Ep 1.3 // The Magnificent Ambersons

Explicit content warning

03/05/21 • 85 min

It’s Stephen’s pick... Released in 1942 and directed by Orson Welles, ‘The Magnificent Ambersons’ depicts a wealthy midwestern family at the end of the 1800s and start of the 1900s. Based on the 1918 novel by Booth Tarkington, its prologue sets the Ambersons up as either the toast of the town or privileged aristocrats lording it over everyone else. After a young suitor named Eugene Morgan embarasses himself – and by extension, her – the object of his affection, Isabel Amberson chooses another man as her husband and has a spoiled son who others in the town hope will one day meet his “comeuppance.” After going off to school, this son, George, returns to his family just as his own father is in dire financial straits and Eugene Morgan has himself returned from years away, both with a daughter and a successful business producing automobiles. After Isabel’s husband passes away, she begins to actively rekindle her former romance with Eugen Morgan, who’s obviously still in love with her. But this relationship upsets Isabel’s son, George who, fearing loose talk and scandal, keeps the two apart.

The movie was Orson Welles’ follow-up to ‘Citizen Kane,’ a film which had caused some controversy. As a result, RKO, the studio behind both films had lost some confidence in its deal with Welles and after unfavorable test screenings, they famously recut the movie and shot a new ending while the director was out of the country. The cut footage was destroyed and the film that went out to theaters was not the one Welles had planned. The incident only fueled the image of Welles’ as a “difficult” filmmaker to work with, at least as far as studios were concerned, which may have helped to make it harder for him to work as a director in the years to come. Despite the compromised state of the film, it’s still regarded as a classic, though one that people tend to regard with a sense of regret for what could have been.

Produced by Stereoactive Media

Produced by Stereoactive Media

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Ep 1.2 // The Passion of Joan of Arc

For our first full-fledged movie chat is about Mia’s pick... ‘The Passion of Joan of Arc.’ Directed by Carl Dreyer, the movie depicts the final days of Joan of Arc, as she was held captive by the English and stands trial at the hands of clerics who doubt her claims of being an agent of God. In it, Maria Falconetti, as Joan, depicts a would-be saint struggling to keep her faith in the face of persecution and death. As a film, it's known for its heavy reliance on close-ups, especially those of Falconetti, as you see every raw emotion on her face from moment to moment. Dreyer, a Danish filmmaker, was invited by a French company to make the film – which was itself controversial among many of the French, who believed the story of such a hero of France should be told by a French filmmaker. Almost immediately, after the film was finished, it was compromised through censorship and fire, leaving versions of the film that Dryer was unhappy with as the ones that people mainly saw for years. Even then, though, it was still considered a critical success and even a quick classic.

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Ep 1.4 // Citizen Kane

It’s Lora’s pick... ‘Citizen Kane,’ the 1941 debut film by Orson Welles. Often referred to as the greatest film ever made, it’s possibly Welles’ greatest achievement, but the controversy surrounding it (mainly stirred up by William Randolph Hearst, the main target of the film’s narrative) also led to his quick fall from grace. The film has appeared on every single one of Sight & Sound magazine’s decennial polls of the “greatest films,” debuting as a runner up in 1952, then sitting at #1 for the next 50 years, before eventually dropping to #2 on both the 2012 polls of critics and directors.

Produced by Stereoactive Media