Certainly the "Director's Cut" has become a marketing tool. I guess the early success and fame of cuts such as Ridley Scott's awaoke Hollywood up to the sales potential - of putting out purposefully slashed films simply to push a second version. I guess it's like remixes of pop music.
I was quite pee'd off when I bought Fellowship of the Ring, only to find an advert for an extended version of the film. I haven't bought the extended set (yet?) and certainly won't be buying any Two Towers releases until I'm sure I've got the full show. In fact, it may be worth waiting until the final 3-film boxed set is released, just in case there are any more suprises.
Really, the whole issue of Director's Cut is bound to create a backlash - after all, if only the Director's Cut is worth buying, then why should anyone buy the first "cut" release?
Are there many "Director Cut" versions actually worth looking out for? Certainly the Bladerunner one was interesting. On that count, though, I'm a complete heretic and am very happy with the original - the overdubbing helps bring an extra dimension to the characters, and helps push the noir detective feel intended - not to mention the fact that you really can't go wrong with Harrison Ford. We all enjoyed that film originally, which is precisely why it became an underground success in the first place! I'm not too concerned which version I see (though I'm really hoping one day to see a DVD release with
both present, not to mention other features.)
But I digress.
Any specific Director's Cut editions to watch for? "Aliens" was one I never saw but should have - I've been thinking of looking for that on DVD recently. That has a good reputation, namely because it includes material quite important to the story and were pointlessly cut for quick and easy popcorn consumption.
But are there any others? Or is that ignorance and heresy (and bad memory!) surfacing again?