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Chimes at Midnight (1965)
Director: Orson Welles
Original title: Campanadas a medianoche
'When King Henry IV ascends to the throne, his heir, the Prince of Wales, is befriended by Sir John Falstaff, an old, overweight, fun-loving habitual liar. Through Falstaff's eyes we see the reign of King Henry IV and the rise of Henry V.' Based on several of William Shakespeare's plays.
Orson Welles was a bonafide genius. He often referred to himself as having, "started at the top and worked his way down." At the top, refers to Citizen Kane, and Orson had an unheard of full editorial control over his 1st movie. Studios did not just grant youngsters like 26 year old Orson full control over a major studio film...but then again Orson Welles was no ordinary 26 year old!
Welles had started his career as a stage director doing plays based on Shakespeare but with a modern twist. So it's not surprising Welles chose a work of Shakespeare as the basis for his last feature length, non documentary film.
I hadn't seen Chimes at Midnight before...OMG this was epic! It had a sweeping vastness to the exterior long shots and the interiors made the castle seem vast and cavernous. And the film was drenched in Orson's unique cinema style...Like those low angled shots that made the characters look larger than life itself. I was awed at the scenes with the rows of those long spears. In one magnificent scene the clouds flew by like centuries peeling away layer by layer. How did Orson do that? I don't know, but that's why there's never been another like Orson Welles.
Chimes at Midnight (1965)
Director: Orson Welles
Original title: Campanadas a medianoche
'When King Henry IV ascends to the throne, his heir, the Prince of Wales, is befriended by Sir John Falstaff, an old, overweight, fun-loving habitual liar. Through Falstaff's eyes we see the reign of King Henry IV and the rise of Henry V.' Based on several of William Shakespeare's plays.
Orson Welles was a bonafide genius. He often referred to himself as having, "started at the top and worked his way down." At the top, refers to Citizen Kane, and Orson had an unheard of full editorial control over his 1st movie. Studios did not just grant youngsters like 26 year old Orson full control over a major studio film...but then again Orson Welles was no ordinary 26 year old!
Welles had started his career as a stage director doing plays based on Shakespeare but with a modern twist. So it's not surprising Welles chose a work of Shakespeare as the basis for his last feature length, non documentary film.
I hadn't seen Chimes at Midnight before...OMG this was epic! It had a sweeping vastness to the exterior long shots and the interiors made the castle seem vast and cavernous. And the film was drenched in Orson's unique cinema style...Like those low angled shots that made the characters look larger than life itself. I was awed at the scenes with the rows of those long spears. In one magnificent scene the clouds flew by like centuries peeling away layer by layer. How did Orson do that? I don't know, but that's why there's never been another like Orson Welles.