39,327
edits
Focus Group Ending: Difference between revisions
m
Mass update links
Looney Toons (talk | contribs) (→Film) |
m (Mass update links) |
||
Line 14:
{{examples|Examples in fiction:}}
* Parodied in [[Robert Altman]]'s ''[[The Player]]''. One minor subplot features the main character taking a movie pitch from an Auteur screenwriter about a wrongfully accused woman dying in the gas chamber. The screenwriter insists "no stars, just talent" and emphasizes that he refuses to change the [[Downer Ending]] because [[True Art Is Angsty|"That's reality"]]. By the end of the movie, not only are the leads in this film being played by [[Bruce Willis (Creator)]] and [[Julia Roberts]], but the downer ending has been completely changed. The Screenwriter's justification? [[Money, Dear Boy|Test audiences hated it.]]
* ''[[The Simpsons (Animation)|The Simpsons]]'':
** Parodied to the extreme by having [[Mel Gibson (Creator)|Mel Gibson]] take Homer's suggestions for his remake of ''[[Mr. Smith Goes to Washington]]'', in spite of everyone else in the focus screening giving praise. Not surprisingly, the Homer'd up version doesn't do so well (though, in a deleted scene available on the season 11 DVD set, Apu and his brother, Sanjay, tell Homer that extremely violent American action movies are popular in India and that they actually liked it).
** Another episode has Bart and Lisa go digging for buried treasure and uncover an film can containing a [[Happy Ending]] for ''[[Casablanca]]'' where Rick and Elsa stay together. One of the retirement home residents says that he worked for the studio and they tried and failed to sell the happy ending. When Lisa says it should be in a museum, the old man offers her some money to rebury it -- and the ''[[Its a Wonderful Life]]'' [[Kill
* ''[[The Critic]]'':
** Parodied in an episode where he reviews a remake of ''Pride of the Yankees''. After Lou Gehrig delivers his famous speech, he is approached by the Yankees coach. Apparently, he and the boys have developed "Lou Gehrig's oil" -- curing him instantly. Not only that, but a paperboy appears to announce, "Great Depression over! And [[Bill Cosby]] born!", whose comedy Lou Gehrig says he will look forward to watching. When Jay attempts to set the record straight, his show is pre-empted.
Line 53:
* ''[[Jaws the Revenge]]'': The original theatrical ending had Jake be eaten by the shark and the shark killed by impalement on the boat's prow. However, test audiences were very disturbed by Jake's death, so he (somehow) survives. They also changed the shark's death to massively exploding for no reason whatsoever when it's impaled. The former is ridiculous, but [[Word of God]] has it that while the studio demanded changes, they didn't give production appropriate money to re-shoot. (The original intent was the shark to be impaled, die and sink - taking much of the boat with it.)
* ''[[The Fly]]'' (1986). Fans were upset with the endings in which Veronica ended up with Stanis Boranz.
* ''Sweet Home Alabama'' originally had an ending that extended the [[Meaningful Echo]] of Melanie and Jake's kiss in the middle of the thunderstorm and had them zapped by lightning again. Cut to everyone waiting in Stella's bar, where Jake, cradling a limp Melanie in his arms, walks in and announces, [[That Man Is Dead|"Melanie Carmichael is dead."]] We see the news start to sink in among the community, including Melanie's parents, before Jake adds, [[Mood Whiplash|"Long live 'Felony Melanie!'"]] Melanie then drops the act, and everyone cheers for the happy couple and the rebirth of their hometown sweetheart. Test audiences cried, "[[Dude, Not Funny]]," and the ending changed to have the couple playfully handcuffed together and escorted into the bar by their sheriff friend.
* ''Next Stop Wonderland'' had an extra scene tacked on to its ending when test audiences reacted badly to Erin ''not'' running off to Brazil with Andre. A scene was added in which Andre, once he realizes that Erin isn't coming, hits on the woman sitting next to him on the plane. Thus the audience can write him off as a womanizer and be happy that Erin meets Alan at the end.
* ''[[Scott Pilgrim vs. the World]]'' was another positive example - the original ending to the film had {{spoiler|Scott ending up with Knives as Ramona left on her own}}. After exposing it to test audiences, the ending was changed to its current form. Edgar Wright, Bryan Lee O'Malley, and most of the actors have all testified to being more satisfied with the new ending.
Line 76:
[[Category:Ending Tropes]]
[[Category:Focus Group Ending]]
[[Category:Trope]][[Category:Pages with comment tags]]
| |||