After he had scooped five Oscars for The Deer Hunter, this next film from writer/director Michael Cimino was eagerly awaited. Budgeted at $7.5million, it ballooned out of control to $36 million, flopped at the box office after being hacked from 219 minutes to 150 and bankrupted its studio, United Artists, which was sold to MGM. Trying to cut down his original version of five hours and 25 minutes, Cimino ended up with a muddled storyline that spoils this high-wide and handsome Western about the conflict between immigrant settlers and the ruthless empire builders who want to eliminate them in 1890s Wyoming. Battling some mediocre dialogue and sketchy characterisations, Christopher Walken, Kris Kristofferson, John Hurt, Isabelle Huppert, Jeff Bridges and Joseph Cotten have difficulty breathing vibrant life into the story, though Walken gives the best performance. The cut version is very unsatisfactory and makes little sense, but the restored film is considerably more impressive. The marvellous art direction was Oscar nominated, but sadly the only award this movie won was a Razzie for Worst Director.