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To call Orson Welles's
F For Fake a documentary would be somewhat deceitful, but deceit itself is very much the subject of this curious film essay. Welles ruminates on the nature of artistic fakery through two examples, that of infamous art forger Elmyr de Hory and the writer Clifford Irving, whose bogus autobiography of Howard Hughes set off a minor media flurry in the 1970s. Postmodernist that he is, Wells then proceeds to narrate and edit the film in such a perversely frenetic way as to blur the lines between what is real and what is deception, making for an often confusing but engaging work of art in itself. We even see the footage we've been watching as it's being spliced together in Welles's editing room. The specter of Welles's often maligned later career hangs over the proceedings like a challenge--is he going to actually complete this strange movie about chicanery, or will it become one of the many unfinished experiments of his twilight years? Happily, Welles concludes the proceedings with a delightful sequence about Picasso, lust, and what constitutes real art.
F For Fake is a fine example of a master filmmaker who had at least a couple tricks left up his sleeve.
--Ryan Boudinot
Product Description
Master storyteller Orson Welles weaves a wry, often whimsical, documentary about the nature of art to bedazzle and fool us all. With mock intensity, Welles investigates the charming Elmyr de Hory, who makes a lavish living painting fake Picassos and Matisses. Equally captivating is Welles' own trickery and a glimpse behind his public facade.
