F for Fake
1973 ‘Vérités et mensonges’ Directed by Orson Welles
Synopsis
Orson Welles' free-form documentary about fakery focusses on the notorious art forger Elmyr de Hory and Elmyr's biographer, Clifford Irving, who also wrote the celebrated fraudulent Howard Hughes autobiography, then touches on the reclusive Hughes and Welles' own career (which started with a faked resume and a phony Martian invasion). On the way, Welles plays a few tricks of his own on the audience.
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A for Ambitious, C for Chaotic (okay I'm not doing every letter here), P for Pretentious, M for Mesmerizing and U for Unlike anything I've ever experienced before. Most of all O for Orson 'freakin' Welles!
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Welles messes with you for an hour and a half. He was lucky to have footage and connections with two notorious charlatans and he creates an inventive, off-kilter visual essay about them which he twists in an utterly delightful way in the final minutes. I mean, it's Orson schmoozing with you for an hour and a half, how could you go wrong?
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Orson Welles was one of a kind. Here, he showcases his love of trickery, theatricality (a real word apparently), art and life itself. It's great fun to watch and is centered around some very fascinating people. It's hard to believe Irving was able to pull the stunt he did- that whole Hughes Hoax is really interesting to me. Also, de Hory is such a character that he lights up the screen whenever he's on camera.
Some of my favorite parts were the weird shots or choices in the film such as: the awkward restaurant scene ("bring out the steak, waiter"), the multiple shots of the dog chewing, the cheesy train station opening, Irving's monkey, etc. The only reason I didn't rate it higher is because it's can be a little too loose and the Oja stuff isn't great (how many times must we switch between her and some ogling guy?).
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A documentary about fraud in art, I found it very entertaining and stylish although I really could have done without the parts relating to Oja Kodar. I do not understand the reasoning to add her into the mix? It flawed the entire "documentary," (or as some people have called it, an essay in the form of film) for me.
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"The Triumphs and the Frauds, the Treasures and the Fakes. A fact of life: We are going to die... Maybe a man's name doesn't matter all that much."
In this part-video essay, part documentary, part critique, one of the most critically acclaimed film-makers of all time gives the biggest "Fuck you" to critics in the history of film. Orson Welles' swan song "F For Fake" is possibly his greatest work, right next to Citizen Kane.
It should all start with Elmyr de Hory, a famed art forger. A man who paints works from Matiesse to Picasso and sells them as real. What Elmyr hates the most, like most artists, are critics. To him, they are focused more on authenticity than…
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"Ladies and gentleman, by way of introduction, this is a film about trickery, fraud, about lies. Tell it by the fireside or in a marketplace or in a movie, almost any story is almost certainly some kind of lie. But not this time. This is a promise. For the next hour, everything you hear from us is really true and based on solid fact." -Orson Welles in F for Fake
Orson Welles's penultimate film, F for Fake, is all about fraud and those who specialize in it.
This "documentary" concerns Welles himself, famous art forger Elmyr de Hory and his biographer Clifford Irving, who in turn forged the autobiography of Howard Hughes. Welles's use of interviews intercut with on-camera narration…
Recent reviews
More-
A for Ambitious, C for Chaotic (okay I'm not doing every letter here), P for Pretentious, M for Mesmerizing and U for Unlike anything I've ever experienced before. Most of all O for Orson 'freakin' Welles!
-
Welles messes with you for an hour and a half. He was lucky to have footage and connections with two notorious charlatans and he creates an inventive, off-kilter visual essay about them which he twists in an utterly delightful way in the final minutes. I mean, it's Orson schmoozing with you for an hour and a half, how could you go wrong?
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I saw this in a small theatre on 59th Street in NYC with only a handful of people back in 1975. A compelling, intriguing film that I have yet to wrap my head around. I recently [May 2013] purchased the Criterion DVD to re-watch this movie.
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Saw this for the first time the other week. It is so ahead of its time in style and editing, quite stunning for 1973. I really enjoyed it. Intelligent and funny. Anything that mocks and exposes the hypocrisy of the ridiculous art world and their self-appointed experts is fine by me. The characters are all fascinating; Elmyr de Hory, the famed art faker is a true one off, Welles is as erudite and charismatic as ever and his jet-setting girlfriend is very easy on the eye! Very cool soundtrack too. F for Fake becomes more and more rewarding with repeated views. What's not to like?
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a very strange undertaking, that is worthwhile because of its mystery. is it true? is it false? is it documentary, or narrative? is Welles the narrator, or the subject? who knows? maybe it's better not to know.
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F for Fake made me want to punch Orson Welles in his dead face. I don’t like late days Orson, the swollen grandiose establishment fuck-rag, summed up in the scenes in which he is holding court around a dinner table regaling stories in his theatrical delivery but never looking anyone in the eye or engaging. Its like he’s not even listening to himself. What a prick. I prefer young upstart Orson who stuck his fingers up to the old farts that ran things and was the closest thing that 1940’s cinema had to a punk. The documentary may have ground breaking in redefining the concept of truth in documentary filmmaking, but the delivery is so contrived and overblown I couldn’t help but feel it has been surpassed many times over since.
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ending dialogue rules. rest is orson twirling his mustache.
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There is one word that perhaps best describes F for Fake. Dizzying would be the adjective I would use, for that is truly how I found it. It is like a whirlwind of lies, deception, fakery and Orson Welles's girlfriend that lasts for 87 minutes. But what a time! From the first film, Welles camera spins and zooms as the grand man himself narrates a documentary that often deviates into surrealist fights of fantasy.
Is it a documentary? It could be described as that, but I have little idea exactly what occurred during the film's running time. What started as a straightforward documentary on a famed art forger, Elmyr, the film soon delves into Welles walking in a park and…
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"Ladies and gentleman, by way of introduction, this is a film about trickery, fraud, about lies. Tell it by the fireside or in a marketplace or in a movie, almost any story is almost certainly some kind of lie. But not this time. This is a promise. For the next hour, everything you hear from us is really true and based on solid fact." -Orson Welles in F for Fake
Orson Welles's penultimate film, F for Fake, is all about fraud and those who specialize in it.
This "documentary" concerns Welles himself, famous art forger Elmyr de Hory and his biographer Clifford Irving, who in turn forged the autobiography of Howard Hughes. Welles's use of interviews intercut with on-camera narration…