The Resurgence of Orson Welles

Most have heard of the film director Orson Welles, or at least most are familiar with his celebrated film “Citizen Kane” (1941). The film, though over seventy years old, still holds its own with contemporary audiences: viewers hang in suspense, hinged on discovering the significance of Kane’s final word, “Rosebud.”

Many critics and cinephiles would agree that Welles peaked far too early in his career with “Citizen Kane”, and the rest of his filmography pales in its long shadow. This fall from great heights was largely due to Welles’ prolonged amount of time spent abroad in Europe. When he returned to the States, Welles entered into fierce competition with younger, edgier directors emerging on the Hollywood scene. The cinema world had moved on without him, and he couldn’t quite make the leap. He went on to direct twelve more movies before his death in 1985, but he produced nothing as formidable as that first film; that is, perhaps, until now.

There is a fourteenth film (to be released, obviously, posthumously). According to an article in “Fortune” magazine, the reels upon reels of footage sat shelved in a Paris vault for nearly fifty years until, after a rough, decades-long slew of legal battles over finances and rights to the film, Netflix stepped in to fund the post-production project. “The Other Side of the Wind” (2018) premiered on August 31 of this year at the 75th Venice International Film Festival. For those of us in the States, the film will debut on November 2 both on Netflix and in select theaters across the country.

Welles started shooting for “The Other Side of the Wind” in the ‘70s. From 1972 to 1979, Welles worked alongside his third partner Oja Kodar and actor John Huston to produce a film considered largely autobiographical. The film follows a washed-up director struggling through his latest film, and it contrasts the crumbling backdrop of old Hollywood with the new-and-now philosophy of avant-garde directors. The medium itself reflects this tension between the old and the new with a juxtaposition of black-and-white reels alongside technicolor (evident in the trailer, which is available to watch on YouTube).

According to “Vanity Fair”, so true is the film narrative to Welles’ own life that, during the initial planning stages of the film, Welles saw no need for a proper script. He knew the whole story—he knew it because it was his own. Welles had it in mind to simply present his actors with the premise of a scene and let the dialogue flow naturally. Unfortunately, Welles struggled with funding throughout the entirety of the shoot and never finished the film. These financial constraints damned “The Other Side of the Wind” to cinema limbo until such questions of rights and funding were, as of late, resolved.

Though the idea of a never-before-seen Welles film is intriguing, all this talk raises serious questions regarding Welles’ vision for his film. The film being unfinished, one must consider whether or not Welles would even want it released in its current state—such things can turn the man in his grave. Still, it’s reassuring to understand that those in charge of the post-production project acknowledge the film as unfinished and aren’t attempting to present a complete product (as evidenced by the “shot missing” slides which appear throughout the trailer). It’s safe to assume that the film, though akin to Frankenstein’s monster in its bits-and-pieces nature, is as true to Welles’ original vision as it can be.

Theatre Review: The Importance of Being Earnest

*For full effect, one is advised to read this review in one’s most preposterously pompous British accent*

Who is Ernest, and why is it so important to be him? In Covenant’s production of Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest, whoever bears the name of Ernest, intentionally spelled differently than in the play’s title, is promised a happily engaged ending, but the cast of characters will have some trouble before the true Ernest is discovered.

The lead characters are a pair of wealthy friends ready to settle down into matrimony at the play’s start: Algernon, carefree and always hungry, and Jack, who lives a double life and goes by “Ernest” while in town. These characters are portrayed by two of Covenant theater’s veteran actors, Jonathan Austin (‘18) and William Darby (‘18), respectively. At the beginning of the first act, Jack has decided to propose to Algernon’s cousin, the opinionated Gwendolyn, played by Ana Gresham (‘19) in one of her first major roles at Covenant. Before the end of the second act, Algernon has determined to marry Jack’s imaginative young ward Cecily, portrayed by Caroline Sawyer (‘20) in her Covenant theater debut. The confusion over just who is Ernest is further complicated over the course of the play by Will Payne (‘20) as an unforgettable Lady Bracknell; Matthias Overos (‘19) as the country vicar Dr. Chasuble; Emily Brauer (‘21) as the absent-minded governess Miss Prism; and Mark Davis (‘20) playing the two separate characters of the heavily beset upon butlers, Lane and Merriman.

Throughout the unlikely twists and turns of the story, the cast repeatedly encounters the question of what role truth plays in happiness. Are those who carelessly own up to the truth the happy ones? Or do those who artfully avoid inconvenient truths find happiness? Or perhaps the people who have the power to manipulate the truth to fit their wishes are those destined to have a happy ending.

Wilde's play is a classic for good reason; his dialogue is witty, bitingly satirical, and full of interlocking metaphors and running jokes. The script is versatile enough to be interpreted in several ways, but this production’s director, Professor Camille Hallstrom, has chosen to take the play in an over-the-top outrageous direction rather than a dry satirical one. This is perhaps most evident in the final act’s long-awaited revelation of Jack’s origins, where Darby discovers the preposterous truth about his name and birth with sincere belief, as opposed to an alternate interpretation of the play where Jack arranges the happy ending for himself.

As a result, the actors’ execution of their roles and lines is much larger than life, with their skipping, stomping, and lounging all impossible to miss. By the end of the play, the audience is quite familiar with each characters’ facial expressions of shock, surprise, displeasure, and amusement. Moreover, the cast adopted British accents for their roles. Sawyer’s delightfully exaggerated rolled r’s and Davis’s Jeeves-like mannerisms followed by a German accent add to the hilarity of the play excellently.

The character who best embodies the over-the-top spirit of the production is Payne as Lady Bracknell, a role traditionally played by male actors which makes it all the more hilarious. When Payne enters a scene as the dominating matriarch, he instantly commands the scene, all the more so because his hat and heels make him physically larger than the rest of the cast. His voice has the greatest range of depth and volume in the show, and viewers cannot help but enjoy Payne’s performance.

Lady Bracknell is enhanced all the more by Payne’s elaborate costume, complete with a corset, bustle, and massive hat, which, along with all the other costumes, were designed and crafted by Courtney McKenzie (‘18) as part of her Senior Integration Project. Color is an integral part of McKenzie’s work, with couples paired by the shade of their waistcoats or jackets and dresses: Algernon and Cecily in pink, Jack and Gwendolyn in purple, Dr. Chasuble and Miss Prism in green, and Lady Bracknell standing alone in her dark navy dress with blue ribbons in her hat. McKenzie also indicated to the audience which is the stronger-willed partner in each couple by costuming these characters in deep hues. Gwendolyn, Algernon, and Dr. Chasuble wear darker, richer colors than their partners, and Lady Bracknell wears the darkest of all.

Amanda English (‘18) also worked on the show as part of her S.I.P., acting as Technical Director. In this role, English ensured each aspect of the production was completed in a timely manner and met the director’s standards. Although the piles of paperwork involved remain unseen by audiences, Earnest’s sets, lights, and sound all worked together seamlessly thanks to English’s guidance. Together with the set crew, who completely rearranged the stage during each of the show’s two intermissions, McKenzie and English’s work made the play a pleasure for the eyes as well as one’s sense of humor.

It is no wonder Covenant’s Theater Department chose Wilde’s most famous play to start off this spring’s theater program, as his droll script lends itself excellently to a cast as comedic as this one. By introducing some welcome new talent and allowing seniors’ talents to shine, this production of The Importance of Being Earnest is all-around “right as a trivet.”