D Williams’s review published on Letterboxd:
It’s patently absurd and frankly inexcusable that this film was reviewed as one of the worst films ever made on initial release. Heaven’s Gate includes staggering performances by most of its tremendously talented cast, gorgeously expansive landscape and ambient light camerawork and an attention to detail and scope of execution expressed by Cimino that is rivaled only by David Lean’s masterworks. Despite its lengthy run-time it only really begins to feel a bit bloated in its final act. I’d trim very little.
What film were critics seeing so many decades ago? If Heaven’s Gate was released today it would be nominated and frankly win everything. They don’t really make films like this much anymore and apparently Heaven’s Gate’s reception had a lot to do with that. Shameful.