F for Fake (#288)

Trickery. Deceit. Magic. InF for Fake,a free-form sort-of documentary by Orson Welles, the legendary filmmaker (and self-described charlatan) gleefully reengages with the central preoccupation of his career: the tenuous lines between illusion and truth, art and lies. Beginning with portraits of the world- renowned art forger Elmyr de Hory and his equally devious biographer, Clifford Irving, Welles embarks on a dizzying journey that simultaneously exposes and revels in fakery and fakers of all stripesnot the least of whom is Welles himself. Charming and inventive,F for Fakeis an inspired prank and a clever examination of the essential duplicity of cinema.

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FILM INFO

• United States
• 1975
• 88 minutes
• Color
• 1.66:1
• English
• Spine #288

BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES

• New, high-definition digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
• Audio commentary from 2005 by cowriter and star Oja Kodar and director of photography Gary Graver
• Introduction from 2005 by filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich
• Episode of the talk showTomorrowfrom 1975 featuring an extensive interview with Welles
• Orson Welles: One-Man Band,a documentary from 1995 about Welless unfinished projects
• Almost True: The Noble Art of Forgery,a fifty-two-minute documentary from 1997 about art forger Elmyr de Hory
• 60 Minutesinterview from 2000 with Clifford Irving about his Howard Hughes autobiography hoax
• Audio recording of Hughess 1972 press conference exposing Irvings hoax
• Extended, nine-minute trailer
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• PLUS: An essay by critic Jonathan Rosenbaum

New cover by Neil Kellerhouse