Review of The Magnificent Ambersons (1942) by Jesse F — 25 Jan 2011

To write a fair review of a film as it stands, I think one has to be unbiased by any knowledge of its creation or alterations that were made to the film as it was meant to be. This is not something I feel I can do with The Magnificent Ambersons. I have given the film three stars, but I don't know if this accurately sums up its quality in my opinion. I don't know if I can quantify my opinion of this film. This is because the film exists only as a skeleton of Orson Welles' original vision.

After the shooting had been completed for the film, and most of the editing (the Orson Welles supervised editing) was complete, Orson was sent to South America to film a documentary on the culture there (a goodwill project which itself was taken from Welles before completion.) While Orson was away, for several reasons including a test screening, the studio became extremely worried about the film's commercial value as it stood. The studio felt the film was too long and too depressing. They set about re-shooting several scenes, gave the film an out of place happy ending, re-arranged dozens of scenes and went about mutilating Orson's film without his presence or consent. The original shooting script shows how carefully Orson had planned each scene to follow the last, and how well constructed the arch really would have been. One producer called in to help "fix" Ambersons however, told them the film was too long and to "just throw all the footage up in the air and grab everything but forty minutes.".

It would be an understatement to say that Orson was unhappy with the changes, and since his name was still on the billing, the botched film effectively ended his career in Hollywood (as he later said, "They ruined Ambersons, and Ambersons ruined me.").

So, what can one take away from The Magnificent Ambersons as it exists today? For one, the stunning visuals of the film, the fantastic performances (Agnes Moorehead especially) and Orson's stunning ambition and ability as a story teller.

Someone once said the changes couldn't have ruined the film all that much, since the film has become something of a classic, to which (I believe it was Peter Bogdanovich) said "really, it's a testament to Orson's genius that the film remains a classic in spite of the changes." I guess that quote most accurately describes my feelings on The Magnificent Ambersons. I certainly wouldn't watch this as an introduction to Orson Welles, but as an established fan, it certainly has its value.