I did not really like the character of Orson Welles in this film. I especially did not like his arrogance. I just wondering what he did to gain the undivided attention and respect from the cast. He has not directed Citizen Kane yet as far as I know. So what did he do, and what evidance is there that he realy was the ass portrait here.
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-Pieter-
He was already a radio star, which is where he got most of the money to to put into the Mercury Theater. It was just a year earlier than the famous War of the Worlds Haloween radio broadcast that had thousands of people believing we were being invaded by Martians. Radio was very big in those days and a radio star of his magnitude was worth respecting.
Additionally, the Mercury Theater actors were among the most talented theater actors of their time. Most of them went on to great careers in theater, on film, and on tv. They recognized that Orson Welles was a genius. Like most geniuses, Einstein for example, he was not very likeable.
Jabormark, thanks for that excellent answer. I knew of Welles' arrogance, though I have not seen this film yet. But, I would have forgotten about the radio programs that Welles did, and all of that business.
shareDon't worry, the Law of Karma was fully at work. Several years later, William Randolph Hearst saw to it that Welles' career was permanently ruined. He wound up fat, ugly, doing wine commercials, acting in junk films, and a wreck of a man.
shareI must heavily disagree with your notion that the "law of karma" got to Welles. Hearst only ruined his career because Welles indirectly ruined his...his greatest achievement, "Citizen Kane", appeared to scandalize Heart's life, so Hearst tried to destroy Welles's life. He somewhat did, but in turn, destroyed himself.
He ended up becoming overweight because all his life, he overate, but maintained his shape when he was young because he was out-and-about and running all over town. He also was such a risk to studios because of what happened with Citizen Kane that no one wanted to hire him - not because they hated him, but because they were worried he would cause a huge controversy that might sink them like he nearly sunk RKO. That's why he appeared in low budget movies (some of them however, like one film on Nikola Telsa, were fantastic.) It's interesting to note though that he nearly played Vito Corleone in "The Godfather" and nearly snagged some other good roles in classic movies but didn't because the director's thought he'd be too recognizable.
Welles only appeared to be a wreck of a man, but he actually lived the last two decades of his life in peace in Europe with a sexy actress named Oja Kodar. He may have been arrogant and cocky, but that was merely only part of his character - he was also caring and sweet (judging of course from what friends and family have said about him).
Oja on Orson: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cn8qhBE24DE
He actually came back to Los Angeles in the late seventies and whilst not acting in many films he did a lot of voice overs (boss in Charly's Angels, originally) and commercials, mainly for wines.
shareAnd in 1973 he made 'F For Fake'
A beautiful, very transcendent, reflective and 'tongue in cheek' film about the matter of originals (e. g. the 'truth') and seduction in the mass media society that he was blending/illuminating his public so successfully in almost all of his movies ... A meta-movie on a lot of levels ...
Welles (well, the little I know about him, e. g. the image, the legend of him that is kept alive by the entertainment economy) is a good example for that historical figure being denominated as a 'Trickster'.
There are some people that do not exist to be liked but to contribute a discourse that drives the whole thing some forward.
Welles wasn't as mean to his actors as the impression one might get from the film. Many followed him to Hollywood, and got special credit at the end of Citizen Kane.
Yes, he was arrogant, but how else could he have pulled off what he did? As a magician, he understood the power of illusion and bluff.
When your eyes are blind with tears,
but your heart can see
Another life, Another galaxy
Then I would call it "lazy casting". I do not believe that there is not one young man in the performing arts circles who has "the voice, size and presence of the real Orson Welles." There are hundreds of them!
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Most of my professional life has been spent in two areas of employment: The medical field and the entertainment industry. In both fields, there are copious amounts of inflated egos. My favorite medical show is House M.D., as I have worked with SO many doctors like that in the O.R. I feel, out of all the medical shows out there, House comes closest to the “truth”… At least it was when I was working in the OR for ten years.
On the entertainment end of my resume, I again, meet/have met amazingly huge egos, and I think it takes a big ego to “put yourself out there”, to stand on a stage and “perform.”
I have also had the opportunity to “hang” with some of these people after hours. And they are very affable! My own brother is a very prominent drummer and he fronts a very successful jazz band. Because it’s my brother’s name on the marquee, sometimes my bro needs to play the heavy. If my brother has a trumpet player who’s a slacker, my bro has to come down hard on him, and if the band turns in a crappy performance, it’s my brother who’ll get the bad reviews. Understand?
I had met the legendary jazz drummer Buddy Rich, and he was very pleasant. However, he used to RAKE HIS OWN BAND MERCESSLY over the coals. He demanded 110% from his band, and if he found you lacking, you were gonna get it. He was also considered a “child prodigy,” a genius of the drums. (Type in Buddy Rich Tirades in Youtube, if you really wanna hear what an A-hole really sounds like!
Anyway, I can see why some people would say Welles was an arrogant prick… I would even agree…
But working with talented & skilled individuals such as he… You either grow a thick skin and grin and bear it, or you run away crying.
All that aside, I absolutely loved this film. The performances, storyline, direction… I thought this film was simply great.
Trust me,
Swan
My, you're nosey, aren't you?
I'd love to see him perform. Unfortunately I absolutely don't believe there are "hundreds" of personalities as diverse, energetic and talented as Orson Welles, who ALSO resemble him, AND are under age 25. He was a unique man with unearthly energy at times, and equally able to work the business side of theater as well as perform. There aren't hundreds of him out there, at least not all at age 24, and they're not all actors or directors. You say "lazy casting" like it's an easy job. Have you ever done it?
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Herman Mankiewicz (co-writer of Citizen Kane) when Welles walked by him on the movie set: " There but for the grace of God goes God."
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The movie is more nuanced than presented here. Welles was very demanding, but he also knew how to turn on the charm and reward talented people for good work. In the movie he passed out $5 bills on the night before opening; in those days, $5 was a night on the town. And how he turned sweet to woo Richard back into harness, and handled the actor who collapsed with stage fright on opening night.
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When I was younger, I was in a choir directed by a genius type, one of the best directors in the world. He was very mercurial, sometimes nice and understanding, sometimes downright mean, yelling at us (young people). But we dealt with it, because he was amazing and we knew it. He brought out the best in us and made us be able to do things that we never could have done on our own. It's kind of a hero worship I suppose, or maybe even like Stockholm Syndrome, I don't know. The beauty of what he brought out of us was worth the pain and agony and we didn't resent him at all.
I had an orchestra director like that, when I was younger. You've expressed what it was like very well.
shareI don't think Welles was particularly mean as he was self-absorbed. Even in the film many of his slights occur either because he has made a change without even thinking of the actor's feelings, or he berates people for challenging his vision.
Welles really was larger than life, and at the time of the film it was only his moxie and ability to convince everyone he was a genius that kept things together. He did not yet have the career to back up his claims, so in some sense he "played the role" of a genius until he could build up the track record to back it up.
Gamera is really neat... He is made of mystery meat!
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In that time period, a radio star was a big star. I have War of the Worlds on some old records and used to play it every Halloween. My kids were always amazed that anyone fell for it, but they don't understand how important radio was. That's how people came into your living room and your life. And Welles was one of the biggest stars on it.
shareI don't think being a radio star would impress the other theater people (but it would attract lots of media attention and draw an audience to the Mercury Theater). But Welles also had some success at the Federal Theater (or some such name) before he launched his own Mercury Theater. There's an indirect reference to this prior phase of his career in the movie. That's where he impressed and recruited some of his top theater collaborators who followed him to the Mercury, the Mercury Players on radio, and then Hollywood.
shareWhat I find most interesting about Welles is that movie people still obsess about him 75 years after Citizen Kane. There is something of the incredible about a 25 year old who made what most cinematic brains consider the greatest film of all time that makes many become fascinated about his story.
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