I feel like the movie is lacking something, but I can't quite put my finger on what it is 🤔. Perhaps the characters are wooden and shallow. Perhaps the way the events unfold feel like it's just forcing the plot to move along. And then there's Orson Welles' accent. I just can't get used to it 😂. Sometimes I even forget he's the narrator. On my second viewing, I notice more things, such as the foreshadowing, the philosophical dialogue, etc. Some abstract things I missed the first time around.
"Maybe I'll live so long that I'll forget her. Maybe I'll die trying." Fun Fact: Theatrical movie debut of Ted De Corsia. Movie Magic Fact: In the aquarium scene, the tanks were shot separately, enlarged, and matted in to make the sea creatures appear more monstrous and looming closer to the actors. Music Enthusiast Fact: Orson Welles was very displeased with the score put together by the studio-appointed composer. In a test screening, he put a temp stock score on which was supposed to be a model for the composer. The composer completely disregarded Welles' precisely laid-out blueprint. In particular, the final mirror scene was supposed to be unscored, to create the sense of terror. Mirror Mirror Fact: The Hall of Mirrors maze was designed with the help of special effects wizard Lawrence W. Butler, who had provided the screen magic in such films as Things To Come (1936) and The Thief Of Bagdad (1940). It contained 2,912 square feet of glass. Some of the mirrors were two-way, allowing Charles Lawton Jr. and his crew to shoot through them. Other times they shot through holes drilled in the glass. The Rest Of The Story Fact: According to Orson Welles, this film grew out of an act of pure desperation. Welles, whose Mercury Theatre company was producing a musical version of Around The World In Eighty Days (1872) and was in desperate need of money just before the Boston preview. Mere hours before the show was due to open, the costumes had been impounded and unless Welles could come up with $55,000 to pay outstanding debts, the performance would have to be canceled. Stumbling upon a copy of If I Die Before I Wake (1938), the novel upon which this film is based, Welles phoned Harry Cohn, instructing him to buy the rights to the novel and offering to write, direct and star in the film so long as Cohn would send $55,000 to Boston within two hours. The money arrived and the production went on as planned. The Zaca Fact: The yacht on which much of the action takes place was the Zaca, which was rented from its owner, Errol Flynn. Errol Flynn was paid $1500 per day for the use of his yacht, plus lunches for his crew. Flynn skippered the Zaca between takes and he can be spotted in the background in a scene outside a cantina. Shooting was delayed whenever Errol Flynn disappeared for extended lengths of time. His contract stipulated the yacht could not be used unless he was present. Errol Flynn's own pet dachshund is seen in the yacht scenes. Flynn also did all the aerial photography for that film's yacht scenes. An assistant cameraman, working bareheaded in the blazing sun, suddenly dropped dead of a heart attack. The often-drunk Errol Flynn tried to put him into a duffel bag, and Orson Welles immediately sent someone ashore to alert authorities before Flynn could bury the man at sea. The Zaca was sold out of Errol Flynn's estate and went through years of neglect and disputes in ownership. Rescued from certain destruction and restored by a wealthy Italian businessman, it sails now out of Monte Carlo, and is recognized as one of the finest yachts in the world.
Welles' intentions are definitely on purpose. I'm really fond of this film because of its abstract approach. He takes a story and rather than just film it, he turns it into a Picasso painting. Welles wasn't entirely satisfied with it either significantly the musical score which he'd had no control of once the film was turned over to the studio, but he thought the score was grossly repetitive with its regurgitating of the song theme "Please Don't Kiss Me" over and over. He wanted a more diagetic soundscape. Anyway, there's lots that can be said about this film. It's not a superficial film at all and has lots of undercurrents and it's worth researching.
The Lady From Shanghai (1947) turns on the classic film noir trope of the femme fatale when film noir was still developing the trope. But the fall guy escapes the trap in this film, contrary to where the trope arrived. Welles turned pulp fiction into art. Rita Hayworth looks stunning in dozens of scenes in the film. The scenes towards the end when O'Hara stumbles around the mental wards of his mind in a feverish fugue state only to wind up by the seaside inside an amusement park hall of mirrors smashed with gunshots, classic. That scene alone was worth the price of the ticket! O'Hara (Welles) slippery accent can be explained away by his backstory as a sailor on American ships. An Irishman who has lived in the United States or with Americans for a long time may start to lose parts of his brogue as he naturally takes to pronouncing commonly used words in the same way he hears others around him pronounce them. This can leave him with an accent that warbles around between the pronunciations. His natural accent returns when he returns to Ireland for extended stays. Anecdotally, around twenty years ago when I lived in Sacramento a man who worked at the corner shop I frequented for beer and such was from Ireland by way of Boston. He recognized what was happening to his accent when it began to happen so he figured out how to switch between them -- Irish in Ireland, Irish in Boston, Irish in California -- at will. He would work the trick into his jokes sometimes. California is a melting pot of accents and it has been for a very long time. At any rate, I don't know where the scenes that are supposed to be set in China were filmed. Rita Hayworth was a big star. Maybe the studio sprung for a trip to Hong Kong, but more likely they were filmed on a Hollywood studio back lot with locals from Los Angeles playing the parts of the locals in the film. I imagine the same accent phenomena happens with other languages too to varying extents, but the Irish case is more readily apparent to English speakers.
Even geniuses are not perfect. Welles was constantly experimenting with his films and this one, while it has its points, can best be characterized as a failed experiment. Leonard Malton's Film Guide says that the camera is the star and the actors incidental, which just about sums it up. Welles was trying (and failing) to speak with an Irish accent and act at the same time. The hall of mirrors scene is, however, brilliant and justly famous.
I would agree that the plot doesn't grab the viewer in the beginning, as there are a confusing number of threads. That wasn't a problem back in the day when people would sit through at least half of a movie in the seat for which they'd paid. Though there is tension, I think it's misplaced by being labeled a "thriller". I don't speak Cantonese, but I suspect that the version that was/is spoken in America differs quite a bit from today's southern Chinese. The Irish-ish accent Wells does here is certainly somewhat grating to my ear also, but then again, he may consciously have been trying to avoid the stereotyped lilting brogue used in most Hollywood productions. Accents are tricky things - for instance, some people love to criticize Katharine Hepburn's natural Bryn Mawr-modified New England accent in _The_ _Lion_ _in_ _Winter_ (1968) and suggest she should have adopted a British-ish delivery. Of course, her performance still stands as one of acting's high points, and that argument ignores the fact that none of the characters in the period would have been speaking English at all (they'd have been speaking a mix of Francien Middle French and Occitan), and even had they managed a few sentences in English, they would not have been speaking today's RP English at the end of the 12th century. Hayworth (still married to Wells when this was filmed) is certainly the standout here, as are some really nice Wellsian touches throughout. Not his best work, but I still enjoyed it.
PLEASE. . .Weird and mysterious is what makes it a great "story". . .Otherwise it would just be like everyday life. . .BORING! A great "story" or film needs to NOT be like real life. And the characters should be a little different as well. . .Shallow? No, just a little offbeat, a little unusual. That's what makes them more interesting than the people you see walking around each day. This is a great story and film. Oh, by the way, haven't you ever heard an IRISH accent? That's what Orson Welles is using, and his character has a common name in Ireland, Michael.
I feel like the movie is lacking something, but I can't quite put my finger on what it is 🤔. Perhaps the characters are wooden and shallow. Perhaps the way the events unfold feel like it's just forcing the plot to move along.
And then there's Orson Welles' accent. I just can't get used to it 😂. Sometimes I even forget he's the narrator.
On my second viewing, I notice more things, such as the foreshadowing, the philosophical dialogue, etc. Some abstract things I missed the first time around.
"Maybe I'll live so long that I'll forget her. Maybe I'll die trying."
Fun Fact: Theatrical movie debut of Ted De Corsia.
Movie Magic Fact: In the aquarium scene, the tanks were shot separately, enlarged, and matted in to make the sea creatures appear more monstrous and looming closer to the actors.
Music Enthusiast Fact: Orson Welles was very displeased with the score put together by the studio-appointed composer. In a test screening, he put a temp stock score on which was supposed to be a model for the composer. The composer completely disregarded Welles' precisely laid-out blueprint. In particular, the final mirror scene was supposed to be unscored, to create the sense of terror.
Mirror Mirror Fact: The Hall of Mirrors maze was designed with the help of special effects wizard Lawrence W. Butler, who had provided the screen magic in such films as Things To Come (1936) and The Thief Of Bagdad (1940). It contained 2,912 square feet of glass. Some of the mirrors were two-way, allowing Charles Lawton Jr. and his crew to shoot through them. Other times they shot through holes drilled in the glass.
The Rest Of The Story Fact: According to Orson Welles, this film grew out of an act of pure desperation. Welles, whose Mercury Theatre company was producing a musical version of Around The World In Eighty Days (1872) and was in desperate need of money just before the Boston preview. Mere hours before the show was due to open, the costumes had been impounded and unless Welles could come up with $55,000 to pay outstanding debts, the performance would have to be canceled. Stumbling upon a copy of If I Die Before I Wake (1938), the novel upon which this film is based, Welles phoned Harry Cohn, instructing him to buy the rights to the novel and offering to write, direct and star in the film so long as Cohn would send $55,000 to Boston within two hours. The money arrived and the production went on as planned.
The Zaca Fact: The yacht on which much of the action takes place was the Zaca, which was rented from its owner, Errol Flynn. Errol Flynn was paid $1500 per day for the use of his yacht, plus lunches for his crew. Flynn skippered the Zaca between takes and he can be spotted in the background in a scene outside a cantina. Shooting was delayed whenever Errol Flynn disappeared for extended lengths of time. His contract stipulated the yacht could not be used unless he was present. Errol Flynn's own pet dachshund is seen in the yacht scenes. Flynn also did all the aerial photography for that film's yacht scenes. An assistant cameraman, working bareheaded in the blazing sun, suddenly dropped dead of a heart attack. The often-drunk Errol Flynn tried to put him into a duffel bag, and Orson Welles immediately sent someone ashore to alert authorities before Flynn could bury the man at sea. The Zaca was sold out of Errol Flynn's estate and went through years of neglect and disputes in ownership. Rescued from certain destruction and restored by a wealthy Italian businessman, it sails now out of Monte Carlo, and is recognized as one of the finest yachts in the world.
Welles' intentions are definitely on purpose. I'm really fond of this film because of its abstract approach. He takes a story and rather than just film it, he turns it into a Picasso painting. Welles wasn't entirely satisfied with it either significantly the musical score which he'd had no control of once the film was turned over to the studio, but he thought the score was grossly repetitive with its regurgitating of the song theme "Please Don't Kiss Me" over and over. He wanted a more diagetic soundscape. Anyway, there's lots that can be said about this film. It's not a superficial film at all and has lots of undercurrents and it's worth researching.
I don't care about critics or experts, I like it, and I would watch anything with Rita in it. It was always a favorite movie.
The Lady From Shanghai (1947) turns on the classic film noir trope of the femme fatale when film noir was still developing the trope. But the fall guy escapes the trap in this film, contrary to where the trope arrived. Welles turned pulp fiction into art. Rita Hayworth looks stunning in dozens of scenes in the film. The scenes towards the end when O'Hara stumbles around the mental wards of his mind in a feverish fugue state only to wind up by the seaside inside an amusement park hall of mirrors smashed with gunshots, classic. That scene alone was worth the price of the ticket!
O'Hara (Welles) slippery accent can be explained away by his backstory as a sailor on American ships. An Irishman who has lived in the United States or with Americans for a long time may start to lose parts of his brogue as he naturally takes to pronouncing commonly used words in the same way he hears others around him pronounce them. This can leave him with an accent that warbles around between the pronunciations. His natural accent returns when he returns to Ireland for extended stays.
Anecdotally, around twenty years ago when I lived in Sacramento a man who worked at the corner shop I frequented for beer and such was from Ireland by way of Boston. He recognized what was happening to his accent when it began to happen so he figured out how to switch between them -- Irish in Ireland, Irish in Boston, Irish in California -- at will. He would work the trick into his jokes sometimes. California is a melting pot of accents and it has been for a very long time. At any rate, I don't know where the scenes that are supposed to be set in China were filmed. Rita Hayworth was a big star. Maybe the studio sprung for a trip to Hong Kong, but more likely they were filmed on a Hollywood studio back lot with locals from Los Angeles playing the parts of the locals in the film. I imagine the same accent phenomena happens with other languages too to varying extents, but the Irish case is more readily apparent to English speakers.
Even geniuses are not perfect. Welles was constantly experimenting with his films and this one, while it has its points, can best be characterized as a failed experiment. Leonard Malton's Film Guide says that the camera is the star and the actors incidental, which just about sums it up. Welles was trying (and failing) to speak with an Irish accent and act at the same time. The hall of mirrors scene is, however, brilliant and justly famous.
Young Orson Welles was quite a handsome man, with those big brown eyes.
I would agree that the plot doesn't grab the viewer in the beginning, as there are a confusing number of threads. That wasn't a problem back in the day when people would sit through at least half of a movie in the seat for which they'd paid. Though there is tension, I think it's misplaced by being labeled a "thriller".
I don't speak Cantonese, but I suspect that the version that was/is spoken in America differs quite a bit from today's southern Chinese. The Irish-ish accent Wells does here is certainly somewhat grating to my ear also, but then again, he may consciously have been trying to avoid the stereotyped lilting brogue used in most Hollywood productions. Accents are tricky things - for instance, some people love to criticize Katharine Hepburn's natural Bryn Mawr-modified New England accent in _The_ _Lion_ _in_ _Winter_ (1968) and suggest she should have adopted a British-ish delivery. Of course, her performance still stands as one of acting's high points, and that argument ignores the fact that none of the characters in the period would have been speaking English at all (they'd have been speaking a mix of Francien Middle French and Occitan), and even had they managed a few sentences in English, they would not have been speaking today's RP English at the end of the 12th century.
Hayworth (still married to Wells when this was filmed) is certainly the standout here, as are some really nice Wellsian touches throughout. Not his best work, but I still enjoyed it.
PLEASE. . .Weird and mysterious is what makes it a great "story". . .Otherwise it would just be like everyday life. . .BORING! A great "story" or film needs to NOT be like real life. And the characters should be a little different as well. . .Shallow? No, just a little offbeat, a little unusual. That's what makes them more interesting than the people you see walking around each day. This is a great story and film. Oh, by the way, haven't you ever heard an IRISH accent? That's what Orson Welles is using, and his character has a common name in Ireland, Michael.
The male antagonists are so weird and off-putting, that it’s hard to figure out what’s going on, to take them seriously.