The epic Western , which cost $40 million , is thin and loosely structured. The director repeats the method he used to shoot the dance scene in " Deer hunter ". It is lengthy and narcissistic, and only photography is maintained. Commercially, the film was a disastrous blockbuster with huge losses, single-handedly causing the long tradition of United Arts to go out of business .
Director Michael Cimino was making this film when his previous film "The Deer Hunter " had just won many awards and had a booming career, but "Heaven's Gate" ruined it all. The film went over twice the budget, and the cut version was 5 hours and 25 minutes long. Even if the final cut was more than 3 hours, the impetuous audience would not be interested at all. As a result of the film's failure, the investor United Arts disintegrated, which in turn led to the gradual weakening of American directors' control over the film, and the studio's complete dominance of the film.
