McQuarrie was concerned with the way he and Hamilton were editing “Rogue Nation,” as its climax was too busy. After the climactic scene with Benji (Simon Pegg) strapped to a bomb, there is an additional chase to the Tower of London, allowing Ethan to capture the film’s villain, Solomon Lane (Sean Harris), and a scene wherein Ethan is seemingly trapped in a bulletproof box. Each element of the climax worked on its own with its own temp track, but McQuarrie felt the movie ended too many times.
Cruise, who was present for the editing, merely suggested that the music shouldn’t stop. If the music continues, then the tension will remain high. McQuarrie found that Cruise was right, saying:
“The first cut of ‘Rogue Nation’ … the audience in the first tests were saying it felt like the movie had five endings. And the response to those notes was, ‘Well, you gotta cut out some of the business at the end.’ And Tom said, ‘No, no, no, just listen to the music. Every scene with the temp score, it’s, “duh-duh!” And it feels like the movie’s over.’ And he said to [composer] Joe Kramer, ‘Just write a 20-minute piece that plays through the entire last two reels, like it’s one sequence.’ And the [test] score shot up, and all the notes went away.”
This is, of course, some amazing insight. Cruise was 100% right in this case, as the climax works like a charm. Kudos.
What do you think about this approach? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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