Ordinarily, the discussion of movie runtimes sight unseen is as silly as getting worked up over a title treatment. The length of a film you have not seen will only be of note when you buy your tickets and, should you be taking a date or hanging with friends, attempt to coordinate before- and/or after-film plans. Beyond this, whether a movie runs 80 minutes or 200 minutes is immaterial to your eventual enjoyment of it. It may seem odd if a seemingly expansive Western runs under two hours or a romantic comedy pushes two-and-a-half hours, but so what? If anything, it should be exciting that the movie is already challenging your expectations before you set foot in a theater.

I wouldn't say the work of Ridley Scott is the exception to this rule, but the master filmmaker behind "Alien," "Blade Runner," and "American Gangster" has long been satisfied with releasing shortened theatrical cuts of his movies,...