Neither a straightforward documentary or a fictional story, F For Fake is a unique kind of film essay, a meditation on the concept of fakery and forgery in art. It incorporates a great deal of footage from an uncompleted documentary about Elmyr de Hory, who made his living forging paintings. To this footage Welles adds his own narration and splices and dices his way through a fascinating tour de force of masterful editing.
The film asks the question: if no one can tell the difference between an original painting and a forgery, then what exactly IS the difference? If we can't ever know for sure what is real and what is fake, does it, ultimately, matter? Welles suggests several possible answers to this conundrum, without telling us what we ought to think. He subverts the viewer's expectation of a linear story by doubling back and revisiting the same events from different angles. He confronts us with the artifice of film itself — there are many shots of stacks of film reels and of Welles in the editing room piecing together the same footage of which the film is comprised. We are thus continually reminded that what we are watching is another kind of fake: an artificially-constructed reality. Almost miraculously, the film still manages to have a clear beginning, middle and end.
F For Fake is not only fascinating but extremely entertaining, mainly because the film's main character is Orson Welles. He narrates throughout and also appears on-camera in various guises, making mischief and wandering around in a magician's outfit and generally seeming to have a great time hamming it up and being serious and funny at the same time. A large part of the beauty and fascination of F For Fake comes from listening to Welles explain the convoluted story behind the film's origin.
This is mandatory viewing for Orson Welles fans, and highly recommended for anyone with a sense of humor and a love for adventurous filmmaking.
No comments:
Post a Comment