Were American audiences not sophisticated enough to accept and handle the original ending?

I think they did test screenings - Hollywood movies do this all the time. Look at I Am Legend for how it can completely change a film.

In the end it was probably decided the audience thought Dan had suffered enough and Alex was an absolute loon who shouldn't 'win' any more than she already did.

a 1987 audience was quite sophisticated enough. studios can be such screw ups, they wanted a "happy ending". angel heart was 1987 and was well renowned and had a pretty dark ending.

it was definitely a better ending. it wouldve had much more impact as a film. it wouldve given people even more to think/talk about with cheating. when i learned of this ending i was so disappointed it wasnt used.

in the movie Seven, the studio didnt like that the wifes head was in the box. they thought the ending was too dark. they wanted to swap her head with their dogs head. fortunately, brad pitt already read the script and wouldnt allow the change. god that wouldve been horrible.

I think the ending they went with is better. Dan and his family have suffered enough, the film’s moral of ‘don’t play away’ has been made abundantly clear.

That said, the original ending’s implication is that Dan will not go down for murder because his wife finds the tape in which Alex promises to kill herself by ‘cutting deeper next time’.

I like the whole ‘voice from the grave’ aspect, and how it ties into the opera theme which plays over the end credits as Alex cuts her throat, mirroring the girl’s suicide in Butterfly. It’s a haunting ending and I like it, but I prefer the nailbiting tension of the actual ending, the satisfaction of Dan drowning the bitch, and his long suffering wife delivering on her promise to kill Alex with a satisfying shot through the heart.

The kid gets her dad back as well, she doesn’t deserve months or years of uncertainty as Dan fights to clear his name. As I say - everyone has suffered enough.