The finished movie we see on the screen is often far different from the director’s original conception. THE CUTTING ROOM FLOOR is the intriguing study of the wounds, bruises, Band-Aids, and sometimes miracle remedies that can often improve a film… or destroy it.

We know that there is no such thing as the definitive version of a film. Movies can be changed by the reaction of a test audience after a sneak preview, by the studio, by the Motion Picture Association of America, by minority groups, by television networks, even by the airlines showing in-flight movies. And, of course, there are the versions released for U.S. consumption and the more explicit ones for the overseas market.

Through examples ranging back through the past two decades or so the author presents the vicissitudes and battles over such films as Basic Instinct, Dressed to Kill, Cruising, Blade Runner, Death Becomes Her and many others.