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The Complete Mr Arkadin

Starring: Robert Arden, Orson Welles, Akim Tamiroff

Director: Orson Welles

The film: Of the many films over which Orson Welles lost directorial control - The Magnificent Ambersons, The Lady from Shanghai and Touch of Evil among them - the loss of none, it's said, troubled him more than Mr Arkadin.

Filmed in Europe  after Welles' self-imposed exile from the US, it was taken over by producer Louis Dolivet during the editing stage, and never assembled according to Welles' vision. At least five, quite different, versions were released in Europe and  the US.

This amazingly comprehensive new box set from Criterion includes the longer  US release (99 minutes running time and known as the Corinth version), the European release (98 minutes, and re-titled Confidential Report)  and a new 'comprehensive version'  that runs to about 105 minutes.

This new cut addresses serious problems in the earlier versions, particularly  the confusing scene order and the film's ending, and includes extra material taken from two little-known Spanish versions. It was edited by two Welles scholars and, although they're quick to disclaim this as being anything like a definitive or director's cut, it does make for a more even film and one that makes much more narrative sense than the earlier versions.

Welles  plays Mr Arkadin, an elusive, amnesiac millionaire who hires a down-and-out American (Robert Arden) to delve into his past. This assignment takes Arden all over Europe and Mexico on a convoluted  journey that introduces a fascinating series  of characters, each of whom has some connection with Arkadin, and many of whom are subsequently murdered. This isn't Welles' best work, but it's certainly an entertaining yarn, well photographed and featuring some fine supporting roles (Michael Redgrave and Suzanne Flon, especially). Some viewers might be overwhelmed by the amount of material on offer here (deciding which version to go with first is a tough choice), but this encyclopaedic set will have film buffs and Welles fans wide-eyed and drooling.

The extras: The Corinth version gets a substantial audio commentary by two Welles scholars, and there's a documentary featuring the editors who put the comprehensive version together, with input from director  and former Welles chum Peter Bogdanovich. Interviews include biographer and actor Simon Callow (Four Weddings and a Funeral), and there are three episodes of the 1950s radio show The Lives of Harry Lime, which was an offshoot of The Third Man (1949) and featured the first appearance of the  Arkadin character.

Many alternative scenes and outtakes are included, along with a fairly extensive stills gallery. An illustrated 36-page booklet explains the three versions and their histories, and Welles' problems with the producers. To top all this off, we get the entire 245-page novel of the film. Picture quality varies from version  to version - Confidential Report has the best image quality - but, considering how this film has been butchered and neglected over the years, the restoration  is commendable.



FROM THE VAULT: 1955