Movies

1974 documentary

Rating: 16/20

Plot: Orson Welles last film is a documentary on fraud and fakery. He intertwines the stories of a notorious art forger named Elmyr de Hory and his biographer Clifford Irving who also wrote the autobiography of Howard Hughes. Irving also inexplicably has a monkey. The careers of Hughes and Welles are also discussed.

This was really fascinating, stuffed with style and headscratch-inducing moments. It's deceptively entertaining. Cryptically narrated by the golden-voiced Welles (he also recites poetry), the stories weave in and out of themselves with a bombardment of visuals that I believe would have been entertaining endlessly. Not only is it a blast to watch, but Welles himself looks like he's having a blast. He's alternatingly funny, insightful, deceitful, coy, and cool. He starts the movie acting like a magician and the direction in this also looks like the work of a magician, a baffling and strange magician. The guy also sure knows how to write and deliver a line. You really haven't lived until you've heard Orson say, "A ham sandwich." This is really something that I think has to be seen again (Criterion released it recently, so maybe I'll check that out in a few months) because there are so many layers. It's actually worth watching again just to see the multitude of shots of Orson's gorgeous girlfriend Oja Kodar.