Me and Orson Welles: DVD Review
Me and Orson Welles
Released by Madman Entertainment
1930s New York and young teen wannabe actor Richard Samuels (Zac
Efron) finds himself on the steps of the Mercury Theatre.
Samuels is a dreamer and wants to tread the boards - and thanks to
a chance meeting with soon to be legendary Orson Welles (a
brilliant and stellar performance from Christian McKay), he finds
himself cast in a minor role in Welles' Julius Caesar.
But from there, Samuels begins to learn the reality of the life
backstage isn't all it's cracked up to be.
Particularly not when the director is Orson Welles, a brilliant,
impetuous, temperamental and arrogant man who firmly believes the
play's the thing.
Me and Orson Welles surprises on a few levels - it's a spot on
recreation of 1930s New York (complete with a spry soundtrack) but
it's the acting talent and the story which really shine.
While Zac Efron's better than you'd expect given his High School
Musical pedigree, it's really Christian McKay who excels in his
role as Orson. From the vocal performance and the perfect
encapsulation of the volatile Welles, to the characteristics of the
man who polarised many, McKay is spot on and emerges as the real
winner of this film.
His Orson is a sleaze, the kind of man who takes ambulances to
appointments to beat traffic, a real cad and bounder whose passion
for performance eclipses everything else. And it's McKay's
performance which eclipses everyone else - he steals every scene
he's in and is scarily impressive.
Combined with a sweet central romance between Efron's character and
Claire Danes' manager, Me And Orson Welles is an unexpected treat,
well worth two hours of your time.
Extras: Interview with original theatre players,
star interviews, trailers and obligatory deleted scenes
Rating: 8/10
