A Roman noble, Cethegus, attempts to begin a war, putting the Ostrogoths and their Queen, Amalasuntha, contrary to the Byzantine Emperor Justinian Read More »
Tag Archives: Orson Welles
Three Cases of Murder (1955) David Eady, George More O’Ferrall, Orson Welles, John Gregson, Elizabeth Sellars, Crime, Mystery, Drama, Horror, Fantasy
Three stories of murder and the supernatural. In the first, a museum worker is introduced to a world behind the pictures he sees every day. Read More »
Directed by John Ford (1971) John Ford, Peter Bogdanovich, Orson Welles, Documentary, Biography
In 1971, Peter Bogdanovich was, perhaps, America’s most promising young filmmaker, having directed the remarkable “Targets” (1968) and “The Last Picture Show” (1971) earning him an Academy Award nomination for the latter. Read More »
Jane Eyre (1943) Robert Stevenson, Orson Welles, Joan Fontaine, Margaret O’Brien, Drama, Romance
Small, plain and poor, Jane Eyre comes to Thornfield Hall as governess to the young ward of Edward Rochester. Read More »
Prince of Foxes (1949) Henry King, Tyrone Power, Orson Welles, Wanda Hendrix, Adventure, Drama, History, Romance
In 1500, Duke Cesare Borgia hopes to marry his sister (widowed by poison) to the heir apparent of Ferrara, which impedes his conquest of central Italy. Read More »
Chimes at Midnight / Campanadas a medianoche (1965) Orson Welles, Jeanne Moreau, Margaret Rutherford, Comedy, Drama, History
Sir John Falstaff is the hero in this compilation of extracts from Shakespeare’s ‘Henry IV’ and other plays, made into a connected story of Falstaff’s career as young Prince Hal’s drinking companion. The massive knight roisters with and without the prince, philosophizes comically, goes to war (in his own fashion), and meets his final disappointment, set in a real-looking late-medieval England.
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The Third Man (1949) Carol Reed, Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli, Film-Noir, Mystery, Thriller
An out of work pulp fiction novelist, Holly Martins, arrives in a post war Vienna divided into sectors by the victorious allies, and where a shortage of supplies has lead to a flourishing black market. He arrives at the invitation of an ex-school friend, Harry Lime, who has offered him a job, only to discover that Lime has recently died in a peculiar traffic accident. From talking to Lime’s friends and associates Martins soon notices that some of the stories are inconsistent, and determines to discover what really happened to Harry Lime.
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Man in the Shadow (1957) Jack Arnold, Jeff Chandler, Orson Welles, Colleen Miller, Crime, Drama, Thriller
In effect, modern cow town Spurline is run by Virgil Renchler, owner of the Golden Empire Ranch. One night, two of Virgil’s henchmen go a little too far and beat a “bracero” ranch hand to death. Faced with an obvious cover-up and opposition on every hand, sheriff Ben Sadler is goaded into investigating. His unlikely ally: Renchler’s lovely, self-willed and overprotected daughter. Will Ben survive Renchler’s wrath?
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Ferry to Hong Kong (1959) Lewis Gilbert, Curd Jürgens, Orson Welles, Sylvia Syms, Action, Adventure, Drama
Mark Conrad, a habitual drunk and troublemaker with a shady past, is expelled by Hong Kong police after one too many bar fights. He’s sent to Macao on the Fa Tsan, a ferry owned by Captain Hart. Conrad’s papers are out of order and Macao refuses him entry. Unable to go ashore, Conrad is a permanent passenger on the ferry with Hart, who detests him. It’s all one long, lazy voyage for Conrad until one fateful trip when an encounter with a typhoon and pirates forces Conrad to choose between an aimless drifter’s life and becoming a man again.
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Compulsion (1959) Richard Fleischer, Orson Welles, Dean Stockwell, Diane Varsi, Biography, Crime, Drama
In 1924 Chicago, two rich college students, Judd Steiner and Arthur Strauss, decide they can commit the perfect murder and get away with. They kill a young teenager, Paulie Kessler, but through the efforts of part-time reporter and fellow student Sid Brooks, a pair of glasses left at the scene is traced to the murderers. For their trial, the families hire renowned defense attorney Jonathan Wilk known for his passionate arguments against the death penalty. Both men confessed to the crime but Wilk pleads them not guilty. At the trial, they change the plea to guilty and Wilk argues passionately in favor of a life sentence rather than execution.
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Ill Never Forget Whats isname (1967) Michael Winner, Oliver Reed, Orson Welles, Carol White
Advertising golden boy Andrew Quint is fed up with his fabulously successful life. In very dramatic fashion, he quits his job to return to writing for a small literary magazine. He wants to leave his former life behind, going as far as saying good-bye to his wife and mistresses. He finds, however, that it’s not so easy to escape the past.
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