The Epic Story of Orson Welles’s Unfinished Masterpiece

April 13, 2015 4:45 PM

The Other Side of the Wind was going to be Orson Welles’s comeback, perhaps even topping Citizen Kane—but to this day, it remains unfinished (though that may change soon). In an adaptation from a new book about the 45-year struggle to make the film, Josh Karp reveals why Welles’s last movie is the stuff of legend.(via)
posted by octothorpe (6 comments total)

This is really fascinating. Welles was doing reality, albeit combining documentary with fiction, before the heyday. I wonder if the public and fans will ever see footage?
posted by Benway at 5:46 PM on April 13, 2015 [1 favorite]

Apparently enfant terrible is not an easy career path...
posted by jim in austin at 5:55 PM on April 13, 2015 [2 favorites]

That article is worth it just for the story about how Wells met Hemingway. Take away the modern particulars of the situation and it feels like a story out of the Odyssey or similar mythos. Seventy-eight years after the event, perhaps that version of their meeting has become mythologized a bit.
posted by D.C. at 6:19 PM on April 13, 2015 [2 favorites]

Jeez. Lesser filmmakers are lucky to have one unfinished masterpiece. Welles has, what, seven or eight?
posted by jetsetsc at 9:26 AM on April 14, 2015

Maybe the other side of the wind is the part that is breaking it.
posted by Pararrayos at 1:30 PM on April 14, 2015 [1 favorite]

great article, thanks.
posted by Theta States at 2:21 PM on April 14, 2015