BEST ORSON WELLES MOVIES
“Citizen Kane” (1941) After making marks in theater and radio (encompassing the legendary, panic-causing “War of the Worlds” broadcast), Welles made his first film ... still acclaimed as one of the greatest ever, though its fans didn’t include powerful publisher William Randolph Hearst, who felt the portrait of Charles Foster Kane hit too close to home. The picture is a staple of Turner Classic Movies, which shows it again Saturday, Oct. 24. “The Magnificent Ambersons” (1942) The RKO studio ultimately took this film away from Welles, which explains its brevity (less than 90 minutes), but the adaptation of Booth Tarkington’s novel – about a family trying to change with the times – has much to recommend it, including its cast of Mercury Theatre players. “The Stranger” (1946) Also the director here, Welles plays a Nazi war criminal in hiding, pursued by a United Nations investigator (Edward G. Robinson).
“The Lady From Shanghai” (1947) Welles is producer, director, screenwriter and (with then-wife Rita Hayworth) star of this melodrama about a sailor caught up in a murder scheme. The film fared much better overseas before its reputation grew in the States.
“Macbeth” (1948) Welles tried a number of unique filmmaking techniques – mostly necessitated by a small budget – in his film version of the Shakespeare classic (with Welles in the title role).
“The Third Man” (1949) As the mysterious, supposedly deceased Harry Lime, Welles is part of one of the all-time-great mystery movies ... primarily as an actor, though he did make contributions to the script.
“Othello” (1952) Going back to the works of Shakespeare as producer, director, screenwriter and star again, Welles had to stop and restart production as he took other acting jobs to replenish his funds to make this.
“Touch of Evil” (1958) A chilling Welles, who also directed and wrote the script, is great as a corrupt border cop who collides with a drug enforcement officer (Charlton Heston). The film had much footage restored in later years. “The V.I.P.s” (1963) In one of Welles’ most enjoyable actor-for-hire turns, he plays a larger-than-life filmmaker among the travelers stranded by fog at London’s Heathrow Airport. “Casino Royale” (1967) The sum effect of this James Bond spoof is that it’s something of a mess – a really big one – but in the sprawling cast, Welles actually is pretty effective as smugly self-assured, poker-playing villain Le Chiffre.