:
Orson Welles,
Oja Kodar,
Joseph Cotten,
more...
:
Orson Welles
see all cast/crew...
: Not Rated
: Criterion Collection, Criterion
: Documentary, Foreign, Independent, Middle East, Art, Conspiracies, Experimental/Avant-Garde, Iran, Criterion Collection
: English
: English
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F For Fake (Criterion Collection) (1973)
The final directorial project the legendary Orson Welles completed during his lifetime, F for Fake is less a documentary than an example of cinematic free association on the topic of trickery. Much of the film is in fact drawn from other sources, most notably an unfinished documentary by Francois Reichenbach on the notorious Elmyr de Hory, whose extremely skillful forgeries of famous paintings caused scandals amongst art collectors and experts. In an additional bit of irony, de Hory's interviewer is author Clifford Irving, who became infamous due to a forgery of his own: a falsified autobiography of Howard Hughes. Welles openly reedits and manipulates this footage, using it as a spine for his own commentary, arguing that there is an extremely close relationship between art and lying, and citing instances from his own career to prove the point. Through a combination of documentary and staged footage, Welles attempts to illustrate the artifice behind all filmmaking, even that of a supposedly non-fiction variety. F for Fake is inconsistent almost by its very nature, and certainly not comparable to Welles' earlier classics, but its free-wheeling, prankster spirit makes for an enjoyable curiosity. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
F For Fake (Criterion Collection) (Bonus Disc) (1973)
The final directorial project the legendary Orson Welles completed during his lifetime, F for Fake is less a documentary than an example of cinematic free association on the topic of trickery. Much of the film is in fact drawn from other sources, most notably an unfinished documentary by Francois Reichenbach on the notorious Elmyr de Hory, whose extremely skillful forgeries of famous paintings caused scandals amongst art collectors and experts. In an additional bit of irony, de Hory's interviewer is author Clifford Irving, who became infamous due to a forgery of his own: a falsified autobiography of Howard Hughes. Welles openly re-edits and manipulates this footage, using it as a spine for his own commentary, arguing that there is an extremely close relationship between art and lying, and citing instances from his own career to prove the point. Through a combination of documentary and staged footage, Welles attempts to illustrate the artifice behind all filmmaking, even that of a supposedly non-fiction variety. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
Two decades after his death, Orson Welles continues to fascinate us, both with his work (Citizen Kane has been consistently rated the best film of all time in the Sight & Sound critics poll since 1962) and his life (the biographies just keep coming). Sean Axmaker talks with Gary Graver, Welles's devoted cameraman and occasional one-man crew, about the chaotic last 15 years of Welles's career. Full article >>
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| F For Fake (Criterion Collection) (Bonus Disc) (1973) |
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| It's pretty, but is it Art?
by Sujata
August 16, 2007 - 4:30 PM PDT
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1 out of 1 members found this review helpful
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This is a movie that defies genre, neither documentary nor fiction; but rather an account of one man's meditation on art, life, and the nature of truth. The man is Welles playing himself, and the truth in question is that of originality in art. The movie primarily deals with the life of one of the best known art forgers of the twentieth century, Elmyr d'Hory. His forgeries are reputed to adorn most of the great museums of the world, which display their fake Matisses in blissful ignorance. It also shows the man who chronicled Elmyr's life, and shot him to world prominence - his biographer Clifford Irving. Throughout the movie, reality and imitation blend in bewildering chaos.
I have a detailed review here:
http://www.rantlust.com/papi/2007/05/31/its-pretty-but-is-it-art/
Highly recommended. |
| Woah, Wow, and Wowie: F for Fake
by pmoore
May 17, 2005 - 10:32 AM PDT
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11 out of 15 members found this review helpful
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Man, I have no words. A quote from on of my Film Club buddies was, "It renews my faith in cinema." Another buddy commented, "It just proves that a great movie can be made anywhere with anything."
Welles took another filmmaker's documentary, cut it up, added some footage from an abandoned doc he was making, and shot some new stuff. Then he cut and cut and cut. What resulted for me was the feeling I get sometimes listening to Mozart or Coltrane when I have to stop and wonder, "How can a human brain work on so many levels exquisitely all at once?"
"F for Fake" opens with an elusive and quick cut sequence of Orson Welles' donning a black cape and a mischievous smile. He's performing snappy slide-of-hand tricks for a little boy, making his key disappear, reappear as some coins, show up in again in the kid's pocket and so on and so forth. Somehow, in a way that is difficult to describe, the rest of the film is Welles performing that same trick using film. The editing is the magician's hands and the story is the key disappearing and reappearing as a coin then showing up in a spot you didn't think it could possibly go.
There are so many great little facts about this film and it would diminish the experience of watching it to talk about them here, so I won't. To say it neatly, Welles turns upside down our day to day assumptions of what is sacred and what has value. If that's ambiguous it is deliberately so because any theme is irrelevant. This is a film to experience and I've never experienced any film like it.
"F for Fake" is Welles' last completed film. It's so fast and fresh it feels like it's made by a 25 year old prodigy. Of course, "Citizen Kane" was made by a 25 year old prodigy, but feels like the work of an old and brilliant director. Maybe that's the mark of true genius. They don't let their gift ripen on the vine, but keep picking it and letting it grow back new and fresh each time. |
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