2008 Woodie Awards
"F for Fake"
By: Erin Duley
Issue date: 3/29/07 Section: Review
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3 out of 5 stars
If anyone knows something about faking, it's Orson Welles. In 1938, the 23-year-old scared the bejesus out of the country with his realistic radio broadcast of the alien invasion from "The War of the Worlds." The controversial stunt launched his career as an actor, revolutionary filmmaker and - as he readily admits in his 1975 film "F for Fake" - a first rate phony.
Welles has a personal presence in the film as its narrator and occasional subject. Classified as a pseudodocumentary due to the now-you-see-it-now-you-don't crew following Welles throughout the film, "F for Fake" is a collection of stories and profiles linked by Welles' exploration of the line separating reality from illusion. Famed art forger Elmyr is the primary subject of the film, which also highlights his biographer Clifford Irving. Irving also has been labeled a forger due not to his Elmyr biography, but to a manuscript of Howard Hughes' life story allegedly written without the tycoon's permission. Irving and Elmyr are often shown together, comfortably talking as one faker to another.
Elmyr's career provides a perfect case study for the perception of authenticity, and Welles explores it imaginatively. Since the man can crank out an exact replica of a Picasso or Lautrec in a matter of minutes that can fool any proclaimed art expert, his talent is both revered and reviled. Several museums are even said to unknowingly have numerous Elmyr counterfeits hanging in their galleries.
A fake documentary crew occasionally pops up in "F for Fake" just to add another layer of intrigue. Welles parades around dressed like a magician, interacting with the crew members as a reminder the film itself has been staged. Most of Welles' narration also is done from an editing room, where he's surrounded by stacks of film cans. He talks to the audience as he peruses footage on an old flatbed editor, seemingly editing "F for Fake" as it's playing.
If the film sounds hard to follow that's because it is. Particularly in the beginning, the format is so scattered it's tough to determine where the film is heading. Descriptions of people and events are given quickly over swift intercut images, with only the occasional freeze frame on Elmyr making a funny face to provide relief from the pace. However, once the figures have been introduced and the velocity slows, it's possible to get comfortable with the film's eccentricities.
If anyone knows something about faking, it's Orson Welles. In 1938, the 23-year-old scared the bejesus out of the country with his realistic radio broadcast of the alien invasion from "The War of the Worlds." The controversial stunt launched his career as an actor, revolutionary filmmaker and - as he readily admits in his 1975 film "F for Fake" - a first rate phony.
Welles has a personal presence in the film as its narrator and occasional subject. Classified as a pseudodocumentary due to the now-you-see-it-now-you-don't crew following Welles throughout the film, "F for Fake" is a collection of stories and profiles linked by Welles' exploration of the line separating reality from illusion. Famed art forger Elmyr is the primary subject of the film, which also highlights his biographer Clifford Irving. Irving also has been labeled a forger due not to his Elmyr biography, but to a manuscript of Howard Hughes' life story allegedly written without the tycoon's permission. Irving and Elmyr are often shown together, comfortably talking as one faker to another.
Elmyr's career provides a perfect case study for the perception of authenticity, and Welles explores it imaginatively. Since the man can crank out an exact replica of a Picasso or Lautrec in a matter of minutes that can fool any proclaimed art expert, his talent is both revered and reviled. Several museums are even said to unknowingly have numerous Elmyr counterfeits hanging in their galleries.
A fake documentary crew occasionally pops up in "F for Fake" just to add another layer of intrigue. Welles parades around dressed like a magician, interacting with the crew members as a reminder the film itself has been staged. Most of Welles' narration also is done from an editing room, where he's surrounded by stacks of film cans. He talks to the audience as he peruses footage on an old flatbed editor, seemingly editing "F for Fake" as it's playing.
If the film sounds hard to follow that's because it is. Particularly in the beginning, the format is so scattered it's tough to determine where the film is heading. Descriptions of people and events are given quickly over swift intercut images, with only the occasional freeze frame on Elmyr making a funny face to provide relief from the pace. However, once the figures have been introduced and the velocity slows, it's possible to get comfortable with the film's eccentricities.
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