RIFLE RANGE BOY

The trial (1962) Based on novel by  Franz Kafka Orson Welles described 'The Trial' as the best film he made. Some critics, however, disagree and reiterate that 'they just don't get it'. I fall into the latter category - I get it but the artistic appreciation is beyond me! Anthony Perkins (yes, Mr. Norman Bates himself), the star of the original 'Psycho', acts in this movie where he (Joseph K) is rudely awoken early one morning by a few men assumed to be from the police to tell in so many confusing way that he is under arrest for an unspecified charge. There are two other characters Mrs Grubach (the landlady) and Ms Burstner, a night club worker and neighbour speak in a confusing manner just to make things more mysterious. K is summoned to attend what is supposed to be a preliminary hearing but it appeared more like a court with cheering spectators! Chaos seem to be the word of the day with K giving a sermon to the cheer of the crowd of th...

Chimes at midnight / Falstaff (1965) I am neither a student of Shakespeare nor one born in the circle of aristocrats but I have been informed that this is a compilation of Shakespeare's work taken bits and pieces here and there and altered slightly to give this Orson Welles' direction everlasting praise and awards. The fat comical character of Falstaff who appears in many of Shakespeare's plays is played by Orson Welles in this movie. He calls himself Sir John Faltroff but he seems to be just a petty thief who claims to be and to do more than he could. Richard II dies (some say murdered by Duke Bollingbroke) and relatives of the heir, Mortimer, comes to claim the throne but is chased away by the Duke. The Duke proclaims himself as King Henry IV. There is much chaos in the land but his son, The Prince, is just too happy fooling around with his fat fraud friend  Falstaff and his friends of ill repute in a lodge. After much deliberation, the Prince manages to fight the ...

Journey into fear (1943) Whilst the whole world was busy fighting a war, Orson Welles, Joseph Cotton and his friends in Mercury Theatre were working with what they did best - i. e. film making. In contrast to the merciless villainous role that Joseph Cotton acted as in Hitchcock's 'Shadow of Doubt', here he portrays as straight forward American engineer (Graham) in Istanbul who is running for his life after a failed attempt on his life. Orson Welles appears as a Turkish police chief (Haki) who comes to his rescue by sending him back home by boat rather than his planned train trip. As predicted, his assassin is on board. They are Nazi agents out to delay the upgrading of Turkish Navy of which Graham is involved. Apparently, Welles was too busy with other commitments that he delegated directorial and other duties to others. Probably, if he were more involved in its production, then there would be imbroglio of massive reels of edited film yearning to be screened! In spite...

Compulsion 1959 Set in Chicago of 1924, this is another film noir starring Orson Welles, Dean Stockwell (the guy on TV series 'Voyagers!' with the time gadget), Bradford Dilman, Richard Anderson (Oscar Goldman of TV series $6million dollar man) and others. Artie Strauss (Dilman) and Judd Steiner (Stockwell) are two intelligent wayward rich university law students who go around with a chip on their shoulder (thinking that they are of superior intellect) doing mischief and hit-and-run a drunk off a road because they felt like it! Richard Anderson (Max) is Judd's brother who despises his brother's association with Artie. The deranged duo kills a boy but for a perfect murder but Judd inadvertently dropped his glasses at the crime scene. Judd is a loner and child prodigy speaking 14 languages who lost his mother at 8. Artie is always abandoned by his aristocrat parents. The police finally pinpoint the murder to the duo. By that time, I was wondering when Welles was g...

The Tragedy of Othello, The Moor of Venice (1952) There are conspiracy theory stories surrounding William Shakespeare. The first says that he could not have written the playwrights by himself looking at his non-aristocratic family background. People like Earl of Oxford Edward de Vere and Sir Francis Bacon are some of the likely candidates who are the possible real authors. Another theory is, of course, the alien intervention of infusing wisdom to mankind to improve them culturally. So with that background, I decided to watch Orson Welles' presentation of Othello. Seriously, I was clueless about Othello - I never had the chance to read it. The black-and-white movie made in 1952 with many versions- the one I watched is the 1992 restored version. It starts with a funeral procession and backtracks to the unceremonious union of matrimony of Othello (a Moor, a North African general of the Venetian army) and Desdemona. His jealous 'comrades', Diago and Cassio stir the sere...

The Magnificent Ambersons (1942)  Another Orson Welles movie, this time a period drama set in the early 20th century when the automobile industry was in its infancy. The Ambersons were a traditionally rich family via cotton, mills and the like with arrogant George as the sole heir to the family. Upon his coming home from college, his mother holds a party, when George meets Lucy and her father. Lucy's father, Eugene (Joseph Cotton), is considered eccentric as he thought automobile, the unreliable frequently breaking down horseless carriage, is the way of the future. George's sickly father, Wilbur who outwit Eugene to win his mother in marriage, dies soon afterwards. Eugene, a widower, rekindles his relationship with George's mother, Isabel, now a widow. The haughty George ridicules Eugene and his automobile industry. As Isabel and Eugene's affair becomes the talk of town, George goes ballistic and tries whatever means to separate this old love couple. Lucy and G...

After a self imposed exile in Europe of 10 years, Orson Welles made this 1958 movie with a star studded cast of Charleton Heston, Janet Leigh, himself, Marlene Deitrich, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Dennis Weaver and others. It is a film noir with a very convoluted storyline and is the last of legendary movies of its genre. Here, guitar music of rock and roll had replaced the usual jazz music. This movie was supposed to be a come back movie for Welles. Again here, the studios felt that the movie had to be edited and redone much to Welles disappointment that made him write the now famous 58 page expressive plea. In 1998, the director's plea materialized and was restored to its previous glory. Charleton Heston acts a mustachioed Mexican drug enforcement officer! Welles who was hired as a supporting actor and villainous evidence planting over-sized unhealthy looking cop ended up doing the screenplay and direction for free. This outing however lacks the power dialogue that is synanomous with...