Causing a mass panic with an adaptation of War of the Worlds broadcast as radio news is just one of the most eye-catching of Orson Welles’ achievements as actor, writer and director, he truly deserves the Awesome Welles title Chapter have given to their season of his films.
The man must be magic, even his name in the title of Richard Linklater’s Me and Orson Welles has given some acting credibility to chipmunk-faced High School Musical pretty boy Zac Efron. To remind cinema-goers why Welles has such a reputation, Chapter are showing:
The Third Man: Welles’ appearance as Harry Lime is brief but mesmerising, with one shot in particular becoming iconic. He plays Harry Lime in Carol Reed’s dark, post-war noir classic, scripted by Graham Greene and starring Welles collaberator Joseph Cotten, even the theme music of this blackmarket thriller set in bombsite Vienna became a hit.
Tuesday, 12 January 2010, 14:30.
Touch of Evil: is Welles’ last masterpiece both as actor and director (watch out for the incredible opening shot), after a career in which so much promise was thwarted by his inability to come to terms with the studio system and its inability to cope with a one man artistic powerhouse – many of Welles’ films were recut against his wishes. Welles, a former matinee idol, is the gross and corrupt Hank Quinlan, who, according to Marlene Dietrich, was ‘some kind of a man’. Sunday, 17 January, 17:00. Tuesday, 19 January, 14:30.
The Stranger: This Nazi hunting thriller was not edited by Welles who planned to play his trademark games with chronology, so is one of his most conventional works, but does not deserve to be overlooked. Starring Welles as the suspected Nazi and Edward G Robinson as the man on his trail. Sunday, 24 January, 17:00, Cinema 2.
Tuesday, 26 January, 14:30, Cinema 1.
Citizen Kane: Is an industry in itself so many words have been expended on its many techinical innovations, so much heat generated on Welles’ true role in its creation – Pauline Kael wrote a whole book putting it down – and so on and so on. Just watch it, it’s extraordinary and it doesn’t top all those greatest ever film polls for no reason, pointless though they be. Sunday, 31 January, 17:00, Cinema 2. Tuesday, 2 February, 14:30, Cinema 1.
So get along to Chapter and catch one of the greats in action – if you want to do some homework before you go along so you can drop lines about tracking shots and lighting while you lounge in Chapter’s lovely new bar then you won’t do much better than to take a hike to Welles Net.
Me and Orson Welles – Cinema 1: Monday, 11 January, 20:30; Tuesday, 12 January, 18:00; Wednesday, 13 January, 20:30; Thursday, 14 January, 18:00.
Tickets from Chapter.org
| Sunday, 10 January 2010 | 17:00 | Cinema 2 |
| Tuesday, 12 January 2010 | 14:30 | Cinema 1 |
