"What he creates he has to wreck, it's a compulsion."
I’m tempted to begin this review with an obligatory “can you
believe this is happening” kind of mantra which does seem a tad cliché. However
it really is impossible to overstate how monumental it is that Orson Welles’
final dramatic feature, long regarded as one of the best unfinished films ever
made, has reached its audience. More than 40 years after Welles first started
filming his planned comeback and three decades after his death, ‘The Other Side
of the Wind’ has finished its long awaited road to being completed and
released.
Returning from a lengthy hiatus in Europe, revered and
legendary filmmaker Jake Hannaford (John Huston) struggles to finish his
troublesome and unconventional comeback film titled The Other Side of the Wind.
In the midst of filming he throws a lavish party to celebrate his 70th
birthday where both his life and art are placed under intense scrutiny.
Whenever I review a film I try to place it within the
context of what conditions it was made under, as well as what it is trying to
achieve. It goes without saying that is a decidedly difficult task when it
comes to judging ‘The Other Side of the Wind’. Though this finished version is
said to mirror Welles vision as closely as possible, one can never truly know
what the auteur planned for his complex character portrait. How much of this
project is confined to the filmic landscape of its time and how much is
influenced by the legacy that it carries?
For the opening few minutes I was worried that the end
result would be more of a Frankenstein like creation than a cohesive film.
Those of us who know Welles as the master of patient and atmospheric filmmaking
that brought us ‘Citizen Kane’ and ‘Touch of Evil’ may be in for a shocking
surprise. The deed focus and long takes of Welles early work is replaced by
intense close ups and frenetic editing that fully immerses the viewer into the
chaotic battleground which the film industry of the 1970s is rendered as. It’s
an incredibly disorienting experience that the viewer must gradually grasp with
as the film progresses.
Before you even dig into its narrative, ‘The Other Side of
the Wind’ already establishes itself as unlike anything Welles had attempted in
his career. His visual versatility is staggering and arguably elevates the late
auteur’s talent to a new level of appreciation. Even at this late stage of his
career Welles was pushing the boundaries of how cinema could be rendered. It’s
intriguing to even ponder how the film would have been welcomed had it been
released during his lifetime.
But despite these deviations from Welles’ traditional
oeuvre, it is easy to spot the thematic similarities that tie ‘The Other Side
of the Wind’ to the rest of his career. The ambition, structure, flair for
eccentricity and core character portrait are classically Welles at heart. The
protagonist of his last film has much in common with the star of his first.
Both are enigmatic men epitomising the conquest of their own industry, but
clearly lack that humane connection which could define them as people. The
difference comes with how elusively Welles presents Hannaford in comparison to
Kane. This snapshot of Hannaford does not provide answers to his longings as
Citizen Kane did, instead it examines the way his art conflates and interacts with
his life, legacy and momentary status. We only witness Jake Hannaford go about
his life for a single evening, and yet we feel as if we have every vital piece
of the puzzle that represents him as a person and artist.
It’s a role that truly allows John Huston to dominate the
scenery. The screen legend growls and chews his way into the part of Hannaford
with stunning intricacy. There’s a distinct spark of charisma within Huston’s
performance that makes Hannaford’s reputation as a creative genius more than
believable. At the same time however Huston allows the aged bitterness of his
character at this exact moment to greatly inform the character as well. It’s a
delicate balancing act that Huston conveys with fine precision, at once mighty
and towering in his performance but also never above being broken down by whoever
can cut into the core of this complex man.
It would be easy to assume that Hannaford is intended as a
reflection of Welles himself, and in many ways that is understandable. Most
characters in the film seem to be intended to mirror some prominent member of
the 1970s film industry. From Susan Strasberg as a thinly veiled spoof of
Pauline Kael to Peter Bogdonavich who does a wonderful job of essentially
playing himself. As an upstart director who worships the altar of Hannaford,
Bogdonavich has plenty of scenes alongside Huston in which he holds his ground
exceptionally well.
In fact just beyond the individuals who are represented in ‘The
Other Side of the Wind’ the film as a whole seems to be a biting satire of
entire filmic movements. From the avant-garde European cinema that was
dominating the global stage in the early 1970s to the auteur driven wave that
was about to revolutionise Hollywood. Forty years on we see Welles commenting
and dissecting these very movements as they were happening, still ahead of his
time.
But to continue the notion of asking whether or not
Hannaford is Welles’ self-portrait, it would be an oversimplification to simply
say yes. There are unquestionably elements of Welles’ own being thrown into his
central character, as there were with almost all of his protagonists. Maybe it
was indeed an attempt by Welles to hold up a mirror to his own life, and if
that is the case there are tragic levels of self-loathing to be found. But
among other things the aging director made it clear he refused to be painted in
broad strokes. Hannaford, much like Welles himself, is easy to examine but
almost impossible to summarise.
‘The Other Side of the Wind’ is Orson Welles hidden masterpiece,
a film of such versatility, biting satire and intimate drama that is showcases
a side of Welles that may surprise us all.
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