Review of The Magnificent Ambersons (1942) by Michael A — 16 May 2010

THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS - even in its truncated version - makes it clear that orson welles still had miles of filmic vision to spare after finishing CITIZEN KANE. it's a shame, however, that he had to surrender final cut to RKO - welles reportedly never realised a version that he was completely satisfied with, and the lengthier rough cut he initially delivered is now seemingly lost, perhaps to resurface someday in a brazilian film vault.

What *has* survived still tells an important chapter in the history of the american cinema, as much for its technical innovation as for its lessons (many still unlearned, nearly 70 years later) in studio tinkering. the interference of business with art is never a pretty thing to behold, and one need look no further than AMBERSONS to see how bottom-line-focused executives can mar a key work in the oeuvre of one of the world's great filmmakers, simply because they think they know what audiences want.