Sorcerer (1977)
Apparently when William Friedkin watched Wages of Fear, his main thought was "this movie needs an hour of backstory to explain why these men are here and desperate." And so we get little blips of the life of each of the men picked to drive the dangerous cargo. Somehow the film is shorter than the original even with this. But I don't remember the original seeming too long. While there is certainly a few tense scenes, much of the time Friedkin cuts to provide the backstory comes from the journey that makes the film. I mean, it's still the same core story that is emotionally effective in a certain nihilistic way, but it seems a slightly lesser version.
My interest was sparked in this in part because Mark Kermode always touts it. Having liked the original it seemed less believable than his contention that Breathless is better than A bout de souffle, because Godard is awful, and I guess that is somewhat borne out.