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A visionary adaptation of Shakespeare’s tragedy, one of Orson Welles’s greatest films, presented in two versions. Gloriously cinematic despite its tiny budget, Othello, directed by Orson Welles (Citizen Kane), is a testament to the filmmaker’s stubborn willingness to pursue his vision to the ends of the earth. Unmatched in his passionate identification with Shakespeare’s imagination, Welles brings his inventive visual approach to this enduring tragedy of jealousy, bigotry, and rage, and also gives a towering performance as the Moor of Venice, alongside Suzanne Cloutier (Juliette, or Key of Dreams) as the innocent Desdemona, and Micháel Macliammóir (Tom Jones) as the scheming Iago. Shot over the course of three years in Italy and Morocco and plagued by many logistical problems, this fiercely independent film joins Macbeth and Chimes at Midnight in making the case for Welles as the cinema’s most audacious interpreter of the Bard.
orson welles, one of the greatest american filmmakers, revered shakespeare's works and was determined to bring his own vision to the bard's classics on screen, though the hollywood studios resisted the idea. his othello (1952) was a daring and visually adventurous production distinguished by dynamic editing, flashy camera work and dramatic visual compositions, recalling welles' classic citizen kane more than the typical "stagey" shakespearean films of the time. welles also starred in the title role as the hot-tempered moor who is consumed with jealousy when his devious underling, iago, leads him to believe that his wife, desdemona, is unfaithful.
lack of studio financing meant that welles himself had to struggle over a three-year period to raise funds for the film. because of the financial shortfall, he often was forced to improvise during production, following his dead-on artistic instincts and actually producing a more creative film. othello was a triumph, winning the grand prize of the cannes film festival and critical raves. vincent canby of the new york times called it "one of the screen's sublime achievements," and judith crist described it as "a masterwork in the finest sense."
thought lost to the ravages of time, the film has undergone more than $1 million in restoration work after a long-mislaid 35 mm master negative was found in new jersey warehouse. supervised by welles' daughter, beatrice welles-smith, restoration included the re-recording of the score and re-creation of the sound effects. looking and sounding better than it did originally, othello remains a powerful testament to welles' legendary genius.
bonus:
- special feature: restoring othello (approx 22. mins)
