From the IMAGE site:
Orson Welles' Don Quixote
ACTORS/ARTISTS: Francisco Reiguera, Akim Tamiroff
DIRECTOR(S): Orson Welles
SUB-GENRE: Drama
Year: 1992
Rating: Not Rated
CAT#: ID4150JQDVD
Country: Spain SRP: $24.98
Release Date: 08/19/08
LENGTH: 115 minutes
LANGUAGE: English
AUDIO FORMAT: Dolby Digital 1.0 L/R
DISCS: 1
FORMAT: DVD
ASPECT RATIO: 1.33:1
[It looks like Jess Franco's controversial version of Orson Welles' legendary unfinished project is finally going to get a US DVD presentation. No word on any extras but there has been some speculation on the wellesnet forum where I've been involved in a discussion about Franco and his involvement with Welles' CHIMES AT MIDNIGHT (1965) and DON QUIXOTE. Some fans and most Welles scholars are very unhappy about what Franco did in post-production with the footage. But I think it's more good news than bad that it's getting a DVD release here. The footage Franco was given to work with was in very poor condition and I don't know if anything has been done to improve the results.]
8 comments:
I wonder if this is a dubbed film? could it have really been shot in english?? seems unlikely
I remember asking Franco about this one and the rumor that there was footage that he wasn't allowed to have. He said that he had access to all the footage, but didn;t comment on the condition it was in.
I wonder if this is a dubbed film? could it have really been shot in english?? seems unlikely
Scott: Franco post dubbed it with non matching voices for Welles own voiceover. I think it may have been shot in English or at least Welles did an English narration. It may have been partially shot without sound also.
asking Franco about this one and the rumor that there was footage that he wasn't allowed to have. He said that he had access to all the footage, but didn;t comment on the condition it was in.
Doug: that's very interesting. I wonder why he agreed to work with such poorly graded material; also I wonder if he had the Patty McCormack in the cinema scene, which may be the best scene of the footage I've come across.
I know why he agreed to do it. He loved Welles. He will talk about the man at the drop of a hat. The fact that Welles picked Franco to do work for him shows what a genius Welles truly was and his ability to see talent where no one else did is nothing short of amazing. You know what? Even without any extras I'm gonna get this one. I can hardly wait. When did you say it was comign out, sir?
Any notion of whether this is different in any way from the Spanish DVD that came out a few years ago?
Douglas A. Waltz said...
I know why he agreed to do it. He loved Welles. He will talk about the man at the drop of a hat. The fact that Welles picked Franco to do work for him shows what a genius Welles truly was and his ability to see talent where no one else did is nothing short of amazing. You know what? Even without any extras I'm gonna get this one. I can hardly wait. When did you say it was comign out, sir?
Doug: I agree totally. When I once asked Jess who his alltime Favorite director was he immediately answered ORSON WELLES, and then went on about how much he admired him. He was really sincere about it. But I have a feeling that there may be some roadblocks ahead for thie DVD. Some Welles ethusiasts who hate what Franco has done to the footage have expressed interest in having the release aborted.
Anonymous said...
Any notion of whether this is different in any way from the Spanish DVD that came out a few years ago?
Anon: I haven't seen it so I don't know. I do have the Spanish DVD which has extras but very poor video quality. I hope they do allow some extras like the Patty McCormack watching Don Quixote attack the cinema screen scene [which has been on Youtube]. See link by typing in DON QUIJOTE in blog's search engine.
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