Orson Welles official thread

[Mao5]

Welles was always an outsider to the studio system and directed only 13 full-length films in his career. While he struggled for creative control in the face of studios, many of his films were heavily edited and others were left unreleased. His distinctive directorial style featured layered and nonlinear narrative forms, innovative uses of lightingsuch as chiaroscuro, unusual camera angles, sound techniques borrowed from radio, deep focus shots, and long takes. He has been praised as a major creative force and as "the ultimate auteur." Welles followed up Citizen Kane with other critically acclaimed films, including The Magnificent Ambersons in 1942, and Touch of Evil in 1958.

In 2002, Welles was voted the greatest film director of all time in two separate British Film Institute polls among directors and critics,and a wide survey of critical consensus, best-of lists, and historical retrospectives calls him the most acclaimed director of all time.

does anybody here appreciate his movies ? is welles the greatest director ever ?

[Randy Lahey]

Citizen Kane is the most overrated movie I've ever seen.

Edited August 5, 2013 by Randy Lahey

[bacardimayne]

[Guest Len B'stard]

Definitely and undeniably one of the most important of all time. Best though? Not saying he's not up there its just how do you nail these things down?

Edited August 5, 2013 by sugaraylen

[Angelica]

Citizen Kane is the most overrated movie I've ever seen.

x 1000. It's great and important and at no point has it ever been the Best Film Ever. And it's not the best Welles film. Touch of Evil, Magnificent Ambersons, The Trial, and Lady from Shanghai are all vastly superior.

[Guest Len B'stard]

Citizen Kane is the most overrated movie I've ever seen.

x 1000. It's great and important and at no point has it ever been the Best Film Ever. And it's not the best Welles film. Touch of Evil, Magnificent Ambersons, The Trial, and Lady from Shanghai are all vastly superior.

Whats your criteria for 'best film ever'...cuz if pioneering cinematic techniques at all factors into the equation then Kane is right up there and has to be.

[Angelica]

Citizen Kane is the most overrated movie I've ever seen.

x 1000. It's great and important and at no point has it ever been the Best Film Ever. And it's not the best Welles film. Touch of Evil, Magnificent Ambersons, The Trial, and Lady from Shanghai are all vastly superior.

Whats your criteria for 'best film ever'...cuz if pioneering cinematic techniques at all factors into the equation then Kane is right up there and has to be.

It's a landmark film, without question. But better films had been released before it (Metropolis, Grand Illusion, Triumph of the Will, Battleship Potemkin) and better better films have been released since. Edited August 5, 2013 by Angelica

[My Name is Trinity]

Metropolis isn't a good movie, too many flaws. Citizen Kane is a perfect masterpiece, the only movie that comes close in terms of innovation and perfection is La Règle du Jeu by Renoir.

Touch of Evil is another masterpiece.

[Chris 55]

Citizen Kane is the most overrated movie I've ever seen.

x 1000. It's great and important and at no point has it ever been the Best Film Ever. And it's not the best Welles film. Touch of Evil, Magnificent Ambersons, The Trial, and Lady from Shanghai are all vastly superior.

It's the "best" because it was the first to do many things in film (very low angles etc). Films since then have just used it's techniques. I think it was Harry Knowles at AICN.com who had some buig write up about it when I think Vertigo took the top spot on the AFI list

Edit: Here's what I was talking about

Edited August 7, 2013 by Chris 55