Product Details

• Actors: William Hurt, Nigel Hawthorne, Miranda Richardson, Irène Jacob, Ewan Stewart
• Directors: George Hickenlooper
• Writers: George Hickenlooper, F.X. Feeney, Oja Kodar, Orson Welles
• Producers: Andrew Pfeffer, Avi Lerner, Boaz Davidson
• Format: PAL
• Region: All Regions
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Run Time: 104 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000063VAB
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #562,611 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "The Big Brass Ring" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Orson Welles wrote The Big Brass Ring in the early 1980s--his last attempt to create a commercial Hollywood film--but the dynamic, rich screenplay was never produced. Nearly two decades later, independent filmmaker and documentarian George Hickenlooper (Hearts of Darkness) purchased and rewrote Welles' script, updating the tale of an independent presidential candidate in the cynical post-Watergate years to a more modest gubernatorial race in the media-saturated 1990s. The generally reserved William Hurt is excellent as the firebrand candidate whose secret, repressed past is dredged up when estranged father figure and political rebel Nigel Hawthorne (in a wry, flamboyant performance) reappears on the eve of the election. While the world's attention is focused on a political contest between two independents, Hurt searches his soul to come to peace with the compromises and sacrifices of his youth.

Where Welles' script is suffused with the melancholy sense of loss of an old man looking back on past mistakes, the film is brightened with the hope and possibilities of a younger man looking ahead to unlimited possibility. Hurt gives his best performance in decades as a man whose confidence is cracked by guilt. Less convincing is French beauty Irène Jacob as an international reporter while Miranda Richardson, though excellent, gets lost as the story sidesteps her sad alcoholic character. We'll never know what Welles could have done with his story, but Hickenlooper delivers a handsome, compelling drama. --Sean Axmaker

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Profound Examination of American Politics, January 11, 2000

By 

John H. (U.K.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Big Brass Ring (DVD)

In the Clintonian era of mixed morals, the Big Brass Ring offers a compelling, multi-layered and extraordinarily moving portrait of American politics at the end of the 20th century. And of course, it all originates from an original screenplay by Orson Welles. Director George Hickenlooper has made a unique film of his own, and at the same time, has addes several Wellesian touches to create one of the most unique and underrated films of 1999. William Hurt, Nigel Hawthorne and Miranda Richardson give some of the finest performances of their careers. Richardson, by the way, was nominated for a Golden Globe award for her role as the estranged wife of gubernatorial candidate Blake Pellarin. This is a must see for any true cinema buff... If you love films like The Big Sleep, you'll be blown away by The Big Brass Ring...

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Good plot poorly presented, April 17, 2000

By 

"flickjunkie" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Big Brass Ring (DVD)

This is a murky story of politics, scandal, sex and deception. Sounds like it should have been a great film, but it wasn't. The basic plot was sound as we might expect from Orson Welles. But the way it was presented was too disjointed and abstruse. Without reading the original script, it is hard to tell if the responsibility for this lies with Welles, Oja Kodar (who did the adaptation) or George Hickenlooper, the director. I suspect it is the latter two.

The biggest problem I had was character development. By the end of the film one should reasonably expect the pieces to fit together. Good character development should give us insight into the characters' motivation. I found this lacking. The flashbacks didn't really help us to understand the motivations of the characters as much as they should have. It seems that the brothers voluntarily switched identities, since Billy was wearing a name tag that said "Romero" on his uniform when he left to go to war. So, Blake really didn't steal his brother's identity as it appeared. This wasn't made very clear.

There were lots of loose ends here. What motivated the limo driver to do what he did? Was it a need to be close to power, or some personal vendetta? Who knows?

From a directorial and cinematography point of view, the film was far too dark, that is, underexposed. I'm certain they were trying for that look, but it made the photography look as if it were shot on 30 year old film of poor quality. Also, the audio was very bad. It was very difficult understanding a lot of the dialogue.

William Hurt was miscast in this role. For certain films, his puling, self tortured style of delivery are appropriate to the character (Big Chill, Broadcast News, Children of a Lesser God). However, in this film his character required a more dynamic and confident portrayal, which he was unable to deliver.

Nigel Hawthorne gave the best performance as Kim Mennaker, the Senator who brought the boys up. His ability to portray the old political warhorse, seduced by the trappings of power was excellent.

Irene Jacob gave a good performance as Cela, the reporter with an obsession for the candidate and the truth behind him.

Overall, the whole was less than the sum of the parts. The presentation was ponderous and uneven and the direction mediocre at best. Worth a 5/10. If you are looking for political campaign stories, there are better choices (Primary Colors, The Candidate, with Robert Redford).

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Film About Sex and Scandal!, January 21, 2000

By 

John H. (U.K.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Big Brass Ring [VHS] (VHS Tape)

In the Clintonian era of mixed morals, the Big Brass Ring offers a compelling, multi-layered and extraordinarily moving portrait of American politics at the end of the 20th century. And of course, it all originates from an original screenplay by Orson Welles. Director George Hickenlooper has made a unique film of his own, and at the same time, has addes several Wellesian touches to create one of the most unique and underrated films of 1999. William Hurt, Nigel Hawthorne and Miranda Richardson give some of the finest performances of their careers. Richardson, by the way, was nominated for a Golden Globe award for her role as the estranged wife of gubernatorial candidate Blake Pellarin. This is a must see for any true cinema buff... If you love films like The Big Sleep, you'll be blown away by The Big Brass Ring.