The real Revolution would be . . .




Director Sam Mendes and screenwriter Justin Haythe do the commentary on the DVD version of Revolutionary Road, or at least the version I watched the other night. Mendes and Haythe comment through the deleted scenes, with Mendes giving reasons for taking the scenes out and Haythe doing what writers are expected to do, namely, saying how the director is so right.

Except, he wasn't. Watching the deleted scenes gives you a much better take on Leonardo DiCaprio's performance -- in fact, it's hard not to conclude that his best work was taken out of the movie. And not coincidentally, the scenes that were sliced* also give you a much better understanding not only of DiCaprio's character but of the underlying story as expressed by the movie. . . . and I'm guessing the screenplay.

Just once, I'd like to hear a writer say something along the lines of, Yo, mf, if I didn't think it was an important scene, I wouldn't have written the sumuvabitch. @#$#@$ yourself for screwing my work.

Then some violence. Because that's what they're really thinking.

*I should say, the scenes that were sliced that were included on the DVD as extras, since undoubtedly there were other scenes not included.