Review: "The Other Side of the Wind" is a Provocative, Messy Piece of Brilliance

Scene from The Other Side of the Wind

Even in death, it seemed like director Orson Welles couldn't catch a break. His directorial debut, the highly acclaimed Citizen Kane, was mired in controversy and protest from its early release - and his later films would only continue to be pushed through development hell and often funded in less conventional manners, whether they be taking bit parts in inferior works like Transformers: The Movie, or even editing adult films. Still, Welles was a man of passion and it shows in his final film, the incomplete The Other Side of the Wind which was incomplete at the time of death and once again mired in lawsuits that prolonged its release by 30+ years. Thanks to Netflix, it's finally here and it's a mirage of a filmmaker who continued to push boundaries, finding the limits of film to be endless and in the process making avant garde art. This final film, actually an attempt to restore good graces with the Hollywood studio system, is probably his most challenging and unique in a career full of challenging and unique projects. It's why it seems like an odd fit for Netflix, even if it's one of the greatest puzzles of 2018.

Netflix, FilmStruck, and Streaming Services' Problems with Film History

Scene from The Other Side of the Wind

For a lot of cinephiles, today is a very special occasion. Today is the day in which the long awaited Orson Welles film The Other Side of the Wind finally meets the light of day. Thanks to a lot of meticulous effort and the powers at Netflix, the film is currently available to stream online, including an additional documentary on the assembling of this perceptively lost film. With all of this said, there's a certain irony in the film being released by Netflix of all streaming services within the same month of the demise of FilmStruck. The Other Side of the Wind, at least aesthetically, is more suited to the classic and foreign cinema service that will be going belly-up on November 29, which will see a lot of Welles' other titles disappear. While this isn't exactly Netflix's fault, it may as well be because for those looking for great cinema in the vein of Welles, there's a good chance that it won't be there for much longer. 

R.I.P. Lewis Gilbert (1920-2018)

Lewis Gilbert

On February 23, 2018, director Lewis Gilbert died at the age of 97 in Monaco. Over a career spanning 60 years, he has continued to reinvent himself and work on exciting projects ranging from the film Alfie to three of the James Bond franchise's most successful and iconic films. He leaves behind a filmography that is unmatched in its diversity, capturing an excitement for what the medium can bring to entertainment. Even in his later years, he would produce memorable films like Educating Rita. Still, no matter what he would become known for, he brought a personality to his work that made him one of the most celebrated British directors of his generation. 

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "Citizen Kane" (1941)

Scene from Citizen Kane

As awards seasons pick up, so do the campaigns to make your film have the best chances at the Best Picture race. However, like a drunken stupor, sometimes these efforts come off as trying too hard and leave behind a trailer of ridiculous flamboyance. Join me on every other Saturday for a highlight of the failed campaigns that make this season as much about prestige as it does about train wrecks. Come for the Harvey Weinstein comments and stay for the history. It's going to be a fun time as I explore cinema's rich history of attempting to matter.

Why Orson Welles Makes Me Sad

Orson Welles in Touch of Evil

Orson Welles is a genius.

It is a simple idea that many, myself included, believe to be true. Over the course of his career, he found exciting ways to captivate audiences and make you care about the magic of the arts. From his early days producing radio dramas like "The War of the Worlds" to Citizen Kane and beyond. The fact is that you can look at his body of work and find a treasure trove of art that, even if you don't like it, can appreciate its craft. However, there's a certain something that comes as a downside of being a curious cinephile like myself: you learn too much. For whatever reason, I see Welles' career more as a tragedy than a triumph, and it at times depresses me to think of what he inevitably became. While I respect the man's work, including and up through his untimely death shortly after F for Fake, I also have trouble thinking of him too much for a lot of other reasons. He was an artist, but also sort of a jerk.

The Oscar Buzz Celebrates Its Third Anniversary!

Alejandro Gonzalez-Inarritu

Looks like we've made it through another year. Today marks the third anniversary since the launch of The Oscar Buzz. So much continues to happen in each year that makes me grateful to have this as an outlet. One of the highlights was expanding my coverage to include occasional dives into Oscar history as well as various think pieces that has inspired more frequent audience participation. I hope in the year ahead to achieve the same amount of success, increasing the output along the way. To commemorate this anniversary, I keep true to past years by establishing a theme. This year, I have chosen to tackle the "triple threat." More specifically, I am going to list 20 great films in which there is someone involved who acted, directed, and wrote at least a portion of the script. It's a lot harder than you'd think.

Birthday Take: Orson Welles in "Citizen Kane" (1941)

Orson Welles in Citizen Kane

Welcome to The Birthday Take, a column dedicated to celebrating Oscar nominees and winners' birthdays by paying tribute to the work that got them noticed. This isn't meant to be an exhaustive retrospective, but more of a highlight of one nominated work that makes them noteworthy. The column will run whenever there is a birthday and will hopefully give a dense exploration of the finest performances and techniques applied to film. So please join me as we blow out the candles and dig into the delicious substance.