BBC Sherlock Fan Forum - Serving Sherlockians since February 2012.


You are not logged in. Would you like to login or register?



May 21, 2012 6:59 am  #1


scenes cut from U.S. TRF

I watched along with Ariane DeVere's transcript page of The Reichenbach Fall. The snippets of transcript below are taken from there:
http://arianedevere.livejournal.com/30648.html

(I figured I'd include all this detail because,  well, why are we here anyway?) 

Most of the cuts were small clips here and there.  To give context, I'm including parts of real included scenes.  I've surrounded the actual cut dialog or scene description with the tags
[omit:]  means what follows is omitted
[/omit]  means end of the omitted part


====================================
Jim walking through Tower security:

[omit:]security man gives some items back to a tourist.
SECURITY MAN: Put this in your bag, please.[/omit]
(Jim walks through the detector which beeps an alarm.)
SECURITY MAN: Excuse me, sir.

====================================




When Moriarty is escorted to courtroom, they omit his creepy scene where he asks the female guard for the gum is pocket:

[omit:]
JIM: Would you mind slipping your hand into my pocket?
(The officer looks at one of her male colleagues, who nods in agreement. Looking rather uncomfortable, she slides her fingers into Jim’s trouser pocket and pulls out the contents as Jim breathes very close to her face and gazes into her eyes before poking his tongue out. She puts what she has found in his pocket – a piece of chewing gum – onto his tongue and he draws his tongue back in and begins to chew, smiling at her creepily.)
JIM: Thanks.
[/omit]

====================================

After Sherlock is evidently escorted away for contempt of court, the split screen image of him and Moriatry in adjoining cells is omitted:


JUDGE: Keep your answers brief and to the point. Anything else will be treated as contempt. Do you think you could survive for just a few minutes without showing off?
(Sherlock pauses as he gives the question some thought, then opens his mouth.)
[omit:]
Shortly afterwards, a prison officer marches Sherlock into one of the cells under the courts and shoves him inside, slamming the door shut behind him. A recess has apparently been called in the trial and so a little later two more officers walk Jim to the adjoining cell and lock him inside. As if sensing each other, the two men turn and look at the wall separating them. Jim’s expression slowly becomes murderous.
shut behind him. A recess has apparently been called in the trial and so a little later two more officers walk Jim to the adjoining cell and lock him inside. As if sensing each other, the two men turn and look at the wall separating them. Jim’s expression slowly becomes murderous.
[/omit]

====================================

During the  John/Sherlock 'you're doing the look again' sequence,  they leave out the final line:

SHERLOCK: If Moriarty wanted the Jewels, he’d have them. If he wanted those prisoners free, they’d be out on the streets. The only reason he’s still in a prison cell right now is because he chose to be there.
(He starts to pace again.)
[omit:]
SHERLOCK: Somehow this is part of his scheme.
[/omit]


====================================


They omit the judge's 'you must find him guilty' lecture to the jury, interspersed with Sherlock at home murmuring the lines simultaneously:


DEFENDING BARRISTER: Nevertheless, my client is offering no evidence. The defence rests.
(He sits down. Jim purses his lips ruefully at the judge, then turns and looks up to John, shrugging at him.)
[omit:]
Not long afterwards, Sherlock – who chose to stay back at home – sits up sideways on the sofa with his back against the arm nearest the window. Wearing his blue dressing gown over his clothes, he softly recites the only words that the judge can possibly say in his summing-up speech. His recitation is interspersed with the actual words from the judge, and frequently their lines overlap.
SHERLOCK/JUDGE: Ladies and gentlemen of the jury. James Moriarty stands accused of several counts of attempted burglary, crimes which – if he’s found guilty – will elicit a very long custodial sentence; and yet his legal team has chosen to offer no evidence whatsoever to support their plea. I find myself in the unusual position of recommending a verdict wholeheartedly. You must find him guilty.
(Sherlock closes his eyes.)
SHERLOCK (in a whisper): Guilty.
JUDGE: You must find him guilty.
(The court adjourns at 10:42.
[/omit]
At 10:50 John is sitting on a bench just outside the courtroom when the Clerk of the Court hurries out of a side room.)...

====================================

After the scraping the dried linseed oil/floor wax scene,  the sequence with the clip from the outside of the kids' school is omitted:

[omit:]
LONDON. Sherlock and John are in a taxi.
JOHN: But how did he get past the CCTV? If all the doors were locked ...
SHERLOCK: He walked in when they weren’t locked.
JOHN: But a stranger can’t just walk into a school like that.
SHERLOCK: Anyone can walk in anywhere if they pick the right moment. Yesterday – end of term, parents milling around, chauffeurs, staff. What’s one more stranger among that lot?
(A flashback shows one of the school children outside the entrance being embraced by her mother. Other adults and children are all around, and one man walks alone up the steps towards the door.)
SHERLOCK: He was waiting for them. All he had to do was find a place to hide.
[/omit]


====================================



Small cuts in the Molly scenes (gasp!), like her 2nd mention of 'I owe you':


MOLLY: What did you mean, "I owe you" ?
(John walks across the lab on the other side of the bench. Sherlock raises his eyes from the microscope and watches him as he crosses the room.)
MOLLY: [omit:]You said, "I owe you". [/omit] You were muttering it while you were working.



====================================

Odd they leave out 'hell' here,  they leave it in elsewhere...:

Lestrade - What [omit:]the hell [/omit] is this?  Chocolate?


====================================

Some cuts in the Kitty apartment scene, a bit at the beginning, plus a couple lines.


[omit:]:
Kitty Riley parks her car outside her home, gets out and locks the car before walking to the front door.
[/omit]
Opening it, she walks along the hall to the door of her flat, then pauses...

[omit:]
SHERLOCK: Oh, come on, Kitty. No-one trusts the voice at the end of a telephone.
(John finally frees his own hand from the cuffs.)
SHERLOCK: There are all those furtive little meetings in cafés; those sessions in the hotel room where he gabbled into your dictaphone. How do you know that you can trust him? [/omit} A man turns up with the Holy Grail in his pockets. (Sternly) What were his credentials?`

====================================

more unforgivable Molly cuts,  like the mention of her name,  the 'if I wasn't everything you think I am' line,  and her 2nd 'What do you need?':


SHERLOCK (slowly walking towards her): [omit:]Molly,[/omit] I think I’m going to die.
MOLLY: What do you need?
[omit:]
(SHERLOCK (still slowly approaching her): If I wasn’t everything that you think I am – everything that I think I am – would you still want to help me?
(Molly gazes up at him as he stops close to her.)
MOLLY: What do you need?)
[/omit]
(Sherlock steps even closer, his expression intense.)
SHERLOCK: You.



====================================

A line cut from the John yelling at Mycroft scene:

JOHN: So how does it work, then, your relationship? D’you go out for a coffee now and then, eh, you and Jim?
(Mycroft sits down in the chair opposite and opens his mouth but John interrupts again. His voice is full of controlled anger.)
[omit:]JOHN: Your own brother, and you blabbed about his entire life to this maniac.
MYCROFT: I never inten... I never dreamt ...
[/omit]
JOHN (interrupting): So this ...th-th-this ... (he looks through the papers again) ... is what you were trying to tell me, isn’t it: “Watch his back, ’cause I’ve made a mistake."

====================================


The rooftop scene (thank God) was fairly intact.   Perhaps a second or two, or a cut I missed.  Hmm, I
don't remember seeing the birds fly in front of the shot from above of sherlock on stretcher.


====================================
After the rooftop scene,

They cut the short Mycroft scene scene of him and the newspaper at the Diogenes Club,  and John in 221B.   Snipped a bit off the beginning of the final therapist scene too...:

[omit:]
DIOGENES CLUB. Mycroft is holding a copy of “The Sun" . Its headline screams “SUICIDE OF FAKE GENIUS"  and the strap lines state "SUPER-SLEUTH IS DEAD"  and "Fraudulent detective takes his own life". Folding the paper and putting it down on the table beside him, he stares blankly into the distance and then folds his hands in front of his face in the prayer position.


221B. John sits in his armchair, dressed but with his feet bare and tucked together in front of him. One hand is propping up his head and he gazes into the distance, lost and alone.


ELLA’S OFFICE. As the rain continues to pour down, John gazes blankly at his therapist.

ELLA: There’s stuff that you wanted to say ...
(John opens his mouth briefly and then closes it.)
[/omit]

ELLA: ... but didn’t say it.

====================================

Graveyard scene:  intact.   whew.


Though they don't end it with the Sherlock music theme.  It moves straightaway to an ad for an upcoming show,  and different end credit music. It's kind of jarring to not have the theme music take over at the end.  bit not good

====================================


recommended:   watch the DVD!

 

May 21, 2012 7:17 am  #2


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

jenosborn wrote:

Odd they leave out 'hell' here,  they leave it in elsewhere...:

Lestrade - What [omit:]the hell [/omit] is this?  Chocolate?

I imagine it has something to do with where it appears in the episode. It's possible that due to the duration, it crosses two ratings periods. In the former, can't have any swearing, in the latter, some swearing is okay.

That's the only explanation I can think of for cutting it in some places earlier in the episode and leaving other, later ones, in.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I dislike being outnumbered. It makes for too much stupid in the room

 

May 21, 2012 7:33 am  #3


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

that's what I thought too.   Only there was an earlier 'hell' in the episode,  so who knows what they were thinking.

JOHN: "Bachelor" ? What the hell are they implying?

     Thread Starter
 

May 21, 2012 8:39 am  #4


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

Maybe they just needed like 1 second extra chopped off but couldn't decide where to take it from!

Anyway, I'm pretty happy with most of those cuts. They "everything you think I am" bit where Sherlock asks for help, shame that line had to go, it's a nice one...but I guess not actually important.

Interesting that they cut the scene of Mycroft reading the paper. I always thought that was an interesting scene because he didn't really seem that bothered about the whole thing and whether that was just him being a Holmes brother or the fact that he blatantly knows ! Either way it musn't actually be important so possibly we've been reading too much into that little bit...


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eventually everyone will support Johnlock.

Independent OSAJ Affiliate

 

May 21, 2012 10:49 am  #5


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

Shame they didn't leave in the bit where Sherlock is slung in gaol for contempt, it is just so funny. The female prison guard, chewing gum scene is creepily suggestive so maybe that was a watershed thing too and it is not vital for the plot line, although it shows more of Moriarty's character. Shame the bit with Molly was snipped.

The 'hell' cuts seem strange to me, here, this side of the pond. I am not sure about the other Brits but I don't think we even regard this as swearing at all anymore.

Still think that it is a shame that such a finely crafted piece of work has to be cut at all.


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Don't make people into heroes John. Heroes don't exist and if they did I wouldn't be one of them.
 

May 21, 2012 9:24 pm  #6


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

you  did an excellent pc of work,  giving us the omitted scenes!!   I  have a subtitles site on my favorites,   and what you put in here for us are exactly the same things.   GREAT!!   I  am disappointed in the scenes that were cut out,  with one exception--the scene where the guard gives moriarty some gum---why  did they film that at all?  that  had nothing to do with the story in my opinion.  I  live in america,  and the word 'hell'  is  not always cut out.  the f  word is,  tho.   You bet I am getting the dvd's!!!   tomorrow they come out in america!!!   yippee!!


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

SHERLOCK!!!!!!
 

May 21, 2012 9:37 pm  #7


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

Thank you, jenosborn - that was quite a job!  *thumbs up*


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
John: "Have you spoken to Mycroft, Molly, uh, anyone?"
Mrs Hudson: "They don’t matter. You do."


I BELIEVE IN SERIES 5!




                                                                                                                  
 

May 21, 2012 9:42 pm  #8


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

Thanks for the nice words,  sherlockskitty and tobe…  I really had such fun watching this time with the transcript in front of me!   (Ariane really does an amazing job with these.)     And it kind of gives us some insight into the editing dilemma the producers had.   

     Thread Starter
 

May 21, 2012 9:53 pm  #9


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

Thanks, jenosborn. I find specially weird cutting the "if I'm not what I think I am". For me it was a big deal... Sherlock telling someone (even if it is Molly) that he could be not what he thinks he is...

Also, Mycroft reading the paper... it's interesting that they cut that. I hate to see Mycroft scenes cut (you know I love him) and in Kitty's appartment scene I wouldn't change a single second...

Well, I'll have to think it through 


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Waiting for a crazy man in a blue box to fall from the sky...

But the thing is, we've taken away all the things that can possibly have happened, so I suppose the only thing that's left, even though it seems really weird, must be the thing that did happen, in fact. (Miss Marple)

 

May 22, 2012 12:49 am  #10


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

Thanks, jenosborn. I find specially weird cutting the "if I'm not what I think I am". For me it was a big deal... Sherlock telling someone (even if it is Molly) that he could be not what he thinks he is…

It was a big deal to me too Irene!   Puzzled over the Molly scene cuts generally.   When she repeats the lines 'I owe you' and 'What do you need'--  I found that important.  It made the rhythm of the scene key-  and it was a bit jarring to hear her assert herself despite repeated deflection attempts.   Their dialog becomes increasingly real,  and well written, and it resonated with,  obviously, so many of us!  I  was sorry to miss it.

Also, Mycroft reading the paper... it's interesting that they cut that. I hate to see Mycroft scenes cut (you know I love him)

I'm completely with you there!      And the other snippet when John's angry at him, and Mycroft stumbles on his words…


Oh well.   It must just be wretched to make these editing decisions.   Can you imagine what gems were left on the cutting room floor when the original episodes were completed?

     Thread Starter
 

May 22, 2012 12:52 am  #11


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

jenosborn, thank you for taking all that time to document what was cut. I do find it interesting to consider what they felt they could drop.

I find specially weird cutting the "if I'm not what I think I am". For me it was a big deal... Sherlock telling someone (even if it is Molly) that he could be not what he thinks he is...

That is the cut that stands out most for me, too, Irene_Adler.  It is not crucial to the plot, but as you said, it is an important character moment for Sherlock to show vulnerability like that.  (Of course, maybe Sherlock was just being calculating--did you read the PBS chat with Moffat where, when asked whether Sherlock's rooftop tears were real, Moffat said that Sherlock "knew what he was doing" with the crying?  Yikes.) Anyway, I also think the cut line is important for Molly because she is showing a lot of fortitude there.  Sherlock is saying some rather unsettling things, and she doesn't blink:  she is there for him.

I never knew what to make of Mycroft reading the paper.  It is interesting to scrutinize, though.

 

May 22, 2012 1:19 am  #12


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

agreed,  Sherlock is tripped up a bit on this exchange.    I don't think it was truly (or only) calculating either-- yes I did love Steven Moffat's answer to whether his Reichenbach tears were real:  "He's Sherlock Holmes, he knew exactly what he was doing.  Sentimentalise him at your peril."    Love that!     It says as much about Steven Moffat and his relationship to the Sherlock fans as it does about Sherlock.

I do believe that the incredible nuanced acting/writing shows both a calculating aspect (he's got to make John believe this magic trick) and genuine character (sentiment?)   but it's not at all clear cut,  and it's not meant to be.   Sherlock can't become mushy and Moffat is reminding us of that.      (But he is still developing.   And maybe someday,  a 'good' man? - let's hope at his core he'll still be Sherlock…)     I can forgive these edits more when they have to do with plot a bit more than the ones that make the characters richer...

     Thread Starter
 

May 22, 2012 5:16 am  #13


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

I think its very telling that those lines to Molly were cut out.
People wanted to romanticise the exchange with Molly, they wanted those line to mean that Sherlock was softening up, vulnerable.

In a way, I am pleased. Although that scene does show what a good actor Sherlock can be when he wants to achieve something.


____________________________________________________________________________________________
Also, please note that sentences can also end in full stops. The exclamation mark can be overused.
Sherlock Holmes 28 March 13:08

Mycroft’s popularity doesn’t surprise me at all. He is, after all, incredibly beautiful, clever and well-dressed. And beautiful. Did I mention that?
--Mark Gatiss

"I know that you believe you understand what you think I said, but I’m not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant."
Robert McCloskey
 

May 22, 2012 5:55 am  #14


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

I see your point.  The creators certiainly don't want to over-romanticize,  or give the impression that Sherlock has given in to sentiment.     I still maintain that the lines as originally written had a more powerful impact than the edited version, on levels other than romanticizing or sentiment.   It's an excellently paced and played scene, and serves the story.   And with or without those edits,  there will always be people that are going to want to romanticise the exchange with Molly.

Luckily,  none of us ever has to watch this edited version again. 

     Thread Starter
 

May 22, 2012 6:03 am  #15


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

yeah!!   we're all gonna get the dvd's,  if we don't have them already.   Am I  wrong?   simple deduction, really.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

SHERLOCK!!!!!!
 

May 22, 2012 6:07 am  #16


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

All the lines do for me is reiterate how Sherlock manipulates people. But there are plenty of other places where he does that anyway. It's just another example for me.
Sherlock was over dramatic, Molly was her bland self allowing herself to be led by the nose by him again. Ptretty usual exchange between them actually, ol.


____________________________________________________________________________________________
Also, please note that sentences can also end in full stops. The exclamation mark can be overused.
Sherlock Holmes 28 March 13:08

Mycroft’s popularity doesn’t surprise me at all. He is, after all, incredibly beautiful, clever and well-dressed. And beautiful. Did I mention that?
--Mark Gatiss

"I know that you believe you understand what you think I said, but I’m not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant."
Robert McCloskey
 

May 22, 2012 6:14 am  #17


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

Fair enough.  Well, the lines do much more for me,  and I found them brilliant.

I agree with you sherlockskitty,  on to the DVDs from now on!   

     Thread Starter
 

May 31, 2012 8:00 am  #18


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

I was just reading an article about the US fans' reactions:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2143515/Sherlock-Holmes-mystery-U-S-viewers-TV-channel-cuts-minutes-fit-schedules.html


What interested me most was one of the  comments:

"If you ever required proof that it's all about the money and not at all about the programme then here it is." I think that maybe some UK folks do not understand the nature of PBS. It is paid for solely by donations from the public - there are no commercials. So the sponsors here are not advertisers, but individuals or private trusts, that donate money to keep the channel running. I for one am glad of that - PBS concentrates on showing a high calibre of programme - music, drama and history for example. No reality shows or soaps in sight !!!! So dedicating a few minutes an hour to say "thank you" is a small price to pay for no commercials and good quality television.



I didn't know that.


____________________________________________________________________________________________
Also, please note that sentences can also end in full stops. The exclamation mark can be overused.
Sherlock Holmes 28 March 13:08

Mycroft’s popularity doesn’t surprise me at all. He is, after all, incredibly beautiful, clever and well-dressed. And beautiful. Did I mention that?
--Mark Gatiss

"I know that you believe you understand what you think I said, but I’m not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant."
Robert McCloskey
 

May 31, 2012 12:10 pm  #19


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

It's the nearest equivalent to the BBC in the USA. The BBC is funded through the TV license fee. It too has no commercials.


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Don't make people into heroes John. Heroes don't exist and if they did I wouldn't be one of them.
 

May 31, 2012 12:37 pm  #20


Re: scenes cut from U.S. TRF

kazza474 wrote:

What interested me most was one of the  comments:

"If you ever required proof that it's all about the money and not at all about the programme then here it is." I think that maybe some UK folks do not understand the nature of PBS. It is paid for solely by donations from the public - there are no commercials. So the sponsors here are not advertisers, but individuals or private trusts, that donate money to keep the channel running. I for one am glad of that - PBS concentrates on showing a high calibre of programme - music, drama and history for example. No reality shows or soaps in sight !!!! So dedicating a few minutes an hour to say "thank you" is a small price to pay for no commercials and good quality television.

I don't know a whole lot about it, but while there are still no commercials during PBS programming, there are corporate sponsors of at least some programs now.  I think that is a change that has been made in the past 15-20 years, back from when it used to be only individuals, trusts and charitable foundations that were "thanked" at the beginning of a program.  These days, you may see very short corporate promotions, too (not really full-on commercials) for commercial entities.

What also specifically eats into the time set aside for Sherlock on PBS in the U.S. is that it airs as part of a show called Masterpiece Mystery!.  So if you are watching this show on PBS, you also see the Masterpiece Mystery! credits and a brief introduction to the specific miniseries being aired that night (all this before the Sherlock credits also run).  The current host is Alan Cummings, and for Sherlock, he either said a little bit about the show generally (how it is a modern update, etc.), or he did a voiceover previewing what episode you would see that night.  I would guess that all this takes up an extra 2-3 minutes of airtime that they must correspondingly cut from the show.

I actually found the cuts in TRF and THoB to be less noticeable and less obtrusive than the ones from ASiB.  They just seemed a little more subtle to me.

 

Board footera

 

Powered by Boardhost. Create a Free Forum