious, and Ashby and others were enamored of him. They wanted to share with the audience some moments that only they would have otherwise been privy to. Bad decision; it only works when the outtakes are in the same tone as the film, or when restricted to home video bonus features.
I think a better judge of how they work is how it plays when you watch it alone. And they don't work at all when you do. They are a slap in the face for an otherwise perfect film, IMO.
Aw you're kidding about the outtakes? What a trick to play on Sellers.Schadenfreude by the owners but maybe Sellers can see the funny side now.
I am 60 now and saw this film several times in the theater when it was released. I loved the movie. Frankly, the “bloopers” at the end didn’t bother me at all. First of all, it was the first time I had ever seen this type of thing. To the best of my knowledge, it was the first film to do this. The fact that it is common to see this kind of thing now might make us somewhat jaded by seeing them in the present day. I do know that it became somewhat common to see these types of outtakes at the end of movies and it got tiresome because it was so derivative. But I agree with another commenter that, in the theater at least, it did sort of lighten things up and remind you that you were watching something that was meant to be absurd.
I agree with Elwin. I also saw this film at the theater when it was released. It was a way of letting the audience down from a very emotional experience. People at the time were fascinated with Peter Sellers on TV and seeing outtakes from his movies. Especially the Pink Panther movies. Those out takes were as funny at those comedies. When I saw this credit sequence at the show everyone in the theater didn't leave. They sat through the credit sequence.
I loved it. Was this the first movie that ever did the outtakes like this? I have always thought so, but would appreciate being corrected if I am wrong.
I actually only recently saw this film for the first time. I found the end credits quite appropriate and strangely hypnotic. Unlike most post credit blooper scenes, these have an odd dramatic heft to them.
One of the myriad themes of the film is the way humans create their own realities around themselves, much like a filmmaker does. It's almost like they changed the channel to a show about a genius performer. I'm certainly in the minority here but I think it works and is in line thematically.
I love this movie! First saw it back in 1980 when i was in college. I remember enjoying the ending's outtakes. But up until now I never thought of it 'spoiling the spell'. Maybe you're right. Maybe...the director didn't know how to end this film (credits)...a dark background with no music? An aerial view of the mansion estate? I placed myself in the director's shoes and couldn't think on how to end this classic. I don't think it was done before Being There...making it an original idea.
The director was probably transfixed with Sellars' technique of creating Chauncey Gardiner. Sellars had put off accepting the role for many years. The director was willing to inject bloopers in the credits as the entire film is revealed to be either a fantasy, within the mind of a madman, or the experiences of a ghost. Such a nonsensical conclusion being followed by a blooper reel is saying, "Don't take it seriously." I never thought it ruined the film. In fact, I found it the most hilarious part.
No one mastered melancholy and uproarious humor better than Peter Sellers.
I was 19 when this movie was out and the outtakes did not bother me. Peter Sellers outtakes were very popular at the time on morning shows and the like.
I remember liking the outtakes at the time and when I think of them I think of a Pink Panther scene where a guy is answering a door and Peter Sellers is there in a costume and can't get through his lines. It always made me laugh.
But now, the Being There outtakes did not stand the test of time.
Ashby was one of the greatest directors of the time. A meteor of brilliance that shared his vision with us for a short time before it crashed into the earth.
"It's a comedy, so there's funny bloopers in the credits!"
Thanks for reminding me I never saw this film (only bits). For the end, talk about a «break the fourth wall» scene! I was not expecting that at all. True that it breaks the mood of
the film. A possible explanation for this is that maybe outtakes or bloopers were popular in the end credits at the time... Coincidence, I saw «Predator» last night (online location
with itunes) and I stopped the film when the helicopter fly into the horizon, at the end. I just went back to see what you are mentioning and yes these «presentation» images are there. Again, it seems like it was used for a certain period in films. (It’s surely comes from the television world. For this medium it was a way to present the regular cast but also the
guest star showing for an episode).
I saw _Being There_ in the theater when I was 14. I loved the film, and it is, to this day, my favorite Peter Sellers film. I laughed at the outtakes at the end, as a kid, but also felt pulled from the movie because of them. They really didn't belong, and I believe that some executive decision was made to bring the film down to the level of a Pink Panther movie...making it more farcical or something. Thinking, maybe, "We need to make this film more approachable and less esoteric." That's my guess. Still, like you, I love that movie.
Not quite the same, but I just watched 'Hell or High Water', and I had a similar issue. The final scene is quiet and contemplative, which I think it should have remained. But before the credits, some Southern rock begins playing. Nothing against the song, I think it would have been fine if it started up the same time as the credits. But as is, I think it had a negative affect on the otherwise meditative ending.
Totally cheesy movie Flight of the Navigator does the same thing. The ending music doesn't belong.
The 2014 movie Edge of Tomorrow has a really unusual credits where the whole film had been serious and had an orchestral score all of the sudden they played a pop song "love me again". It very vaguely relates to the film which didn't have a love story and felt incredibly out of place ruining the film for me.
cosmicrdt Wait, EoT doesn't have a love story? Haven't got around to seeing it yet but I did read the source material, which definitely had a live story that was very important for the second part of it.
you mean the second EoT MOVIE, right?
The Edge of Tomorrow definitely had a love story thread... Tom Cruise's character learned a great deal of the history to Emily Blount's character from all the times resetting.
So much so, when he determined there was no way forward together without her certain death... he demanded she remain behind.
Who did he go see at the end that had no recollection of him?
Love story.
the credit sequence is amazing, its really shows peter sellers as the amazing actor he really was. Its all heart e real. Its a part of what makes this movie so special and so memorable. no one leaves that credit scene without a smile
I could be biased because I was young when I first saw this movie, and I absolutely love this movie as well, but I felt like the somber music maintained the theme of the movie, but the outtakes made it even more real. As in, these are all actors trying to re-create this drama. To me, it was like seeing the performers of a play come out on stage and bow. We know when we are in play theater that people in front of us are not actually the characters, and they are ultimately just jumping around on a stage, and the location we voluntarily went to. It’s not 16th century Europe, it’s not anywhere else but where you are. Yet, we enjoy the experience without tarnish. I felt like the outtakes gave a bit of humanity to an otherwise kind of dark and slightly sad depressing movie. I feel like without those out takes, it would be hard for me to watch the movie again, because it leaves you in such a somber, negative mood. I would totally understand if either people did not like the rationale that I am raising, but to me, that ending credit is not a tarnishment, but a savior
There was a different credit sequence, it was on the original VHS release from 1980 without the gags
Prove it.
That must be the one I watched then because I've only ever seen the credits to this movie over a black background, thank God!
I've love a BD of this film without the outtakes.
I doubt missing any of Peter Seller's movies, as they warranted my attention during the first weekend of release. The ending out-of-character laugh-out-loud comedy schtick is director Ashby's salute to an impeccable professional talent that many times overflowed his key actor, sometimes bordering on over-acting, in every movie he'd ever appeared in, except this one. Ashby is also telling the audience that shooting this movie was a helluva lot more fun than anyone might expect. 1979 audiences were keenly aware they had just watched a movie. If its appropriate to lay blame for the jaded attitude of this centuries' film audiences on anyone's shoulders, my vote would go to the overzealous movie marketers who lessened the art form by placing DVD's in specially marked boxes of cereal & permitting movie rentals to cost a family less than a tenth of an adult theatre ticket.
You made a great point here. With some movies, comedies mostly I think, it can be kind of cool to have that credit roll with built-in Easter Egg/bonus stuff. However, if the mood shifts--easier to happen with a non-comedy--it can really ruin the experience. Horror movies for instance should never have this. They have to work hard enough to get your suspension of disbelief triggered so any shift on the credit roll would, of course, ruin it. Can you imagine this in say, The Exorcist? Effect...RUINED!
I love your channel. Curiously, are you drunk for most of these videos?
The outtakes never bothered me. Getting to see Peter Sellers behind the scene’s is a treat. Especially now that he’s gone.
I appreciated the outtakes, they demonstrated how hard acting is and what a great job Sellers really did. It’s not easy being green.
[Apologies in advance. This because a stream of consciousness term paper, even though I only intended an over written paragraph or two. I failed...]
*This amazing tragicomedy is also one of my very favorite films, for a variety of reasons...*
*_HAL ASHBY_*
*But, Hal Ashby has made several of my favorite films: **_Harold and Maude_** - probably my all time favorite film; **_The Landlord_** - a film which got me suspended from school (long story); **_Coming Home_** - a film which aged surprisingly poorly; and lastly, **_Bound for Glory_** - a Woody Guthrie Almost-Biography: this, added to _Being There_, is a Full House of greatness from Ashby. Except for Coppola, nobody else on my "greats" list has as many entries. Hell, most only have one or two!*
*_BEING THERE BACKSTORY_*
*It is set in the time it was filmed, the late 1970s, and at the place it was filmed, New York City (where I was born, raised, and lived at the time). For those who don't know, New York City during the period 1966 through 1992(ish), was a literal war zone, and the peak period for that war zone was the five year period pf 1979 through 1984. For reference, Chicago today is **_approaching_** NYC crime levels in 1979! Both ares and times have one thing in common that outsiders can't know: they both cooked the books on their crime rates, so if you hear their respective PD's say there were, say, 3,000 murders, you should multiply whatever they say by roughly three. The PD was under such intense pressure to "do something", that they chose to do nothing and report great results. NYC simply refused to take reports, or if they took a report that didn't need to show up in the future (for an insurance claim or something), they would just deep six it at the precinct, and "BANG!", the crime rates went way down! Unfortunately, the people who live there knew and know better - the published rates are foe people who allocate budget dollars - but live in closely guarded gated communities which will **_never_** be allowed to suffer with the rest of the city!*
*The reason all of that backstory is necessary is because "Being There" depicts many scenes which, when seen by "outsiders", often got a chuckle and a "well, that would never happen in real life!" - but this is wrong. In fact, the various scenes shot outside are all shot in areas that accurately depict what goes on. To put that a different way, the outdoor scenes happened at places where those scenes would/could be seen dozens of times a day, any day of the week. And they were extremely careful to not only use the actual locations, but to portray those actual locations with accurate representations of the people you would find there. I believe Hal Ashby was making several layers of movie in "Being There", and one of those layers was [an accurate] portraiture of New York City during this period.*
*So, back to why I love this film SO much!*
*_CHAUNCY_*
*Chauncy is the perfect stand-in for the moron elite who are really running the show. I know, because I have worked with them. They would react to Chauncy **_exactly_** the way you see here! Also, the Chauncy dead-pan really does force people to project their own expectations onto Chauncy's blank, no expectation, **_no information,_** actions and statements, and we get to watch exactly that.*
*_SET AND SETTING_*
*Chauncy doesn't just interact with the rich, famous, and powerful. He interacts with all of the many segments of NYC "society" during this film, and watching the different ways they react to their own projections is **_hilarious!_** These changes in setting are what really makes **_Being There_** work so well: everyone gets to be played!*
*_NYC HOMAGE_*
*There is a clear insiders love for the city here. It comes out in many ways, but as a native, there is no missing the fact that this movie intentionally hits every important landmark and street spot which **_Being There_** touches upon, and does it with a clear insiders knowledge. While his bio never says that Ashby lived in NYC, he was clearly there a LOT - his insiders knowledge is just too perfect. This insiders knowledge coalesces into an homage to all of NYC, from the best to the very worst, with an honest love for all of it. I love it too!*
*_PLOT [WHAT PLOT?]_*
*As pointed out, nothing really happens in **_Being There._** Chauncy is (kind of inexplicably) put out on his own, he meanders for a bit, gets hit by a big ass limo, gets taken in by the limo, meets and befriends some folk, and since they are powerful folk, he meets and befriends **_their_** [even more powerful] friends. And in the process of meeting ever more powerful people, Chauncy moves steadily up the power ladder, eventually having real input into the running of the United States Government! Again, Chauncy is an actual moron, so his moving up the ladder is just people reading their own projections and then reacting to their very own projections - this is a pretty sophisticated kind of humor! And it IS funny! Really funny!*
*Didn't you ever have a really stupid friend or aquaintance who went far beyond their expected station? Maybe **_they_** are Chauncy Gardner too!!!*
The end credits reflect how we wake up after we die.
Look at the poster for the movie.
Chance is walking into the sky... Something that never happened in the movie.
Then we get this "blooper" scene with Sellers.
It was not in the movie.
Imagine waking up after you die in the Rand mansion.
...and everyone is there is laugh with you at the comic tragedy of your life.
Your friends get the story and the joke of your existence.
And so the black spots on your soul are healed.
And your angelic film crew laugh with you...
...and tell you of what is to come.
I remember the cartoon sound credits at the movies and HBO. The VHS and DVD versions had the crap outtake credits. I was horrified first time I saw it. I found the original on RUclips. ThankGod. .
Your comparison of the Predator post-credit sequence to Schindler's List literally made me laugh out loud! I love Being There and had the same opinion of the outtakes. What the hell were they thinking? What the hell were the people in charge of Predator thinking, for that matter?
Word Unheard That worked for Predator though, Predator isn't a serious movie, at all.
7:27 Imagine if they had laughing outtakes over the end credits of Saving Private Ryan, Or Ordinary People or The Last Temptation of Christ etc too?
Or Shawshank. It didn't fit AT ALL.
When I saw it in the cinema when released, the end credits were TV static, much more appropriate
I am very late to this discussion but when I saw the film at the cinema on its first release I felt that the outtake ending was deliberately there. I found that Chance's simple, straight-line way of thinking was very seductive and felt that my own thinking was starting to mimic his. The out-take ending DID "break the spell" but I felt it was a good thing in that it freed me from this simplistic style of thinking before leaving the cinema and returning to the real world. Shortly after seeing the film I discussed this with a friend who recently saw the film and he felt the same way. That the out-take ending served as a kind of decompression after a deep dive. I don't recall ever seeing it done in a film before this but have seen it done in films since. Sellers lost out on the Oscar to Dustin Hoffman in Kramer vs Kramer, which was the darling film for Hollywood that year and that plus the Academy's preference for American winners probably accounts for the loss moreso than the outtake ending.
That Bass , That Clavinet and Bond 2001 Space Odyssey brass , so epic
really like your vids man, keep em up.
I've only done a couple short films, but I think I totally understand the kind of mindset that would lead to this kind of thing.
I've never been moved to show outtakes during the credits, but I've definitely added or kept things not for the sake of the story or the betterment of the film, but just because I liked them for their own separate reason. Sometimes it's a soundtrack choice, or a shot to include that makes a moment feel a bit too long but shows off all the coverage you got for a scene.
Sometimes it even happens before that. As a writer, I know I've written scenes or made character decisions not always in congruency with the story, but to serve the actors and give them added glory or whatnot.
And I think that's what's happening here. Seeing actors having fun, laughing between takes - that's something a filmmaker would want to show off, and audiences are often more endeared to actors and characters when they see the cast having fun behind the scenes. This fact, in the mind of whoever made the decision, trumps the idea that it may not be tonally right for the end credits.
I don't know who made the decision, but I could see, even from a directorial perspective, the desire to add something in to the end just to showcase it somewhere. From that level, I think I understand what happened.
And it's not always a bad move, but certain films do benefit from an added amount of seriousness around them. But when you've watched a film over and over in the edit already, sometimes you forget the specific qualities of what you're making.
My guess would be they are there because as you said the movie is a comedy so therefore they put bloopers at the end to keep the laughs rolling. I watched this whole movie with a genuine smile of enjoyment on my face, I didn't laugh out loud during it - perhaps a giggle here and there, but I did view it as a comedy all the way through so when the credits rolled and the bloopers were there I found them to be completely entertaining. They didn't ruin the film for me, in fact I feel they added to the overall experience because I found myself laughing out loud through all of the credits. From beginning to end I find Being There a fun and enjoyable movie that shouldn't be missed.
Gave me the idea that instead of ending my dark but ultimately inspiring screenplay (whose set piece is a guy jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge, surviving and managing to put himself and his life back together) with a classic artrock song by John Foxx and Ultravox I'll have Porky Pig say "Th-Th-That's all folks!" Followed by the Looney Toons theme. Brilliant! Thanks! PS also might change the title to "Almost Not Being There, Or Anywhere For That Matter." Too long?
I understand why they did it. Because it was FUCKING HILARIOUS! And it is in my favorite movies. Actually, I have converted that scene to an audio file and have had it on my players and phones for over 10 years. It broke the movie open. It says "Laugh, God-dammit! Life is short. Laugh as much as you can before you're worm food". I wish they had funny outtakes for Romeo and Juliet, The Grey Zone, Life is Beautiful, Requiem for a Dream, Marley and Me, Of Mice and Men, etc.
Chiming in quite late to the party, I'm afraid. But in answer to your question, Georg, of why Sellers' outtakes were played under the closing credits... blame Hal Ashby! Recall that he began his cinema career as a film editor. Well, need I say more? Okay, I will. As an editor, Ashby just couldn't stand leaving footage on the cutting room floor; regardless of how it might cock up the vibe of a perfect ending to his film. I agree with you that it was a poor choice. And also that it probably cost Peter Sellers an Oscar award.
If you don't mind me asking, what is the music you use at the end of your video? I could swear I've heard it before but cannot recall where from.
Then we treat this movie like Ben treat Chance
Basically Ben understand how trustable and brilliant a solid gardener is.
I wasn't expecting the funky-ass soundtrack.
I was surprised also!
Whereas the end of Sellers' other great film, "I Love You Alice B Toklas", is perfect. Heart-stopping, inspirational, stays-with-you-always perfect.
At the end of the movie, Chance walks on the water and shows he is doing so by standing in place and dipping his cane all the way into the water next to his feet. This act turns the entire premise of the film on its head. My take on this is that Chance indeed knows exactly what he is doing all along. He is having everyone on and having an internal laugh about everything. He is like a yogi who is both outwardly innocent and fully enlightened. He is full of the wisdom of the world but is at the same time transcendent to it.
For me, that is a more brilliant interpretation of what the whole film is about. But that is my opinion and you, of course, have yours. That last scene informs me that Chance is not empty-headed at all but rather a fully enlightened being who is making his way through the world while dispensing his wisdom in an easily digestible manner for us mere mortals both by his words and his behavior.
Watching this made me think of the credits sequence from Feed (another movie I only know about because of your videos).
Loved this film. Saw it randomly on tv once just as it started and watched the whole thing through so surprised I had never even heard of it before.
Peter Sellers genius he's always enthralling, he emerges himself in whatever character he's playing . And any praise is well-earned, what a talent. 🎭
I love this film, too. It's been important to me for many years, and is definitely one of my favorite films. I agree completely with your analysis, and had no idea that Sellers had asked to have the sequence removed.
I grew up watching this film and Harold and Maude, too. When I got older and began to really feel the impact of Being There, I thought, who made this film? Realizing it was the same guy who made Harold and Maude, I set out to watch his other films, and got Shampoo since it came between the two. What a disappointment!
...The Last Detail is good, though.
The is also one of my favorite movies. I love the looks, he gives to the man in the elevator. I have the DVD and watch it frequently. R.I.P Peter Sellers.
That was the quickest 10 minutes I’ve ever sat through
The more attention this serious film gets the better. "Breaking the Spell" is right! For the first time I imagined the ending without the outtake credits, amazing difference, it would have had a greater impact on society; so somber, dignified, Zen (the main character being a spiritual green thumb hermit, yet gallant and Old World ...), and of course mysterious.
I studied this movie in grade 12 media. It's a chiaroscuro effect. It juxtaposes the vacuous nature of Chance with the fact that Peter Sellers IS there. It answers the question, "Okay, we know what not being there is, but what does 'being there'imply? What makes a being an actual being? The film answers that--at least in part--it is wit, intelligence and humour.
Once I realized the house in the film was the Biltmore Estate, my subsequent visits to the house (I had a season pass for a few years) felt a bit different. It was neat to think that I walked some of the same areas as Peter, Shirley, Jack, Melvyn, and the others. An epic house, film, and actors. I love it all. However... I agree with you and Mr. Sellers about the ending. I felt it did break the spell.
i remember reading somewhere, don’t recall now, that the producers were upset it wasn’t the Pink Panther style slapstick comedy they hoped for, but Kubrick and Sellers were such powerhouses also they had say on the final cut of the film itself, but not the credits (i think it’s a SAG union situation, there are rules for titles/credits) so that’s why they put the “bloopers” at the end. I wholly agree with you. This is an underrated gem that was sabotaged by the studio execs.
NOTHING MORE THAN PETER’S CONTROLLED RESTRAINT ABRUPTION. BEAUTIFULLY FUNNY
I remember Chris Columbus said, on the DVD commentary for Home Alone, that somebody proposed putting outtakes and bloopers in the end credits of it, but Columbus felt it would cheapen the movie, so he vetoed it.
Outtakes only work for comedy cartoons and Jackie Chan movies. I can't think of any other film where I didn't think they didn't cheapen the experience.
Love this movie!! Oteil Burbridge is Lolo??!!! Gotta watch this classic again, soon! He's an amazing bassist. :)
Excellent topic! Well I agree with some other comments: someone (either the director or a "suit") felt that this movie could be taken too literally (and of course the final scene is - if you truly think about it - some very heavy stuff and it can be read as "undoing" the whole movie already if you take it at face value). So someone, instead of having the balls to let the movie and its enigmatic ending sink in the audience's mind, they slapped "It's only a movie, don't take any of this too seriously, etc." onto the ending. Peter Seller's request to have it removed is more than proof that this was a bad afterthought, going against what he had created. IMHO this movie doesn't go very deep regarding plot, story or character arc, because it doesn't have to. It holds a mirror up to our society in a very clever way. And (yep, got that from Rob Ager) the Eumir Deodato trippy jazz-funk version of "Thus Spoke Zarathustra" is a very clear nod (and more) to Kubrick's "2001". Nuff said.
This is one of my all time favorites. Saw it in the theater and haven seen the outtakes. We usually get up and go as soon as the film is over.😁
Lucky you.
This movie is still, to this day, the funniest film I have ever seen. Don't know if similar comedy is out there, but this one is just so... perfect.
Except for the outtakes, yes.
The end credits outtakes is incongruous. It's a great film, and somehow I always thought of "Chance the gardener" being an allusion to Nature's survival own process of chance and culling.