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Author Topic: Smile and its parallels to 2 other famous works and their creator  (Read 9992 times)
Dove Nested Towers
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« on: June 18, 2009, 01:37:53 PM »

Interesting, coincidental comment by the Don on the Brian's dress styles of late thread,
referencing Orson Welles.

I have been devouring an excellent bio of this towering, troubled figure (by film critic David Thomson) and have been contemplating some interesting similarities between Welles, (Brian Wilson), his magnificent (artistic if not financial, don't f*ck with the you-know-what) success and relatively independently conceived and executed achievement, Citizen Kane (what Smile COULD have been if completed and released at the time, although Smile would have undoubtedly been somewhat more commercially successful), and The Magnificent Ambersons (his thwarted ((partly by his own self-destructive negligence in the final stages)) second masterpiece), which Smile wound up BEING in its real-world incarnation before (or even after, depending on your POV, BWPS).

Welles said later in life that "Ambersons" in its original, director-approved, 132-minute
cut, was, in his opinion, "better than Kane" a view more or less echoed by intelligent,
discerning contemporaries who saw it in its pre-mutilated form. One of them said:"It was a picture done like music, so smooth, the choreography of camera and actors so beautiful.
It was the best I'd ever seen". A preview audience member said: "The picture is magnificent. The direction, acting, photography and special effects are the best cinema
has yet offered. It is unfortunate that the American public, as represented at this theatre,
are unable to appreciate fine art", and: "The picture was a masterpiece with perfect photography, settings and acting. It seemed too deep for the average stupid person. I was disgusted with the way some people (in the theater) received this picture".

As a result of this last sentiment being observed at subsequent previews, the film was
gradually edited to disastrous effect before release, against the wishes of Welles, who had been forced to relinquish his unprecendented right to final cut, which had been awarded him in his original contract with RKO, after "Kane" was a financial failure. The circumstances are different, but the similarities between the two "lost masterpieces" are
interesting. Thomson writes "Ambersons is known and treasured now as a lost thing; that
is its special resonance, its character. Suppose it had been finished--at two hours and twelve minutes--lovely, sad, perfect--would we think of it so much? Or do we especially treasure the things lost?" Food for thought.

"Citizen Kane", on the other hand, is a surrogate or metaphor for the pioneering, transcendent work (Smile) brought triumphantly to fruition by the strength and uncompromising vision of its creator(s), undeterred by opposition, doubt or adversity.
It was even more defiantly uncommercial than Smile, and Smile would have almost surely
achieved greater mass acceptance upon release than "Kane" did, and similar critical praise. It stands, in all its trailblazing, unique glory, undiluted and undiminishable. Hallelujah! We (I) can vicariously relish it and visualize the 1966-67 released Smile, with
sections either destroyed, known but left off BWPS, or otherwise yet unheard but probably still in existence somewhere, through "Kane's" triumphant lens, and thus somewhat diminish the longing left by its absence.

None of this is meant to diminish the achievement, musically and spiritually, of BWPS. There are varying opinions about whether it represents true closure for the Smile saga,
its atmospheric and purely musical merits, etc., but it does represent, at the very least,
a celebration of Brian Wilson, his determination and survival, his dedication and that of his
collaborators.

Thank you all for your indulgence. Live long and prosper. Smiley
« Last Edit: June 19, 2009, 12:07:39 AM by mutedtrumpeterswan » Logged

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« Reply #1 on: June 18, 2009, 09:25:52 PM »

Here's something I meant to post awhile ago but I forgot about it and never finished it. It compares one of Brian's works to another famous work:

"The birdcatcher am I indeed, always merry, heisa, hop-sa-sa! I, birdcatcher, am well known to old and young throughout the land." (sounds like the Pied Piper from a little story Brian helped write!) - From, The Magic Flute

Mozart helped write an opera called The Magic Flute, of which he was particularly proud. As Wikipedia summarizes, "the work is in the form of a Singspiel, a popular form that included both singing and spoken dialogue." Which is basically what Mt. Vernon and Fairway is. It was one of Beethoven's favorite works as well. The story is like a fairytale, with a magical flute, magical bells (magical transistor radio, anyone?), and a Queen of the Night. Oh, and it's about a handsome prince. In this light, Brian's little fairytale doesn't seem so odd, does it? He just modernized the concept. Mozart, like Brian, was childlike, as many of their contemporaries noted.

I think Mt. Vernon and Fairway was Brian's most underappreciated work. A lot of fans say it's 'too bizarre', it shows how 'out of touch', how 'far-gone' Brian was at this point. I don't understand. If anything, I think it shows just how with it he was. Ask Brian about it today. He'll tell you to play it in a dark room and close your eyes as you go on a musical journey.

Compositionally, the music in Mt. Vernon and Fairway is some of the most expressive Brian wrote after SMiLE. The music has so many layers, they are their own little harmonic worlds. I think Rolling Stone summarized Brian's writing style during the Holland period best in their review of the album:

Quote
A cosmic love song to an astrological lovely ["Funky Pretty], it mounts its grit in a swirl of harmonic complications, again underlining Blondie
Chaplin's more straightforward vocal dexterity with a defiantly baroque choral signature: Vivaldi meets the Regents on a magic synthesizer. It makes for a beautiful track, built on economical and even monotonous musical premises that delight in their unreasonably complex development.

Beyond all of that, though, I think it was also a fascinating look into Brian's mind. It's really semi-autobiographical. The magic transistor radio and the Pied Piper that brings it to the prince in the tale is Brian's muse personified. Brian said that the radio was his greatest musical teacher, where he heard the magical sounds of Phil Spector, the Beatles, and other rock groups, which inspired him to record Pet Sounds and other masterpieces. During Smile, however, his muses turned on him, he was lost, and the radio no longer gave him those fantastical musical ideas. In the fairytale, the magical transistor radio loses it magic, and the Prince tosses it out, only for his brothers to find it and hear those magical sounds (also, the fact that that the Prince and his brothers constantly have to hide the radio from their parents must have something do to with Brian's childhood, and how he would use music to cheer up his brothers). It's not hard to imagine Brian hearing "Forever" or "Feel Flows" and thinking that very thought. They were tuned into his muse. Brian thought he had played with spiritual forces he shouldn't have, and that those same forces that brought him songs like "Good Vibrations" later brought him damning schizophrenia and depression. He was "paying the Piper", so to speak. Was the Pied Piper one of those voices in his head?

It's also worth mentioning that the idea of the Prince was probably influenced by the book The Little Prince, which supposedly was Brian's favorite book during Pet Sounds/Smile.

Don't ask me why I know all of this. I don't know why or how either.
« Last Edit: June 19, 2009, 12:22:16 AM by Dada » Logged
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« Reply #2 on: June 18, 2009, 11:32:48 PM »

I've also always loved "Mt. Vernon & Fairway" in a special way ever since I first heard it.
Magical!
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« Reply #3 on: June 19, 2009, 12:01:39 AM »

Riveting thread. May it live long. And thanks for mentioning my comparison of Welles to Wilson. Will reply after having digested the first comments in full.
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« Reply #4 on: June 19, 2009, 01:32:49 AM »

Finally there's some love for "Mt. Vernon And Fairway", which may be the downright most underappreciated gem in the whole BB catalogue. I couldn't believe they'd let Tom Petty write he basically didn't like it in the official liner notes for the twofer. To me, the fairy tale is what made Holland a truly great record in the end. There's the "serious rock band" touch to the regular album and then comes this bizarre little thing (and I mean 'bizarre' in the most positive way possible) that basically sounds like a kids record on first listen, only to reveal its profound autobiographical note on further examination. It's almost like Brian Wilson deliberately sabotaged the group's new-found seriousness, bringing back tiny glimpses of Smile's trademark playfulness and magic, while Holland's very own "grown-up Smile-ness" (think "The Trader", "Steamboat") only makes it all the more alluring.
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« Reply #5 on: June 19, 2009, 01:49:38 AM »

Finally there's some love for "Mt. Vernon And Fairway", which may be the downright most underappreciated gem in the whole BB catalogue. I couldn't believe they'd let Tom Petty write he basically didn't like it in the official liner notes for the twofer. To me, the fairy tale is what made Holland a truly great record in the end. There's the "serious rock band" touch to the regular album and then comes this bizarre little thing (and I mean 'bizarre' in the most positive way possible) that basically sounds like a kids record on first listen, only to reveal its profound autobiographical note on further examination. It's almost like Brian Wilson deliberately sabotaged the group's new-found seriousness, bringing back tiny glimpses of Smile's trademark playfulness and magic, while Holland's very own "grown-up Smile-ness" (think "The Trader", "Steamboat") only makes it all the more alluring.

Why oh why did they never expand on that great 'Radio King Dom' musical fragment? 'Thru' The Misty Night', it is so great, and yet, we have around 5 seconds of it.
Sad.
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« Reply #6 on: June 19, 2009, 04:25:50 AM »

Finally there's some love for "Mt. Vernon And Fairway", which may be the downright most underappreciated gem in the whole BB catalogue. I couldn't believe they'd let Tom Petty write he basically didn't like it in the official liner notes for the twofer. To me, the fairy tale is what made Holland a truly great record in the end. There's the "serious rock band" touch to the regular album and then comes this bizarre little thing (and I mean 'bizarre' in the most positive way possible) that basically sounds like a kids record on first listen, only to reveal its profound autobiographical note on further examination. It's almost like Brian Wilson deliberately sabotaged the group's new-found seriousness, bringing back tiny glimpses of Smile's trademark playfulness and magic, while Holland's very own "grown-up Smile-ness" (think "The Trader", "Steamboat") only makes it all the more alluring.

Why oh why did they never expand on that great 'Radio King Dom' musical fragment? 'Thru' The Misty Night', it is so great, and yet, we have around 5 seconds of it.
Sad.

get the track "fairytale music" from the boxset, cut out that part and loop it!  quite satisfying
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« Reply #7 on: June 19, 2009, 04:30:00 AM »

Finally there's some love for "Mt. Vernon And Fairway", which may be the downright most underappreciated gem in the whole BB catalogue. I couldn't believe they'd let Tom Petty write he basically didn't like it in the official liner notes for the twofer. To me, the fairy tale is what made Holland a truly great record in the end. There's the "serious rock band" touch to the regular album and then comes this bizarre little thing (and I mean 'bizarre' in the most positive way possible) that basically sounds like a kids record on first listen, only to reveal its profound autobiographical note on further examination. It's almost like Brian Wilson deliberately sabotaged the group's new-found seriousness, bringing back tiny glimpses of Smile's trademark playfulness and magic, while Holland's very own "grown-up Smile-ness" (think "The Trader", "Steamboat") only makes it all the more alluring.

Why oh why did they never expand on that great 'Radio King Dom' musical fragment? 'Thru' The Misty Night', it is so great, and yet, we have around 5 seconds of it.
Sad.

get the track "fairytale music" from the boxset, cut out that part and loop it!  quite satisfying

How do I loop?
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« Reply #8 on: June 19, 2009, 04:36:37 AM »

Why oh why did they never expand on that great 'Radio King Dom' musical fragment? 'Thru' The Misty Night', it is so great, and yet, we have around 5 seconds of it.
Sad.

I agree it's frustratingly short, but then it's just as short as BW's contributions to then current BB albums were few, so it probably kind of makes sense. He did go back to some of the fairy tale music, however, the "Lazy Lizzy" (?) melody borrowing heavily from "Better Get Back In Bed".
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« Reply #9 on: June 19, 2009, 06:13:31 AM »

Beyond all of that, though, I think it was also a fascinating look into Brian's mind. It's really semi-autobiographical. The magic transistor radio and the Pied Piper that brings it to the prince in the tale is Brian's muse personified. Brian said that the radio was his greatest musical teacher, where he heard the magical sounds of Phil Spector, the Beatles, and other rock groups, which inspired him to record Pet Sounds and other masterpieces. During Smile, however, his muses turned on him, he was lost, and the radio no longer gave him those fantastical musical ideas. In the fairytale, the magical transistor radio loses it magic, and the Prince tosses it out, only for his brothers to find it and hear those magical sounds (also, the fact that that the Prince and his brothers constantly have to hide the radio from their parents must have something do to with Brian's childhood, and how he would use music to cheer up his brothers). It's not hard to imagine Brian hearing "Forever" or "Feel Flows" and thinking that very thought. They were tuned into his muse. Brian thought he had played with spiritual forces he shouldn't have, and that those same forces that brought him songs like "Good Vibrations" later brought him damning schizophrenia and depression. He was "paying the Piper", so to speak. Was the Pied Piper one of those voices in his head?

I also really like Mt. Vernon and Fairway, I think it is really beautiful and innovative.  I may be in the minority on this but I have always seen the interperatation the other way around; with Brian not as the prince but as the pied piper.  He only identifies with children and feels excluded from the adult world, both musically and personally, so he only appears in seceret to those he thinks will apperiate him.  He knows he has a beautiful gift but is ashamed of it so he has to be secretive and only shares it where he feels safe from riddicule.
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« Reply #10 on: June 19, 2009, 07:21:56 AM »

Mutedtrumpeterswan - I'm glad you're getting into the Welles bio but, as far as accuracy is concerned, Thomson's book is one of the worst (way too much speculation and fanciful imaginings without a clear understanding of the circumstances that drove Welles). For a more even-handed approach, check out either of Joseph McBride's bios which are exceptionally well-researched (McBride has the advantage of actually knowing and working with Welles). Simon Callow's soon-to-be three volume bio is good as well if slightly foggy in some of the research.

THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS (a film very dear to my heart - although, perhaps, only in what I imagine the 131 min. version played like) has been a popular choice to compare to Brian's SMiLE. The Welles film that comes closest, however, is the still unfinished THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WIND. This satire on the "New Hollywood" of the early-70s was shot in short fragments, using varying film formats, which only Welles seemed to have known how to edit together (sound familiar?). Money, and quarrels over ownership rights, have so far prevented the film from being finished (all the footage was shot and about 40 minutes of it was edited by Welles), but part of the concern is that no one is quite certain how Welles intended to arrange all the pieces.

At least with BWPS, Wilson was present to put in his two-cents and approval regardless of who was actually assembling the pieces.
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« Reply #11 on: June 19, 2009, 07:26:27 AM »

Your comparison to Orson Welles has been noted in the past.  Occasionally in the pre-BWPS days, Brian had been called the "Orson Welles of Rock".  This was referenced by Chazz Palminteri at the 2001 Radio City event.

I did want to point out that David Thomson's book had been slammed repeatedly over the years by fans of Welles.  The work has been attacked by Welles scholars for painting Orson as a 'tortured genius', which is not the case.  Welles created many of the stresses he had to deal with over the course of his career.  He didn't dwell on his past, Hollywood did. He had a reputation of being bad with money (like the Beach Boys).  His career is marked by his lack of negotiation skills, inability to pitch his ideas with finesse or ease the concerns of investors. 

If you are seeking better biographically sources read Frank Brady, Peter Bogdanovich or Clinton Heylin's "Despite the System".

Citizen Kane was realized because Welles had strong support from the president of RKO, a dedicated team in the Mercury especially the gifted theater producer John Houseman, who had five years experience being the buffer between Welles' 'genius' and financiers. He was able to smooth relationships and translate Orson's visions verbally.  Orson had a brilliant radio career after Kane, married the most desired actress in Hollywood (Rita Hayworth) and traveled the world as a icon being 'wined and dined' and elbowing with royalty throughout the world for the remained of his life.  His first released film has inspired every successive generation of filmmaker, but there is so much more to his creative output that has yet to be discovered and explored.  None of it centers on his failures.

I am more inclined to equate Citizen Kane with Pet Sounds.  Both were released to the public with artistic vision intact.
The Magnificent Ambersons, the film that Welles couldn't watch in his old age without a tear, is his SMiLE.

An interesting footnote-- in the early 1970s Welles briefly entertained the idea of gathering Joe Cotton, Tim Holt, and Agnes Moorehead to reshoot the ending to Ambersons, reconstructing his original intent.  He was not able to secure the rights to the RKO film.  Sadly, Holt passed in '73 and Moorehead in '74.  If he would have accomplished it, it might have been his BWPS!

Interesting, coincidental comment by the Don on the Brian's dress styles of late thread,
referencing Orson Welles.

I have been devouring an excellent bio of this towering, troubled figure (by film critic David Thomson) and have been contemplating some interesting similarities between Welles, (Brian Wilson), his magnificent (artistic if not financial, don't f*ck with the you-know-what) success and relatively independently conceived and executed achievement, Citizen Kane (what Smile COULD have been if completed and released at the time, although Smile would have undoubtedly been somewhat more commercially successful), and The Magnificent Ambersons (his thwarted ((partly by his own self-destructive negligence in the final stages)) second masterpiece), which Smile wound up BEING in its real-world incarnation before (or even after, depending on your POV, BWPS).

Welles said later in life that "Ambersons" in its original, director-approved, 132-minute
cut, was, in his opinion, "better than Kane" a view more or less echoed by intelligent,
discerning contemporaries who saw it in its pre-mutilated form. One of them said:"It was a picture done like music, so smooth, the choreography of camera and actors so beautiful.
It was the best I'd ever seen". A preview audience member said: "The picture is magnificent. The direction, acting, photography and special effects are the best cinema
has yet offered. It is unfortunate that the American public, as represented at this theatre,
are unable to appreciate fine art", and: "The picture was a masterpiece with perfect photography, settings and acting. It seemed too deep for the average stupid person. I was disgusted with the way some people (in the theater) received this picture".

As a result of this last sentiment being observed at subsequent previews, the film was
gradually edited to disastrous effect before release, against the wishes of Welles, who had been forced to relinquish his unprecendented right to final cut, which had been awarded him in his original contract with RKO, after "Kane" was a financial failure. The circumstances are different, but the similarities between the two "lost masterpieces" are
interesting. Thomson writes "Ambersons is known and treasured now as a lost thing; that
is its special resonance, its character. Suppose it had been finished--at two hours and twelve minutes--lovely, sad, perfect--would we think of it so much? Or do we especially treasure the things lost?" Food for thought.

"Citizen Kane", on the other hand, is a surrogate or metaphor for the pioneering, transcendent work (Smile) brought triumphantly to fruition by the strength and uncompromising vision of its creator(s), undeterred by opposition, doubt or adversity.
It was even more defiantly uncommercial than Smile, and Smile would have almost surely
achieved greater mass acceptance upon release than "Kane" did, and similar critical praise. It stands, in all its trailblazing, unique glory, undiluted and undiminishable. Hallelujah! We (I) can vicariously relish it and visualize the 1966-67 released Smile, with
sections either destroyed, known but left off BWPS, or otherwise yet unheard but probably still in existence somewhere, through "Kane's" triumphant lens, and thus somewhat diminish the longing left by its absence.

None of this is meant to diminish the achievement, musically and spiritually, of BWPS. There are varying opinions about whether it represents true closure for the Smile saga,
its atmospheric and purely musical merits, etc., but it does represent, at the very least,
a celebration of Brian Wilson, his determination and survival, his dedication and that of his
collaborators.

Thank you all for your indulgence. Live long and prosper. Smiley
« Last Edit: June 19, 2009, 01:38:36 PM by steeler1.0 » Logged
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« Reply #12 on: June 19, 2009, 07:40:38 AM »

This thread is another example of why I check this board so often.  There are some real sharp folks hanging out here!  Mutedtrumpeterswan, I am glad you posted this thread.  I am on the exact same wave length right now, with two Welles books sitting on my desk.  I had thought that his early attempt at making a film version of Heart of Darkness was the Smile equivalent, but it looks like there are a bunch of options.  This is going to be great material for my on-going essay project (will it ever end?!).  Thanks to all.
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« Reply #13 on: June 19, 2009, 07:59:00 AM »

Ground Beneath her Feet is another great allusion to the Smile myth as well. Salman Rushdie is one of my favorite authors.
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« Reply #14 on: June 19, 2009, 01:02:31 PM »

Thanks to everyone for your participation, fascinating anecdotes and references, especially Roger and steeler 1.0. I was not aware that Thomson's bio had many critics.
It is very well-written and I took it for granted that its perspective was pretty accurate.
I'll check out the other sources on Welles that you all mentioned.

It's amazing to learn that he reassembled the cast members to try and redo the legendary final scene of "Ambersons" in the early '70s but couldn't get rights--what a shame. Also very interesting to hear about "The Other Side of the Wind". Sounds like a perfect Smile parallel in many ways, except that his creative powers were more at their
height in the early '40s, but I guess in the early '70s he was still vital (probably more so than Brian at this point--sorry).

"Heart of Darkness" has similarities, but wasn't nearly as close to completion as Smile. Grange,
your Pet Sounds analogy is very apt, it hadn't occurred to me. "Kane" could be seen as
a parallel either to PS or a (contemporary) completed Smile-that-never-was.

Really interesting to know that the "Radio King Dom" fragment had another individual name originally. I have always loved that "feel" specifically, within MV & F, so much and
wish it had gone on longer. It's so joyous and life-affirming. A smooth loop would be great. Nice thought about Brian being like the Pied Piper--on the money.

Thanks, what a great board this is! Grin
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« Reply #15 on: June 19, 2009, 01:23:50 PM »

Quote
He only identifies with children and feels excluded from the adult world, both musically and personally, so he only appears in seceret to those he thinks will apperiate him.  He knows he has a beautiful gift but is ashamed of it so he has to be secretive and only shares it where he feels safe from riddicule.

Interesting... could it be... [cue dramatic music] that they're both Brian?!?!?!!?? The Pied Piper is the 'adult' Brian (the Pied Piper), and the Prince is the 'child' Brian? I haven't listened to Mt. Vernon & Fairway in its entirety in weeks, I guess it's time to put it on again so I can rethink it.
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« Reply #16 on: June 19, 2009, 02:41:36 PM »

Also very interesting to hear about "The Other Side of the Wind". Sounds like a perfect Smile parallel in many ways, except that his creative powers were more at their
height in the early '40s, but I guess in the early '70s he was still vital (probably more so than Brian at this point--sorry).

It depends what phase of Welles one prefers. I like the early 40s Welles myself, but the footage I've seen of WIND is truly extraordinary (the fast-cutting between film formats predates what Oliver Stone did in JFK and NATURAL BORN KILLERS twenty years later - interestingly, Stone viewed the Welles footage prior to making those movies!) and his 1974 released film F FOR FAKE is really one of his best (the first of the "essay films masquerading as documentaries" that Michael Moore and Errol Morris have now popularized). The "problem" with both films is that they are nothing like the 40s Welles, so they often disappoint those who expect to see another KANE or LADY FROM SHANGHAI.

This is where Welles and Wilson differ: Welles was not interested in emulating his earlier style, but preferred to experiment with new ideas whereas Brian appears content to work within the confines of the pop songs that made him popular...and we tend to congratulate him when he approximates that earlier style without slavishly replicating it. Certain Welles biographers view the director as having trashed his career when he went about funding his own movies which turned out more like "Friends" or "Love You" than "Pet Sounds".
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« Reply #17 on: June 19, 2009, 03:44:27 PM »

Also very interesting to hear about "The Other Side of the Wind". Sounds like a perfect Smile parallel in many ways, except that his creative powers were more at their
height in the early '40s, but I guess in the early '70s he was still vital (probably more so than Brian at this point--sorry).

It depends what phase of Welles one prefers. I like the early 40s Welles myself, but the footage I've seen of WIND is truly extraordinary (the fast-cutting between film formats predates what Oliver Stone did in JFK and NATURAL BORN KILLERS twenty years later - interestingly, Stone viewed the Welles footage prior to making those movies!) and his 1974 released film F FOR FAKE is really one of his best (the first of the "essay films masquerading as documentaries" that Michael Moore and Errol Morris have now popularized). The "problem" with both films is that they are nothing like the 40s Welles, so they often disappoint those who expect to see another KANE or LADY FROM SHANGHAI.

This is where Welles and Wilson differ: Welles was not interested in emulating his earlier style, but preferred to experiment with new ideas whereas Brian appears content to work within the confines of the pop songs that made him popular...and we tend to congratulate him when he approximates that earlier style without slavishly replicating it. Certain Welles biographers view the director as having trashed his career when he went about funding his own movies which turned out more like "Friends" or "Love You" than "Pet Sounds".

Good points. I saw "F for Fake" years ago and enjoyed it thoroughly, but it was very different. Other than that, besides the obvious (haven't even seen "3rd Man" or "Lady From Shanghai" all the way through. have seen "The Trial" and of course "Touch of Evil"), I haven't seen anything else. Have "Confidential Report/Mr. Arkadin" ready to roll. Can't wait. Cool

(Ahem) back to the Beach Boys....
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« Reply #18 on: June 20, 2009, 11:00:21 AM »

Have "Confidential Report/Mr. Arkadin" ready to roll. Can't wait. Cool

Just make sure you watch the "Comprehensive Version" of ARKADIN reconstructed by Stefan Droessler and Claude Bertemes for the Criterion Collection release which is significantly better than the mangled CONFIDENTIAL REPORT or the completely wretched public domain version. ARKADIN is not one of Welles' stronger efforts, but the CV version finally makes some sense out of the story and clarifies the relationships between the characters.

One of the hardest things to do is to judge Welles' abilities as a director since so many of his films were taken away from him and altered. LADY FROM SHANGHAI had about 30 minutes cut from it by the studio heads who claimed they were only trying to make sense out of the "confusing mess" Welles submitted. In reviewing the cutting continuity for Welles' initial cut, guess what I found? Yep, most of those lost thirty minutes would have clarified the plotline and would have made for a richer, easier-to-understand film. The same is true of AMBERSONS, JOURNEY INTO FEAR, THE STRANGER, ARKADIN and TOUCH OF EVIL. Fortunately for ARKADIN and EVIL, we now have reconstructed versions that are much closer to what Welles wanted to achieve.

NOW...to tie this into the Beach Boys...how often do we wonder what Brian's original "Surf's Up" or "Cabinessence" would have sounded like? Or "Everything I Want" for that matter? The Beach Boys, in a sense, were trying to reconstruct tracks the way they thought Brian wanted them; Joe Thomas was trying to "fix" something because is wasn't "commercial" enough. But in both cases, we get someone else's approximation of the original author's work.
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« Reply #19 on: June 20, 2009, 11:03:24 PM »

I have a 1997 Home Vision Cinema version that purports to be "Confidential Reports"' "original, longer European version, released 7 years before it was edited for U.S. release as "Mr. Arkadin". I'm sure it's not the equal of the Criterion reconstruction, but I hope it won't be completely ruinous to watch this version (only partially ruinous).

Anyway, as I was saying about those recent Mike & Bruce BB shows, great setlists and
performances.... Smiley
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« Reply #20 on: June 22, 2009, 08:59:51 AM »

Have "Confidential Report/Mr. Arkadin" ready to roll. Can't wait. Cool
Fortunately for ARKADIN and EVIL, we now have reconstructed versions that are much closer to what Welles wanted to achieve.

Closer perhaps but, let's not forget that the 1998 "reconstruction" of Touch of Evil under the direction of filmmaker Rick Schmidlin, was based on Orson Welles' 58 pages of suggestions to Universal after they reshot scenes with Leigh & Heston and cut them into their own edit.  The removed footage and 'extra' outtakes sadly no longer exist.

This 58 page note is not Welles' original intention for the film.  It was Orson's way to incorporate the newly shot elements and save the story continuity.  Schmidlin and Oscar-winning editor Walter Murch did a yeoman's job of re-cutting the film based on what was surviving, but this 1998 version is FAR FROM Welles' original vision for what his original final cut would have looked like.

Interesting Footnotes- The use of a handheld 35mm film camera was introduced to Hollywood by Orson in this film.  Welles purchased the camera to use in his European works. The scene of 'Uncle' Joe Grandi' being strangled by Welles' Police Captain Hank Quinlan was shot with this camera mounted with 17mm 'fisheye' lens, creating the warped look around the edges of the image.  TOE is also the first time a camera (most likely Wells' light rig) was mounted to a moving vehicle to shoot footage.  Check out the scene of Heston and the DA driving through the streets of Venice Beach, CA.  Some of the deleted scenes from Orson's version were of Janet Leigh and Charlton Heston driving shot with this rig.
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« Reply #21 on: June 22, 2009, 09:22:05 AM »

Steeler1.0 - Right you are, but I wouldn't call the '98 reconstructed version of EVIL "far from Welles' original vision". Apart from the lamentably lost original scene of Vargas and Suzie meeting with Quinlan and Menzies (purportedly near the oil derricks that figure in the climax of the movie) - reshot by the studio with a new setting on a desert road - the '98 version comes pretty close to Welles' original shooting script, especially when compared to the existing versions of AMBERSONS and SHANGHAI (which really are far from Welles' original vision).

Bringing this back to the Beach Boys, it's kind of like accepting the released versions of "Surf's Up" and "Cabinessence" as being very close to Brian's original aspirations whereas believing something like "I'm In Great Shape" (as it appears on BWPS) has been altered significantly from what it might have been like if completed in '66.
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« Reply #22 on: July 06, 2009, 02:38:20 PM »

I’ve been a fan of TOUCH OF EVIL for many years and have read quite a bit about it.  IMHO, what we have today on DVD is a travesty.  No version that is close to Welles’ vision exists.  Welles himself complained in the memo about the footage they were using from the wealth of footage he provided them with.  If you look up the screen credits of the men that decided how TOUCH OF EVIL should be put together, you will find titles like MA AND PA KETTLE, FRANCIS THE TALKING MULE, THE MOLE PEOPLE, etc.  So right from square 1, it’s not a Welles film.

As well intentioned as the 1998 restorers were, they didn’t help the movie.  To make changes in an Orson Welles film and not signal you to let you know where they tinkered, is not right.  They made changes so it would play as a film, not as a restoration.  So the work of the MA AND PA KETTLE guys and the work of the 1998 restorers was fobbed off as Welles’ vision and it’s not.
   
I know that all who tinkered with TOUCH OF EVIL had the best inentions for the film. But the first tinkerers in 1958 didn’t have the foresight and undertanding of cinema that we have today.  The second tinkerers in 1998 didn’t have any film elements to work with because they don’t exist any more.  I don’t agree with some of the changes they made, even if Welles wrote it in the memo.  Any one that has read anything about Welles knows that his opinions in the editing room were like a revolving door.

And finally, I don’t agree with the letter boxing.  First watch the commercially available, letter boxed TOUCH OF EVIL.  Then get yourself a DVD-R of the Image Entertainment TOUCH OF EVIL laser disc and watch it on your computer screen, not your TV.  You will see TOUCH OF EVIL as framed by Welles.
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« Reply #23 on: July 06, 2009, 03:56:42 PM »

Wish I had the brains  to reply to such a complex thread  LOL
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« Reply #24 on: July 07, 2009, 07:33:10 AM »

There are enough threads out there on the internet discussing the supposedly correct aspect ratio for TOUCH OF EVIL; lord knows we don't need another one on a Beach Boys site!

I'm sure TOUCH OF EVIL is important to you, "comfortably-gone", since you decided to address it in your first post on this board. A sincere thanks for contributing. I think your statement concerning Welles' opinions in the editing room being like "a revolving door" is accurate and demonstrates the difficulty in assessing how close any of the reconstructions are to his real intent...

This is another way in which Welles was like Brian Wilson, especially during the SMiLE period. Depending on which month or week in '66, '67 or 2004 you're talking about, SMiLE might have been a three-part homage to "Rhapsody In Blue", a humor album, twelve individual songs, two songs (each twenty minutes in length), a concert performance, etc. The version of TOUCH OF EVIL Welles scripted in '57 is different than the one he shot which is way different from the one released in '58. The reconstructed TOUCH OF EVIL released in '98 is like BWPS but without the cooperation of its originator.

Without having any additional vintage material to factor in (such as potential acetates), I accept BWPS as the closest to a finished SMiLE as we're going to get; I accept the '98 TOUCH OF EVIL as the closest we're going to get to the Orson Welles movie he shot for Universal in '57. I feel I can't complain too much since both are pretty damn good!
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