Welles Program at UCLA Preservation Festival - It's All True / Macbeth

[The Night Man]

Last night I attended the Welles program at the UCLA Film & Television Archive Festival of Preservation. It was well worth the effort. Also in attendance were Gary Graver, Bill Krohn (co-director of the IT'S ALL TRUE documentary), Ed Marx (editor of IAT doc), and Michael Schlesinger (Paramount exec who shepherded IAT doc through production only to be fired for his efforts).

Joseph McBride opened the program, providing some context with comments as well as clips from ORSON WELLES' SKETCHBOOK, KANE, AMBERSONS, and the documentary IT'S ALL TRUE. He addressed some of the autobiographical elements of KANE and AMBERSONS (!), and had words of high praise for Roger Ryan's AMBERSONS reconstruction which he had seen at Locarno. He talked a bit about his upcoming book, "What Even Happened to Orson Welles?", and from his comments I gather that part of his thesis will be that Welles was essentially expelled from Hollywood by a combination of professional jealousy and political blacklisting (graylisting perhaps). He mentioned how frustrated the FBI was that they could never prove that he was a Communist despite years of investigations & surveillance. He also quoted Henry Hathaway's vicious comment made at the time of Welles' AFI tribute: "Why Welles? He only made one film!"

He also pointed out that RKO had actually budgeted IT'S ALL TRUE at $1.2 million, but had told Welles that it was only $1 million!

The second part of the program featured Catherine Benamou, whose book on IAT will be published this year (I can't wait). She provided a running commentary while three sections of IT'S ALL TRUE were screened.

The first was a group of rushes from MY FRIEND BONITO (20 min.); the sequence (none of which is included in the IAT doc) featured the roping & branding of the calves at La Punta ranch and the boy, Chico's, distress as Bonito is branded. This material was nicely photographed in beautiful crisp b&w and Benamou noted that Welles, who looked at the rushes daily, had made some general recommendations on camera placement.

The second section, also from MY FRIEND BONITO (from a rough assemblage by Jose Noriega under Welles' supervision - 15 min.), featured Mexican matadors "Chucho" Solorzano and "Armillita" Espinosa testing the cows at the La Punta ranch. This material was far more "documentary" in nature and less interesting visually than the first section.

The third section, from FOUR MEN ON A RAFT (from a rough assemblage supervised by Welles - 10 min.) featured the arrival of the Jangadeiros in Guanabara Bay, Rio de Janeiro. Interestingly, none of this material was used in the FOUR MEN IN A RAFT section of the IAT doc - apparently this reel was overlooked when material was being pulled for IAT. In fact, none of the gentlemen connected with IAT who were in attendance had ever seen this footage before! They seemed somewhat dismayed that they didn't have it available when FOUR MEN ON A RAFT was being put together. I overheard one of them say afterwards, "Dick Wilson missed the boat on this sequence. He was supposed to pull all the footage."

Ms. Benamou mentioned that Welles at some point had said that his attitude toward the material in IT'S ALL TRUE was influenced by both Robert Flaherty and "City Symphony". I'm not sure if by this last she meant Walter Ruttman's BERLIN: SYMPHONY OF A GREAT CITY or if she was referring to something else; unfortunately there was no time for a Q&A and I didn't get a chance to speak to her during the intermission. She said that the Mexican composer Carlos Chavez had been tapped to provide a score for the picture.

Here are some selected numbers on IT'S ALL TRUE from Ms. Benamou's program notes:

MY FRIEND BONITO
-preserved: 8,000 feet
-nitrate negative not yet preserved: 67,145 feet

CARNAVAL
-Technicolor negative preserved: 2750 feet
-Technicolor negative not yet preserved: 2700 feet
-Technicolor nitrate neg printed in B&W positive: 6500 feet [preserved?]
-B&W preserved: 3,330 feet
-B&W nitrate negative not yet preserved: 32,300 feet

FOUR MEN ON A RAFT
-total B&W nitrate negative: 64,000 feet
-B&W preserved: 35,950 feet

Robert Gitt, who is retiring as the head of UCLA's Preservation Dept., introduced "Macbeth sans Shakespeare", the screening of MACBETH without dialogue, only a music & effects track. I've never been wildly enthusiastic about MACBETH (more respectful than enthusiastic), but I must say that I have a new-found admiration for the film after having seen it in this way. It enabled the audience to focus on the physical performances of the actors as well as on the very sophisticated camera movement and the musical score by Ibert. Welles' performance on a physical level was especially good and stunningly camera-savvy. Gitt noted that both versions of the film are newly re-restored; I'm hoping this presages a Region 1 DVD release.

[tony]

Great report Night Man! Thanks!

""Dick Wilson missed the boat on this sequence."

Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha! :laugh:

[The Night Man]

Thanks for the kind words, Tony. If I can ever find my notes, I'll post a report on the MACBETH screening from the Welles retrospective at the Cinematheque two years ago. Peggy Webber (Lady MacDuff) was there and was interviewed at some length.

[Clive Dale]

did anyone ask Robert Gitt about Don Quixote and The Leafy Garage?

[ToddBaesen]

Many thanks for the excellent report on the UCLA program of IT'S ALL TRUE and MACBETH, Night Man.

I think from what you describe, it's quite obvious that Paramount should now prepare a new double disc-DVD release for IT'S ALL TRUE. It's shocking that Paramount obviously didn't even know that they had all this fabulous material when they rushed out a their bare bones DVD release.

Just looking at the very few marvelous 3-strip Technicolor sequences of the Carnival footage makes one long to see much more of that, and with all that extra unseen footage available, it would obviously be great idea to include it on a new DVD as supplemnents, or even possibly re-cutting it into the film.

One things for sure: It's widely agreed that the awful score needs to be throw out and replaced by a more approriate one (perhaps by Carlos Chavez). What did you think of his score?

[The Night Man]

did anyone ask Robert Gitt about Don Quixote and The Leafy Garage?

Unfortunately, no. Mr. Gitt introduced the film, then departed. He took no questions. (The program was already behind schedule at that point.)

[The Night Man]

Many thanks for the excellent report on the UCLA program of IT'S ALL TRUE and MACBETH, Night Man.

You're very welcome.

It's shocking that Paramount obviously didn't even know that they had all this fabulous material when they rushed out a their bare bones DVD release.

In defense of the people who put IAT together, Ms. Benamou said that at the time, after fifty years of being shuffled from owner to owner, the material was in complete disarray. Nobody really knew what was there; it's taken them years to sort it all out.

There's an interesting story behind the release of IT'S ALL TRUE which I heard at the Cinematheque in 2004. Krohn, Marx, Schlesinger and Myron Meisel were present for a screening of IAT and afterwards were interviewed. As I recollect, Schlesinger told of how, when he informed the Paramount execs that they owned all this footage to an unfinished Welles film, they were initially enthusiastic - they thought they were going to get another KANE out of it. When they saw the finished film they were furious and didn't even want to pay for prints. He took the single answer print to a film festival where it got lots of attention and Paramount was shamed into releasing IT'S ALL TRUE. Schlesinger was ultimately fired for his efforts.

One things for sure: It's widely agreed that the awful score needs to be throw out and replaced by a more approriate one (perhaps by Carlos Chavez). What did you think of his score?

Perhaps I wasn't clear about this. Carlos Chavez was selected by Welles while IT'S ALL TRUE was still in production to provide a score for the film. Since the film was never finished, he never actually wrote a score. Chavez died in 1978.

Or were you asking about Jorge Arriagada's score for the documentary?

[tony]

I heard that there's a money issue involved: apparently it will take more than a million dollars to properly develop all of the IAT material; donations, anyone?

Actually I'm surprised the Brazilian government hasn't paid for this: it's not just the rough footage for a Welles film that's at stake, it's an invaluable snapshot of Brazilian culture, much of it about to change forever in 1942. I know Catherine Benamou's been trying for years to get this accomplished, and the fact that she's managed 3 reels is a testament to her perserverence; when her books comes out (this year?) hopefully this might further publicize the predicament of the footage, which most people probably thought was completely developed for the documentary back in 1993.

:;):

[NoFake]

Per Tony's "Actually I'm surprised the Brazilian government hasn't paid for this: it's not just the rough footage for a Welles film that's at stake, it's an invaluable snapshot of Brazilian culture, much of it about to change forever in 1942" (sorry! can't do the "quote" box), I agree -- unless the resentment humorously illustrated in Rogerio Sganzerla’s “O signo do caos,” which screened at Locarno last year, persists. The film hypothesizes Pink Panther-like that Brazilians with official support conspired to steal and destroy “It’s All True” because it made the country look bad. One of the thieves calls it “a threat to our policy of good neighborship,” a play on the “good neighbor policy” Welles was supposed to be promoting with it.

[tonyw]

Thanks for the great report "Night Man" for those of us who could not attend as well as the responses by others. Let us hope that the IT'S ALL TRUE material can be preserved, put on DVD, and a new score added.

[The Night Man]

I heard that there's a money issue involved: apparently it will take more than a million dollars to properly develop all of the IAT material; donations, anyone?

Actually, I'm almost certain that everything that exists of IAT has been developed/processed. It just hasn't all been preserved, that is, duplicated from the unstable original nitrate stock to something more long-lasting.

Money is still the issue, though.

[The Night Man]

Thanks for the great report "Night Man" for those of us who could not attend as well as the responses by others. Let us hope that the IT'S ALL TRUE material can be preserved, put on DVD, and a new score added.

You're welcome, tonyw.

At the beginning of Ms. Benamou's presentation, she particularly mentioned the DVD releases of MR. ARKADIN and F FOR FAKE in such a way that suggested to me that that she is hoping for an expanded DVD release of IAT herself. I'd love to see such a thing happen as well, especially considering how much unseen material exists for both CARNAVAL and MY FRIEND BONITO.

[Le Chiffre]

I'm sure Benamou could probably provide a great running commentary track for the raw footage too, if that expanded DVD were to come about.

Carlos Chavez was selected by Welles while IT'S ALL TRUE was still in production to provide a score for the film. Since the film was never finished, he never actually wrote a score. Chavez died in 1978.

I'm sure Chavez was hired to score MY FRIEND BONITO. I suspect Welles would probably have tried to get Heitor Villa-Lobos, Brazil's most renowned composer, to score FOUR MEN ON A RAFT.

If Benamou is able to put another assemblage together, it would probably be a good idea to use selected music by both of those great composers. After all, Mancayo's HUAPANGO goes so beautifully with the "Blessing of the Animals" scene in the IT'S ALL TRUE documentary, that one would think it had been written especially for it.

[tony]

Actually, neither It's All True nor Don Quixote have been done properly yet: both need the Criterion treatment: an inteligent edit with appropriate music and proper narration; raw, unedited material, plus documentaries on the tale of each. And of course, The Other Side Of the Wind needs this treatment, too.

Is that too much to ask?
:p

[The Night Man]

I'm sure Chavez was hired to score MY FRIEND BONITO. I suspect Welles would probably have tried to get Heitor Villa-Lobos, Brazil's most renowned composer, to score FOUR MEN ON A RAFT.

Of course you must be right about this, mteal. Ms. Benamou mentioned Chavez during the BONITO footage, but I assumed (without thinking it through) that she meant he was to score the entire project. On reflection, it really only makes sense that he was to score BONITO and that the other sections would be handled by other composers (such as Villa-Lobos).