Saturday Evening Movie Post [moviegique]: "F For Fake" (1973)

If we rely on experts because they know more than we do, how do we know they're experts?

Orson Welles asks us this tantalizing and startlingly contemporary question at the beginning of "F for Fake". In context, however, he is talking about the world of art, which I think we all realize now is basically just a form of money laundering and source of psyops.

Oja with the subtitle "The best critical opinion is a load of horse manure."

Preach, sister.

This is labeled as a documentary because there isn't really a filmed category for "essays". So we'll pretend this is a documentary and discuss what it's putatively about.

An early 20th century artist named Elmyr de Hory found that he could not get traction as a painter. To hear him tell it, the critics were squashing him and saying he wasn't a real artist or something of that sort. And so he demonstrated his prowess by imitating all their darlings.

He imitated them so well, the story goes, that his artworks hang in many major museums under names like "Matisse," "Picasso," "Modigliani" and so on.

Clifford Irving, an American novelist, befriended de Hory when visiting Ibiza, and the artist asked the novelist to write his biography. This biography generated a lot of heat at the time, including some police attention.

Would you buy a Picasso from this man?

Irving went on to write Howard Hughes' autobiography. Hughes had been a recluse for over a decade, but Irving claimed to have gotten in touch with him, and gotten authorization for his life story. As it turns out, he hadn't gotten in touch with Hughes at all, he just figured no one would know, since Hughes was a recluse. And the checks sent to Hughes' wife turned out to be deposited by Irving's wife in Switzerland, who opened an account under the name of "Helga R. Hughes".

Irving would spend time in jail for his fraud, but would then go on to profit mightily from a book he wrote about the hoax.

You can easily see why this would amuse Welles, who tells this story as snippets as he travels around Ibiza, eating at restaurants, joining in de Hory's parties, and occasionally doing dramatic readings. This wonderful Kipling poem, for example, pops up twice:

When the flush of a newborn sun fell first on Eden's green and gold,
Our father Adam sat under the Tree and scratched with a stick in the mold;
And the first rude sketch that the world had seen was joy to his mighty heart,
Till the Devil whispered behind the leaves: "It's pretty, but is it Art?"

One of the many wonderful aspects of this film is how Welles is front-and-center for most of it, yet he never makes it about himself. He presents himself as a knowledgeable and trustworthy guide to the historical happenings. A beautiful woman is showcased at the front of the film, and appears (almost furtively) throughout, and in the end she becomes central to the story.

She also wears fewer and fewer clothes.

This is one of those movies that is best to go in more-or-less blind, so I'll end the description here. We'll pretend this is a documentary and use the three-point scale:

Subject matter: It's important, but which aspects of it are important is debatable. Art is critical to society's health; art critics are another matter.
Presentation: Terrific. Welles is engaging, he illustrates his points in a variety of unusual ways. He starts the movie doing close magic. At other points, he's centered in the camera, but clearly reading cue-cards that are at different angles. Maybe that's not deliberate, you could argue, but he also does the classic two-shot style interview, where the camera switches between the interviewer and interviewee, and they're completely unmatched. He's showing you that he's editing this, which all lends to the "fake" of things.
Slant: Definitely toward fakery. Welles' enjoys the mischievous aspects of storytelling and, he tells us, the experts are faking as much as anyone, so maybe don't trust what you see.

Our host, Stanley Sheff, is building up to showing Welles' final, completed project ("The Orson Welles Show"). We disagree on the impact of Welles' broadcast of "The War of the Worlds" with me taking the stance that the broadcast really didn't panic America, that that was mostly hype (and an attempt by newspapers to present radio as unreliable) and that Welles played up the hype both for career advancement (it got him the contract that led to Citizen Kane) and because it amused him.

That aside Sheff is a real expert and lived (maybe lives?) in the shadow of the Golden Age of Hollywood. He has a Sirius show under the name of his alter ego Maxwell DeMille and you can check out some of his reels on his official site.

It's 1973 and Orson can still rock a hat and cloak.

Updates: After our long streak of good, new movies (ended, tragically, by "Coroner to the Stars"), Hollywood has dumped its summer slop on us, and we've fallen back on late night showings of Terry Gilliam movies at the Nuart.

Also: My new book "Lair of the White Worm" (based on Bram Stoker's last novel) is coming out at the end of August. If you want to be an advance reader or on the mailing list, drop me a line at dsblake.com. (Literally "i@...".)

Posted by: Open Blogger at 07:30 PM

Comments

(Jump to bottom of comments)

1 Good evening everyone

Posted by: Skip at July 25, 2026 07:30 PM (Ia/+0)

2 Hello, Skip!

Posted by: moviegique (buy my books) at July 25, 2026 07:35 PM (K40fF)

3 I refer to a line from the third episode of Dominion Tank Police about art.

"and the slightest damage will render it worthless."

Posted by: Anna Puma at July 25, 2026 07:36 PM (2GVsD)

4 Good evening Skip. You are all alone as I post this.

Posted by: From about That Time at July 25, 2026 07:41 PM (sl73Y)

5 Probably should add some context for my post.

The Buaku gang has entered an auction house in Newport City that is full of priceless artifacts to steal one painting. And the mercenary unit the Red Commandos has been hired to protect that painting.

In the ensuing tussle, both sides blow up the auction house.

Posted by: Anna Puma at July 25, 2026 07:43 PM (2GVsD)

6 "The Cheat" (1915) When the Long Island smart-set picks the ditziest dame around as treasurer of their swanky charity, you gotta expect some trouble. Fannie Ward sizzles! (Spoiler: Short United Copper.)
youtube.com/watch?v=V2LEW__ig2Y

Posted by: gp at July 25, 2026 07:43 PM (Jr5Lq)

7 Guess everyone's busy. Must be dinner time.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at July 25, 2026 07:43 PM (1Ff7Z)

8 >>In the ensuing tussle, both sides blow up the auction house.

Well, I'd say both sides should get a C- on their quarterly reviews.

Posted by: moviegique (buy my books) at July 25, 2026 07:44 PM (K40fF)

9 Every institution of modern life- Medicine, Politics, Sports, Edumacation, Hollywood, Churches, has proven to be bankrupt in every way. The Art World was just quicker to jump the shark.

Posted by: Der Volkischer Beobachter at July 25, 2026 07:46 PM (JM9I6)

10 Interesting fact about Welles. I saw a short part of an interview with him where he trashed Elia Kazan for turning in Hollywood types during the Red "Scare."

Funny, but these guys weren't just looking for a utopia, they meant to destroy the republic. Sorta lost a bit of respect for Orson for that.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at July 25, 2026 07:46 PM (1Ff7Z)

11 The face doesn't look all that beautiful.

Posted by: Bertram Cabot, Jr. at July 25, 2026 07:49 PM (Cqx++)

12 Kind of been watching Madness of King George
Never saw it before

Posted by: Skip at July 25, 2026 07:50 PM (Ia/+0)

13 The picture RE: hat and cape.
Is he wearing a standard fedora, or one with a wider brim?

Posted by: Diogenes at July 25, 2026 07:52 PM (2WIwB)

14 11 The face doesn't look all that beautiful.

Oja Kodar? Yeah, she's doing the model thing there where she looks grim, but she has a very nice smile and delightful presence in the film.

Posted by: moviegique (buy my books) at July 25, 2026 07:52 PM (K40fF)

15 Gique, your version of "Lair" --- more Stoker, or more Ken Russell?

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at July 25, 2026 07:53 PM (kpS4V)

16 Fun Fact: A buddy's aunt went down to the radio station to watch her friends broadcast their show, then head out with them to go to a party afterwards.

Yes, one of her friends was Orson Welles, and yes, it was Halloween.

Posted by: Fritzy at July 25, 2026 07:53 PM (2GIh1)

17 Guess everyone's busy. Must be dinner time.
Posted by: OrangeEnt

It's quiet.

Too quiet.....

[temporarily the Music Thread]

A shorter art forgery story, about Tom Keating:

Big Big Train - Judas Unrepentant

https://youtu.be/n_i-uqGNzgU&t=114

(You get a drum solo lead-in if you leave off the t=114 part.)

And the band's notes on the song:

https://tinyurl.com/5um72awu

[/temporarily the Music Thread]

Posted by: mikeski at July 25, 2026 07:55 PM (VHUov)

18 Lair of the White Worm

Looking forward to reading it.

Posted by: AZ deplorable moron at July 25, 2026 07:56 PM (NnhvP)

19 "She also wears fewer and fewer clothes"

You piqued my curiosity. Now, you have my attention.

Posted by: Croaker at July 25, 2026 07:56 PM (8+aXk)

20 Viewing over the past few days has consisted largely of Bradbury adaptations (Fahrenheit, a number of the RB Theater episodes, The Illustrated Man), and the reading has also been mostly Bradbury.

Haven't seen F for Fake, but it sounds like fun.

Posted by: Just Some Guy at July 25, 2026 07:58 PM (q3u5l)

21 Welles had a good speaking voice, he affected some sort of accent but it wasn’t over the top. One of the few actors where it doesn’t sound like he’s reading from a script (because, let’s face it, they are)

Posted by: Common Tater at July 25, 2026 07:59 PM (xW0Xo)

22 I've been watching some older movies recently. I found Edge of Eternity to be really great. It's a B movie thriller mystery that rises above its humble state with a great protagonist backstory with an almost linear rise in tension to the climax with a harrowing ending. Just great.

I watched South Pacific while high and found it to be great too. I know the use of color was controversial and panned by some critics but I found it worked really well as a way of showing love breaking into reality.

Posted by: MAGA_Ken at July 25, 2026 08:00 PM (DbmIv)

23 "One of the few actors where it doesn’t sound like he’s reading from a script"

He's so good, he could play a character who's reading from a script, and you'd totes believe it, even though he's only acting.

Posted by: gp at July 25, 2026 08:01 PM (Jr5Lq)

24 "She also wears fewer and fewer clothes"

You piqued my curiosity. Now, you have my attention.
Posted by: Croaker at July 25, 2026 07:56 PM (8+aXk)

***

Not seeing a down side here. In fact, there is artistic merit in being able to do that well.
So I read that somewhere.

Posted by: Diogenes at July 25, 2026 08:01 PM (2WIwB)

25 Thx moviegique.
Welles despite being immensely fat was married to Paola Mori and lived with her in one place and Oja Kodar in another. Busy fat guy

Posted by: Smell the Glove at July 25, 2026 08:04 PM (xh8GK)

26 Fucking Mariners.

Posted by: nurse ratched. at July 25, 2026 08:04 PM (yEz+x)

27 Paola Mori, Oja Kodar. Guy had a thing for vowely named chicks.

Posted by: gp at July 25, 2026 08:05 PM (Jr5Lq)

28 So I saw "The Odyssey" the other night. I will say that I found it compelling viewing and the three hours flew by. I even acclimated to Matt Damon's Boston Irish mug, which was my first hurdle in the casting relay. It sort of lurched from one set piece to the next. The final battle between Ulysses and the suitors, though, is epic.

The odd casting decisions were clearly to generate buzz, bad or good, because Lupita Nyongo and Ellen Page had very little screen time. He could have hired anybody else. So Nolan is being disingenuous if he claims he had no idea it would be that controversial. No such thing as bad publicity!

There's the usual issues with Nolan: muddy sound making dialog unintelligible, shaky cam, sloppy writing, and cutting back and forth in the timeline. I felt he dropped key elements of the story. Like when Ulysses turned around and told Polyphemus "It was not Nobody who blinded you, but Ulysses of Ithaca!".

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at July 25, 2026 08:06 PM (kpS4V)

29
Saw "Exit 8" this week on Shudder.

It's billed as one of those "liminal horror" movies so popular with the kids right now, and I suppose it is in a way.

But, really it's more of a psychological puzzle that's an allegory for personal and social responsibility in engaging the real world as opposed to the online/game world and indirectly addresses the falling birthrate in Japan.

*Whew* Pretty heavy lifting for a 95 minute movie, but there are no lecture at all. It all told within the context of the story with almost no dialogue.

This is definitely a "dig my groove" movie. Excellent acting, directing, story but very very slow burning.
If you can catch its vibe, you'll enjoy "Exit 8" a lot.

Check it out.

Posted by: naturalfake at July 25, 2026 08:06 PM (iJfKG)

30 28 Days Later (2002); zombies

I frequently watch films for the first time long after most people have already seen them & forgotten about them.

I'm sure that's the case with this 25-yr-old film.

I was blown away by how well it was filmed-- especially the vacant streets of London shot from unusual camera angles. I also liked the unusual plot twist half way through the film which catches the viewer by surprise, i.e., that zombies aren't the ONLY menace.

At the box office, 28 Days Later brought in 10X it's budget. It also very good reviews, & spawned 2 sequels.

The director first got noticed for Trainspotters, which I also liked a lot. It was because of Trainspotters that I decided to take a chance on this low budget zombie flick.

Posted by: mnw at July 25, 2026 08:08 PM (RCjYY)

31 F for Fake is on Amazon Prime.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at July 25, 2026 08:08 PM (kpS4V)

32 15 Gique, your version of "Lair" --- more Stoker, or more Ken Russell?

More on the Stoker side but as I tried to excavate what I thought he was going for, I ended up borrowing from his other books, and also Robert E. Howard, Anthony Trollope, Jane Austen, and other adjacent literary traditions.

MST3K, Rifftrax and 372 Pages (in particular) were influential, though I play this completely straight. (Straight but not without humor.)

Posted by: moviegique (buy my books) at July 25, 2026 08:08 PM (K40fF)

33 I did a painting that contains six copies of famous abstract expressionist paintings or part of them to show how easy it was to copy that crap. See nic.

Rothko
Mondrian
Kandinsky
Pollock
Miro
Motherwell

Posted by: polynikes at July 25, 2026 08:10 PM (KC5Lt)

34 Gique, I see your book cover is in the time-honored horror tradition of girl in diaphanous gown escaping spooky castle at night.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at July 25, 2026 08:11 PM (kpS4V)

35 Caught Chimes at Midnight a couple of years ago. A good movie that really held your attention . Between that The Magnificent Ambersons, Citizen Kane and A Touch of Evil, makes a pretty good career

Posted by: Smell the Glove at July 25, 2026 08:12 PM (xh8GK)

36 Polynikes, did you get an NEA grant?

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at July 25, 2026 08:12 PM (kpS4V)

37 Looking forward to reading it.
--
I started writing it in...around the beginning of 2020, I think, and it's one of my favorites of things I have written. I'm a sucker for the prose-style, and it I can just pick up a passage and it'll make me smile.

Posted by: moviegique (buy my books) at July 25, 2026 08:13 PM (K40fF)

38 Best art related movie is the Thomas Crown Affair.

Posted by: polynikes at July 25, 2026 08:13 PM (KC5Lt)

39 I think Orson Wells best acted movie is The Long Hot Summer with Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward.

Posted by: polynikes at July 25, 2026 08:16 PM (KC5Lt)

40 34 Gique, I see your book cover is in the time-honored horror tradition of girl in diaphanous gown escaping spooky castle at night.
---

So, what I want (what I really, really want) is Arabella coming at the reader in her (gratuitously sexy) white dress, with the castle in the background, a giant white snake wrapped around the turret, and a man at the top challenging it with a spear.

Unfortunately, this signals all kinds of things (I'm told) that gothic horror people don't go for. You can't make the girl too magical looking or readers will think "dark fantasy", you can't put in a snake because readers will think "creature feature" (which in this context means more "Attack of the Crabs" rather than lurking sinister snake), and you can't put anything on the cover that distracts from the main focus.

So, yeah (sigh), it's girl-escaping-from-castle.

Posted by: moviegique (buy my books) at July 25, 2026 08:16 PM (K40fF)

41 Between that The Magnificent Ambersons... makes a pretty good career
Posted by: Smell the Glove at July 25, 2026 08:12 PM (xh8GK)

Wandering around an antique store earlier in the week, I came upon a Booth Tarkington novel. It wasn't the Ambersons, but something else. I didn't buy it. What I did find elsewhere will be revealed tomorrow on the Book Thread.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at July 25, 2026 08:18 PM (1Ff7Z)

42 @33 funniest art story of the last ten years occurred a couple of years ago when a Mondrian painting was discovered to have been hanging upside down for the last 75: years.

Posted by: Smell the Glove at July 25, 2026 08:19 PM (xh8GK)

43 25 Thx moviegique.
Welles despite being immensely fat was married to Paola Mori and lived with her in one place and Oja Kodar in another. Busy fat guy
Posted by: Smell the Glove

'looks up both gals'

Orson had a type.

Posted by: Puddleglum at work at July 25, 2026 08:20 PM (Hpgos)

44 35 Caught Chimes at Midnight a couple of years ago. A good movie that really held your attention . Between that The Magnificent Ambersons, Citizen Kane and A Touch of Evil, makes a pretty good career
---
It's tragic if you look into it. After having unprecedented freedom with "Kane," he ends up in a disastrous documentary shoot, trapped in Brazil while "Ambersons" is tested after the musical comedy "The Fleet's In" and the teenage-heavy audience walked out or yelled at the screen.

The studio head panics and tries to recut Ambersons and reshoot it in a less broody way, just savaging it. What's left is still one of the most amazing films ever made.

Then a similar thing happens with "Girl from Shanghai".

Posted by: moviegique (buy my books) at July 25, 2026 08:20 PM (K40fF)

45 Speaking of "Attack of the Crabs", I'm reading a book by Grady Hendrix on cheesy paperback covers of yesteryore and killer crabs were their own sub-subgenre.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at July 25, 2026 08:20 PM (kpS4V)

46 Wells also makes a fine corrupt lawman in A Touch of Evil.

His last film, I THINK, was Falstaff. He ran out of money and had to film it over the course of 20 years or so, as a result. I didn't care for it.

Posted by: mnw at July 25, 2026 08:22 PM (RCjYY)

47 @41 OrangeEnt , I await the book thread with baited breath

Posted by: Smell the Glove at July 25, 2026 08:22 PM (xh8GK)

48 Orson had his way with Rita Hayworth . Respect .

Posted by: polynikes at July 25, 2026 08:22 PM (KC5Lt)

49 The movie version of "The Magnificent Ambersons" hews very very closely to the book. Are we seeing a restored version?

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at July 25, 2026 08:23 PM (kpS4V)

50 Umpteen years since I've seen it, and need to revisit, but I enjoyed Welles' version of Macbeth a lot.

Posted by: Just Some Guy at July 25, 2026 08:24 PM (q3u5l)

51 SHHH!

Be very quiet...My new cat Chloe is exploring my office...

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at July 25, 2026 08:24 PM (FZ29D)

52 I think Orson Wells best acted movie is The Long Hot Summer with Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward.
Posted by: polynikes

I really liked him as Mr. Rochester in the Joan Fontaine "Jane Eyre"

Posted by: Tuna at July 25, 2026 08:24 PM (lJ0H4)

53 "The Night Stalker" movie is on Svengoolie. Frank Burns is the coroner. I didn't remember that.

Posted by: fd at July 25, 2026 08:25 PM (MWfyi)

54
We also saw "Young Washington" a week ago.

Good movie. Entertaining. Well-acted, directed, well-told.

I really like how the man George Washington, just barely stepped out of the boy and young man he was by the time the movie ended.

We caught a glimpse of possible greatness. Nothing more.

I also like how Angel Studios has learned how to subtly integrate their religious views into a movie instead of bonking you on the head with them.

Now, if they never make another piece of poo like "Animal Farm", I can trust them again.

Posted by: naturalfake at July 25, 2026 08:26 PM (iJfKG)

55 I think Wells best acting role was as Harry Lime in The Third Man. He's mesmerizing.

Posted by: mnw at July 25, 2026 08:27 PM (RCjYY)

56 I saw "The Long Walk" from last year. Brave AI is claiming that Koushun Takami read it and adapted it for "Battle Royale" and of course it's all over "The Hunger Games" although Suzanne Collins claims she didn't read it.
It was one of King's first novel(la)s and it shows in the movie. The worldbuilding is subpar. I think the movie tries to improve on what was in King's story, splicing in some tropes from Hunger Games.

Posted by: gKWVE at July 25, 2026 08:27 PM (gKWVE)

57 Orson Wells on "The Critic":

https://tinyurl.com/2uyxck9r

Maurice LeMarche, of course.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at July 25, 2026 08:27 PM (kpS4V)

58 Welles had a brief turn as Father Mapple in the Huston Moby Dick; caught that this week looking at some Bradbury stuff, and RB wrote the script for that one.

Posted by: Just Some Guy at July 25, 2026 08:28 PM (q3u5l)

59 45 Speaking of "Attack of the Crabs", I'm reading a book by Grady Hendrix on cheesy paperback covers of yesteryore and killer crabs were their own sub-subgenre.
---

We covered "Night of the Crabs" on 372, which is why my mind went to that title. ("Attack of the Crab Monsters" signaled Corman's shift from Western to Horror.)

It starts out better than 95% of the books we've read, but you can tell there was no editing for continuity, nor any real idea of where the story was going. But, yeah, it was Guy N. Smith's cash cow for a while. ("Guy! More crabs!")

Posted by: moviegique (buy my books) at July 25, 2026 08:28 PM (K40fF)

60 OrangeEnt , I await the book thread with baited breath
Posted by: Smell the Glove at July 25, 2026 08:22 PM (xh8GK)

I have you hooked, eh?

Posted by: OrangeEnt at July 25, 2026 08:29 PM (1Ff7Z)

61 Maurice LeMarche, of course.
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at July 25, 2026 08:27 PM (kpS4V)

Well, crud. Was just gonna do a Maurice LeMarche joke.
*kicks dirt*

Posted by: Pug Mahon, call BR549 at July 25, 2026 08:29 PM (0aYVJ)

62 mnw,
I saw 28 Days Later when it came out in a theater. It was really really good. And being a medical type person, it was scary ag because I just KNEW evil scientists were doing this sort of shit.

Posted by: nurse ratched. at July 25, 2026 08:30 PM (eFajJ)

63 @44 moviegique, as I recall a lot was cut and destroyed so they couldn't make a "director's cut"

Posted by: Smell the Glove at July 25, 2026 08:31 PM (xh8GK)

64 John Candy did a really good Orson Wells impersonation on SCTV.

Posted by: Pug Mahon, call BR549 at July 25, 2026 08:32 PM (0aYVJ)

65
Not a movie but I sure am enjoying the old "Malcolm in the Middle" reruns on Hulu.

What a great show that was! At least 3-4 good laughs per show.

Very well-written and observed esp if you are a guy and had brothers or boy children.

Don't bother with the reboot. It's a screaming pile of woke poo. Seriously, they ruin all of the characters. Avoid.

Posted by: naturalfake at July 25, 2026 08:33 PM (iJfKG)

66 Posted by: naturalfake at July 25, 2026 08:33 PM (iJfKG

I got through one episode of the reboot and bailed.

I am loving the King of the Hill reboot and really liking the Scrubs reboot.

Posted by: polynikes at July 25, 2026 08:38 PM (KC5Lt)

67 Now, if they never make another piece of poo like "Animal Farm", I can trust them again.

Posted by: naturalfake at July 25, 2026 08:26 PM (

In their defense, they didn’t make it, but they did distribute. Which is bad enough.

Posted by: Cow Demon at July 25, 2026 08:38 PM (4g5V+)

68 56 I saw "The Long Walk" from last year. Brave AI is claiming that Koushun Takami read it and adapted it for "Battle Royale" and of course it's all over "The Hunger Games" although Suzanne Collins claims she didn't read it.
It was one of King's first novel(la)s and it shows in the movie. The worldbuilding is subpar. I think the movie tries to improve on what was in King's story, splicing in some tropes from Hunger Games.
Posted by: gKWVE at July 25, 2026 08:27 PM (gKWVE)

Heaven forfend if the movie is an improvement on the novella, because the movie is terrible.

Posted by: bear with asymmetrical balls at July 25, 2026 08:38 PM (2+SeL)

69 That Grady Hendrix book re: 70s and 80s horror paperbacks is called Paperbacks from Hell; Hendrix and co-author Will Errickson put together a line of reprints for Valancourt Books (series is winding down with only a few titles left to go) and have usually kept the original covers too. Quite a few of 'em are worth a look. Search for paperbacks from hell valancourt books and you should find them. IIRC a few have served as the basis for films (Ken Greenhall's Hell Hound, and a couple of others I think).

Thought Welles was good in The Stranger too, but years and years since I've seen it.

Posted by: Just Some Guy at July 25, 2026 08:39 PM (q3u5l)

70 48 Orson had his way with Rita Hayworth . Respect .

Per Stanley Sheff when he worked with him on "The Orson Welles Show" (never-to-be-aired until this coming Fall), he was still broken up by his relationship with her.

56 I saw "The Long Walk" from last year.

It's so, so dumb. A lot of it is that King's book has a kind of not-quite-literal aspect to it.

I mean, TLW set me off on a BIG OL' RANT about how stupid it was.

https://moviegique.com/reviews/the-long-walk/

Posted by: moviegique (buy my books) at July 25, 2026 08:39 PM (K40fF)

71
I am loving the King of the Hill reboot and really liking the Scrubs reboot.
Posted by: polynikes at July 25, 2026 08:38 PM (KC5Lt)

I agree. Both of those are very good. And worthy follow-ups to the original series.

Posted by: naturalfake at July 25, 2026 08:40 PM (iJfKG)

72 62 nurse

The more I reflect on it, the more I like it! There are a lot of nice touches:

the cadged monkeys scene near the beginning is terrifying

the collage of apocalyptic TV news stories Jim sees when he first wakes up; (I thought that was brilliant)

the character in the film who leaves his credit card on the counter of a long-abandoned convenience store, because he'd just taken some food

the VERY SCARY zombie all chained up at the military base

Posted by: mnw at July 25, 2026 08:43 PM (RCjYY)

73 because the movie is terrible.
Posted by: bear with asymmetrical balls at July 25, 2026 08:38 PM (2+SeL)

Stephen King wrote "Long Walk" as a sophomore in college so, yeah, nobody wanted to publish it then, either. Until 1979 after King was already famous and then they did it under the Bachman avatar.

Posted by: gKWVE at July 25, 2026 08:46 PM (gKWVE)

74 If anyone is interested in "the process", I actually kept a blog for a while as I rewrote LotWW. Kinda fun.

https://lair.art.blog/page/4/

Posted by: moviegique (buy my books) at July 25, 2026 08:49 PM (K40fF)

75 I also watched Cabrini this past week.

Wonderful, inspiring woman.

Long dull movie.

Posted by: mnw at July 25, 2026 08:51 PM (RCjYY)

76 'Ibiza'?

Had to look it up.

One of the Pityusic Islands.

"... deriving their name from the ancient Greek word pityus"...

I'll leave it at that.

Posted by: Mike Hammer, etc., etc. at July 25, 2026 08:52 PM (XeU6L)

77 Can't wait 'til we get a movie of Rage.

Posted by: school shootings ftw, oops, don't tell King at July 25, 2026 08:54 PM (gKWVE)

78 Be very quiet...My new cat Chloe is exploring my office...
Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel
----

[makes mousey scurrying noises]

Posted by: Mike Hammer, etc., etc. at July 25, 2026 08:55 PM (XeU6L)

79 So I watched Disclosure Day last night. Good movie- I'll watch it again.
It's reminiscent of Close Encounters in that there is a small group of people who are drawn in to the central premise, pitched against the quasi-government black SUV people. Emily Blunt is amazing.
With a title like 'Disclosure Day', you expect a big reveal in the last act, and this movie knocks it out of the park in that regard. No punches pulled.

Posted by: Don Black at July 25, 2026 08:57 PM (ZxPkt)

80 mnw,
The entire premise of the movie is terrifying. Because you know they are already doing this sort of shit.

Look at Covid.
But instead of an upper respiratory disease, it’s a rage induced mental illness.

Scary shit, man.

Posted by: nurse ratched. at July 25, 2026 08:59 PM (ZmTY1)

81
I noticed that Criterion is playing "The Last Temptation of Christ" currently.

The movie sounds pretty heretical and they did pick the ugliest guy in Hollywood to play Jesus...well, I suppose Tor Johnson as the Christ might've been worse...maybe...

Anyway, it's Scorsese so I might give it a whirl tonight and see what I think.

Any thoughts?

Posted by: naturalfake at July 25, 2026 09:01 PM (iJfKG)

82 Four movies we suffered through this week. Common characteristics: Low-budget, no-name acting, goofy, and most importantly free on YouTube. None have the movie title in the video title, indicative of copyright-dodging uploaders.
___

Maybe Someday (1:41:4

https://youtu.be/y-QMeCS54CA
"Hal is a directionless twenty-something whose life is going nowhere fast — until a teenage girl appears claiming to be his daughter from the future."

Is she or not is in question at first. Don't take it too seriously. Or worry about the time-glitches. Just have fun.
___

Imitation Girl (1:20:43)
"A mysterious woman from another world explores human emotions, identity, and desire as she searches for her earthly double in this haunting, dreamlike sci-fi drama."
https://youtu.be/MSOWq6Zc7b8

A slow build-up, flashing back and forth between the alien learning earth ways and the girl she's imitating, a porn actress. (Not much explicit sex, considering the premise.) If you like a movie that ends with a thud leaving lots of unresolved threads, just when it should start getting interesting, this is for you.

(continued…

Posted by: mindful webworker - lowbrow entertainment at July 25, 2026 09:03 PM (jrd4M)

83 (continuing)
___

Super High (1:16:57)
https://youtu.be/NDMR86gc_Sw
"Lighting up with a mysterious new strain, three stoner friends suddenly gain superpowers"

Mildly amusing. Lots of toking, without total saturation of cheech&chong drooling stoner "humor." The girl is cute. Crooked cop played flatly by son of Keith Carradine.
___

Aliens & Gufors (1:28:23)
https://youtu.be/gzMlemyqdXY

"Three wannabe UFO hunters open a ridiculous shop called G.U.F.O.R.S. (Global Unidentified Flying Object Research and Services)… and accidentally trigger the biggest alien encounter since Roswell!"

Real or hoax? Doesn't matter. It's dumb, lamely acted, and cheap. Sort-of a Ghostbusters without the talent, effects, or conclusion. Watch if it came on the only broadcast channel on a rainy afternoon.

Posted by: mindful webworker - lowbrow entertainment at July 25, 2026 09:03 PM (jrd4M)

84 I saw "The Last Temptation of Christ" maybe 25 years ago. It was Gospel of Mark from the assumption that Jesus isn't really Christ. If you're not a Christian, TLToC is about as good as the movie gets.
Better off with "Life of Brian". Which was done before TLToC so TLToC is redundant. Also "Brian" has jokes.

Posted by: gKWVE at July 25, 2026 09:04 PM (gKWVE)

85 81
I noticed that Criterion is playing "The Last Temptation of Christ" currently.

The movie sounds pretty heretical and they did pick the ugliest guy in Hollywood to play Jesus...well, I suppose Tor Johnson as the Christ might've been worse...maybe...

Anyway, it's Scorsese so I might give it a whirl tonight and see what I think.

Any thoughts?
Posted by: naturalfake at July 25, 2026 09:01 PM (iJfKG)

I really like the book and the movie. It is heretical. But it's interesting.

Posted by: bear with asymmetrical balls at July 25, 2026 09:06 PM (2+SeL)

86 Also, Peter Gabriel's score is great.

Posted by: bear with asymmetrical balls at July 25, 2026 09:06 PM (2+SeL)

87 Two of my favorites; H G Wells and Orson Welles. And, I think it prophetic that HG Wells could write out a plot in the late 1800's that explains in the present why no one has any pictures of space aliens on their I-phone walking the Earth.

Posted by: Orson at July 25, 2026 09:07 PM (dIske)

88 Also "Brian" has jokes.
Posted by: gKWVE

It's amazing the 'Modern Audiences' haven't gone after that movie with pitchforks and fire, because of this scene;

youtu.be/wizGq0WZitc

Posted by: Puddleglum at work at July 25, 2026 09:07 PM (Hpgos)

89 A rage induced mental illness.

Like giving cross sex hormones to already mentally ill people.

Hmmmm. Who would encourage that?

Posted by: nurse ratched. at July 25, 2026 09:12 PM (yEz+x)

90 Of course, I knew immediately which scene Puddleglum was referencing, as I used to quote it from memory all the time. And I saw LoB in a West Side movie theater last year, and you could feel the uncomfortableness.

I can't comment on Scorsese 'cause I don't like him. *shrug* Just a weird mgique thing.

I did just see "12 Monkeys" last night at the Nuart and it is excellent, and also ... shockingly prophetic is some odd ways.

Posted by: moviegique (buy my books) at July 25, 2026 09:13 PM (K40fF)

91 "The Last Temptation..."

Saw it a LONG time ago. I don't remember it that well. By contemporary standards, I doubt it would give offense to anyone.

The idea that Christ could be tempted by everyday, daily life is intriguing, and doesn't seem to me farfetched or sacrilegious.

Posted by: mnw at July 25, 2026 09:14 PM (RCjYY)

92 Any thoughts?
Posted by: naturalfake at July 25, 2026 09:01 PM (iJfKG
----

It was interesting that the Devil tempted Christ with the dream of being an ordinary man. Much more appealing than power or riches. Just shuck off all that responsibility, and live a regular life.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at July 25, 2026 09:15 PM (kpS4V)

93 It was interesting that the Devil tempted Christ with the dream of being an ordinary man. Much more appealing than power or riches. Just shuck off all that responsibility, and live a regular life.
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at July 25, 2026 09:15 PM (kpS4V)
----
For those who have a destiny that will shape the world for millennia, I can see that it would be tempting to lay down that burden or surrender it to someone else.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at July 25, 2026 09:17 PM (FZ29D)

94 The idea that Christ could be tempted by everyday, daily life is intriguing, and doesn't seem to me farfetched or sacrilegious.
Posted by: mnw

He was human, after all.

Posted by: nurse ratched. at July 25, 2026 09:19 PM (1avBY)

95 I never watched Last Temptation, not because of the subject matter, but because Willem Dafoe is a creepy MFer and I do not like him at all.

Posted by: Pug Mahon, call BR549 at July 25, 2026 09:22 PM (0aYVJ)

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