The Movie: Alfred Hitchcock's dark adaptation of Robert Bloch's murder story was a no-go for Paramount, causing the director to shoot (for Universal) on a tight budget with a TV crew, and deferred payment in exchange for 60% ownership of the negative.
The Risk: Never mind the shocking violence, the biggest risk was killing off Janet Leigh's character halfway through the film - an innovation that caused Hitchcock to demand that nobody be admitted into cinemas after the film had started.
Did It Pay Off?: The restrictions on admission helped to build the film's word-of-mouth, resulting in the director's biggest ever hit and one of Hollywood's most iconic films. Hitchcock's gamble also made him incredibly wealthy.
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Comments
Hadouken76
Feb 18th 2013, 15:29
Southland Tales, Waterworld and Superman Returns also
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rosshorgan
Feb 18th 2013, 19:17
Inception should be in the top 10 at the very least.
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FBJRider
Feb 18th 2013, 22:36
Inception wasn't a risk at all. It's a weird film but it was Nolan was riding high on the wave of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, no matter what his next film was after those two it was going to be a hit.
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MRNasher
Feb 21st 2013, 11:47
Well hell.. a well researched and considered piece on Totalfilm again! Bravo :)
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FBYBrown
Feb 23rd 2013, 5:50
Apocalypse Now is my all-time favorite. I've watched both versions of the film and the documentary "Hearts Darkness", which really broke down all the insanity making this film. My favorite.
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