Orson Welles' legendary last film: Will it finally come to the screen?
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Molly Driscoll Staff Writer
Legendary director Orson Welles鈥� final film may finally be screened.聽
Welles, who directed the film 鈥淐itizen Kane,鈥� frequently called the greatest movie of all time, worked on the movie 鈥淭he Other Side of the Wind鈥� as his last project. writer Doreen Carvajal noted that 鈥渃inema buffs consider it the most famous movie never released.鈥澛�
Now the production company Royal Road Entertainment said it will be obtaining the rights to the film and plans to have it ready to screen by May 6, which would be Welles鈥� hundredth birthday. Royal Road Entertainment also wants to try to figure out distribution next month at California鈥檚 American Film Market.
鈥淲ind鈥� stars John Huston (who starred in the film 鈥淐hinatown,鈥� among others, and helmed many classic films himself, including the 1948 movie 鈥淭he Treasure of the Sierra Madre鈥� and the 1951 film 鈥淭he African Queen鈥�) as a movie director who is trying to finish a movie despite opposition from people in Hollywood. Actors Dennis Hopper, Susan Strasberg, Peter Bogdanovich, and Lilli Palmer co-starred, among others. According to , Welles based the director character on writer Ernest Hemingway.
鈥淲ind鈥� line producer Frank Marshall told the NYT that he and Bogdanovich will work on the movie.
鈥淲e will set up a cutting room and Peter Bogdanovich and I will assemble the film,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e have notes from Orson Welles. We have scenes that weren鈥檛 quite finished, and we need to add music. We will get it done. The good news is that it won鈥檛 take so long because of all of the technology today.鈥澛�
Writer Josh Karp, author of the forthcoming book 鈥淥rson Welles鈥� Last Movie,鈥� told the NYT that the movie being finished and becoming available is 鈥渓ike finding the Land of Oz or some lost tomb.鈥�
聽鈥淭his film is art imitating life and life imitating art,鈥� Karp said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 become so mythical because of what happened with all the failures to finish it and the players involved.鈥�
