The version of Little Shop of Horrors that most people are probably familiar with is the 1986 film directed by Frank Oz, starring Rick Moranis and Ellen Greene battling the giant carnivorous plant, Audrey II. But unless you’re one of the lucky few who snagged the DVD release of the movie in 1998 before Warner Bros recalled it, you may never have seen the original filmed ending, which is closer to the plot of the Menken and Ashman stage musical (which was in turn based on the 1960 low budget Roger Corman black comedy film).
The original DVD release was pulled from stores because the film’s producer, David Geffen, objected to the unauthorized inclusion of 23 minutes of footage of the original ending. Now thanks to YouTube, anyone who has spent upwards of $150 for that rare DVD now owns a slightly less valuable collectable, because that ending is now available online for free in its entirety as a black-and-white workprint, with the added bonus of sound. Sadly, this is likely the only version of this alternate ending that will ever be released, since apparently all but one copy of the color prints have been destroyed.
Even if you have never seen Little Shop of Horrors in any incarnation (who are you?), you should still check out this wacky no-holds-barred ending where Audrey II essentially eats the world. This is certainly one of the first in a long line of films that may have had a superior alternate ending than the one that ultimately ended up in theaters, which includes recent releases such as I Am Legend and The Golden Compass. Think of this as one of the most expensive deleted scenes ever made (reportedly $5 million in the case of Little Shop).
(NSFW, mostly due to lyrics)
1 • Mary Robinette Kowal said:
November 18th, 2008 at 3:56 pm, permalink
Frank Oz once said (and I’m paraphrasing wildly) that the reason the original ending didn’t work on film and did on stage was that on stage, the actors come out to take a bow. In film, they are just dead.
Considering that the film promises a musical comedy, I’m not sure that the decision to switch to a happy ending is a bad one for film. I say this having performed in seven different productions of the stage version, which I love whole-heartedly. I love the ending, but I can totally see why it would be unsatisfactory if you were seeing the film cold.
2 • Fantasy Magazine » Blog For A Beer: Adaptations said:
November 21st, 2008 at 9:01 am, permalink
[...] the original ending to Little Shop of Horrors our Video Vicar pointed out earlier this week. It’s the same as the successful stage [...]