Most critics respond favourably to Heaven’s Gate, with praise clustering around its scale, historical detail and treatment of class conflict. Vilmos Zsigmond’s photography, the landscapes and the elaborate crowd scenes draw particular admiration. Supporters find emotional depth in Cimino’s patient attention to people and places, and see the extended running time as justified by the film’s ambition. Several later reviews argue for a substantial reassessment of its hostile early reception.
The spread is wide, however, and narrative coherence is the chief dividing point. Even some admirers acknowledge weak dialogue and a story that struggles to connect its remarkable sequences. Empire admires the photography and performances but finds the storytelling frustratingly languid. The Evening Standard questions the uncut version’s length and self-importance. The New York Times supplies the sharpest dissent in its original-release review, rejecting even the photography and editing that later critics celebrate.