Don Quixote (unfinished film)
Encyclopedia
Don Quixote is an unfinished film project directed and produced between 1955 and 1969 by Orson Welles
.
. Rather than offer a literal adaptation of the Miguel de Cervantes
novel, Welles opted to bring the characters of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza
into the modern age as living anachronisms. Welles explained his idea in an interview, stating: "My Don Quixote and Sancho Panza are exactly and traditionally drawn from Cervantes, but are nonetheless contemporary."
Welles shot test footage of actor Mischa Auer
as Don Quixote, but representatives from CBS viewed unedited film and were unhappy with Welles' concept, cancelling the project. Welles decided to push ahead by expanding the production into a feature film. Singer/actor Frank Sinatra
invested US$25,000 in the new film, with Welles providing additional self-funding derived from his work as an actor.
to begin work on the feature-length version of Don Quixote. Spanish actor Francisco Reiguera
was cast as Don Quixote and Russian-born character actor Akim Tamiroff
as Sancho Panza; Tamiroff had first worked with Welles on Black Magic
, and had previously appeared in Welles' films Mr. Arkadin
and Touch of Evil
. Welles also brought in child actress Patty McCormack
to play an American girl visiting Mexico City; during her visit, she would encounter Welles (playing himself) and then meet Don Quixote and Sancho Panza.
Welles worked without a finished script, shooting improvised sequences on the street. Much of the footage was shot with silent 16mm equipment, with Welles planning to dub the dialogue at a later date. As the production evolved, Welles told film critic André Bazin
that he saw his Don Quixote being created in the improvisational style of silent comedy films.
However, Welles’ production was forced to stop due to problems with financing. McCormack matured out of childhood, forcing Welles to drop her character from the film. When money was available, he switched the location shooting to Spain
.
During the 1960s, Welles shot bits and pieces of Don Quixote as his schedule and finances allowed; he even found time to film sequences (reported as being "the prologue and epilogue") while on vacation in Málaga
, Spain
, commuting all the while to Paris to oversee the post-production work on his 1962 adaptation of The Trial
. Welles continued to show Don Quixote and Sancho Panza in the present day, where they react with bafflement at such inventions as motor scooters, airplanes, automobiles, radio, television, cinema screens and missiles.
Welles planned to end his version by having Don Quixote and Sancho Panza surviving an atomic cataclysm, but the sequence was never shot.
The production became so prolonged that Reiguera, who was seriously ailing by the end of the 1960s, asked Welles to finish shooting his scenes before his health gave out. Welles was able to complete the scenes involving Reiguera prior to the actor’s death in 1969.
The financial struggles of Don Quixote are mentioned in the film Ed Wood
(1994).
In May 1986, the first public exhibition of the Don Quixote footage was shown at the Cannes Film Festival
. The footage consisted of 45 minutes of scenes and outtakes were assembled by archivists from the Cinémathèque Française
.
acquired the rights to extant footage of the Don Quixote project. Material was provided to them by numerous sources including Oja Kodar
, the Croatian
actress who was Welles' companion in his later years, and Suzanne Cloutier
, the Canadian actress who played Desdemona
in Welles' film version of Othello
.
However, Irigoyen and Franco were unable to obtain the footage with McCormack, which included a scene where Don Quixote destroys a movie screen that is showing a film of knights in battle. This footage was held by Italian
film editor Mauro Bonanni, who was engaged in a legal dispute with Kodar over the rights to the film. He refused to allow its incorporation into the Irigoyen-Franco project, although he would later permit some scenes to be shown on Italian television.
Irigoyen and Franco faced several problems in putting the Welles footage together. The filmmaker worked in three different formats – 35mm, 16mm and Super 16mm – which created inconsistent visual quality. The lack of a screenplay also hampered efforts. Welles recorded a one-hour soundtrack where he read a narration and provided dialogue for the main characters, but the rest of the footage was silent. A new script was created and voiceover actors were brought in to fill the silence left by Welles’ incomplete work. A further controversy was the inclusion by Franco of footage of Welles filming in Spain, taken from a documentary he had made in the 1960s. Welles had not intended to appear in the film himself, other than as its narrator.
The Irigoyen and Franco work premiered at the 1992 Cannes Film Festival as Don Quixote de Orson Welles. Initial reaction was predominantly negative, and this version was never theatrically released in the U.S. In September 2008, a U.S. DVD edition was released as Orson Welles' Don Quixote by Image Entertainment
. The footage of Don Quixote in the cinema that is in Bonanni's possession has turned up on YouTube
.
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...
.
Television project
Don Quixote was initially conceived as a 30-minute film for CBSCBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
. Rather than offer a literal adaptation of the Miguel de Cervantes
Miguel de Cervantes
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra was a Spanish novelist, poet, and playwright. His magnum opus, Don Quixote, considered the first modern novel, is a classic of Western literature, and is regarded amongst the best works of fiction ever written...
novel, Welles opted to bring the characters of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza
Sancho Panza
Sancho Panza is a fictional character in the novel Don Quixote written by Spanish author Don Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra in 1605. Sancho acts as squire to Don Quixote, and provides comments throughout the novel, known as sanchismos, that are a combination of broad humour, ironic Spanish proverbs,...
into the modern age as living anachronisms. Welles explained his idea in an interview, stating: "My Don Quixote and Sancho Panza are exactly and traditionally drawn from Cervantes, but are nonetheless contemporary."
Welles shot test footage of actor Mischa Auer
Mischa Auer
Mischa Auer was a Russian-born American actor.-Early life:Auer was born Mikhail Semyonovich Unskovsky in St. Petersburg, Russia...
as Don Quixote, but representatives from CBS viewed unedited film and were unhappy with Welles' concept, cancelling the project. Welles decided to push ahead by expanding the production into a feature film. Singer/actor Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
invested US$25,000 in the new film, with Welles providing additional self-funding derived from his work as an actor.
Production
In 1958, Welles headed to Mexico CityMexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
to begin work on the feature-length version of Don Quixote. Spanish actor Francisco Reiguera
Francisco Reiguera
Francisco Reiguera was a Spanish actor who is best known for playing the title role in Orson Welles’ unfinished film version of Don Quixote. He also appeared in the films Simon of the Desert , Major Dundee and Guns for San Sebastian .-External links:*...
was cast as Don Quixote and Russian-born character actor Akim Tamiroff
Akim Tamiroff
Akim Mikhailovich Tamiroff was an Armenian actor. He won the first Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor.Tamiroff was born in Tiflis, Russian Empire , of Armenian ethnicity. He trained at the Moscow Art Theatre drama school. He arrived in the U.S. in 1923 on a tour with a troupe of actors...
as Sancho Panza; Tamiroff had first worked with Welles on Black Magic
Black Magic (1949 film)
Black Magic is a 1949 film adaptation of Alexandre Dumas, père's novel. It was directed by the Russian-born Gregory Ratoff and stars Orson Welles in the lead role as Joseph Balsamo and Nancy Guild as Lorenza/Marie Antoinette...
, and had previously appeared in Welles' films Mr. Arkadin
Mr. Arkadin
Mr. Arkadin is a French-Spanish-Swiss coproduction film, written and directed by Orson Welles and shot in several Spanish locations, including Segovia, Valladolid and Madrid.Its history is convoluted...
and Touch of Evil
Touch of Evil
Touch of Evil is a 1958 American crime thriller film, written, directed by, and co-starring Orson Welles. The screenplay was loosely based on the novel Badge of Evil by Whit Masterson...
. Welles also brought in child actress Patty McCormack
Patty McCormack
Patty McCormack is an American actress with a career in theater, films and television.She achieved success as a child actress, and received a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in The Bad Seed...
to play an American girl visiting Mexico City; during her visit, she would encounter Welles (playing himself) and then meet Don Quixote and Sancho Panza.
Welles worked without a finished script, shooting improvised sequences on the street. Much of the footage was shot with silent 16mm equipment, with Welles planning to dub the dialogue at a later date. As the production evolved, Welles told film critic André Bazin
André Bazin
André Bazin was a renowned and influential French film critic and film theorist.-Life:Bazin was born in Angers, France, in 1918...
that he saw his Don Quixote being created in the improvisational style of silent comedy films.
However, Welles’ production was forced to stop due to problems with financing. McCormack matured out of childhood, forcing Welles to drop her character from the film. When money was available, he switched the location shooting to Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
.
During the 1960s, Welles shot bits and pieces of Don Quixote as his schedule and finances allowed; he even found time to film sequences (reported as being "the prologue and epilogue") while on vacation in Málaga
Málaga
Málaga is a city and a municipality in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia, Spain. With a population of 568,507 in 2010, it is the second most populous city of Andalusia and the sixth largest in Spain. This is the southernmost large city in Europe...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, commuting all the while to Paris to oversee the post-production work on his 1962 adaptation of The Trial
The Trial (1962 film)
The Trial is a 1962 film directed by Orson Welles, who also wrote the screenplay based on the novel of the same name by Franz Kafka...
. Welles continued to show Don Quixote and Sancho Panza in the present day, where they react with bafflement at such inventions as motor scooters, airplanes, automobiles, radio, television, cinema screens and missiles.
Welles planned to end his version by having Don Quixote and Sancho Panza surviving an atomic cataclysm, but the sequence was never shot.
The production became so prolonged that Reiguera, who was seriously ailing by the end of the 1960s, asked Welles to finish shooting his scenes before his health gave out. Welles was able to complete the scenes involving Reiguera prior to the actor’s death in 1969.
The financial struggles of Don Quixote are mentioned in the film Ed Wood
Ed Wood (film)
Ed Wood is a 1994 American comedy-drama biopic directed and produced by Tim Burton, and starring Johnny Depp as cult filmmaker Edward D. Wood, Jr. The film concerns the period in Wood's life when he made his best-known films as well as his relationship with actor Bela Lugosi, played by Martin Landau...
(1994).
Unfinished work
Although filming ended after Reiguera’s passing, Welles never brought forth a completed version of the film. The endless delay in completing the project spurred the filmmaker to consider calling the project When Are You Going to Finish Don Quixote? Up until his death in 1985, Welles was still publicly talking about bringing the unfinished work to completion.In May 1986, the first public exhibition of the Don Quixote footage was shown at the Cannes Film Festival
1986 Cannes Film Festival
- Jury :*Sydney Pollack*Alexandre Mnouchkine*Alexandre Trauner*Charles Aznavour*Danièle Thompson*István Szabó*Lino Brocka*Philip French*Sonia Braga*Tonino Delli Colli-Feature film competition:* After Hours by Martin Scorsese...
. The footage consisted of 45 minutes of scenes and outtakes were assembled by archivists from the Cinémathèque Française
Cinémathèque Française
The Cinémathèque Française holds one of the largest archives of films, movie documents and film-related objects in the world. Located in Paris, the Cinémathèque holds daily screenings of films from around the world.-History:...
.
Don Quixote de Orson Welles
In 1990, Spanish producer Patxi Irigoyen and director Jesús FrancoJesús Franco
Jesús "Jess" Franco is a Spanish film director, writer, cinematographer and actor. His career took off in 1961 with his cult classic The Awful Dr. Orloff, which received wide distribution in the United States and England...
acquired the rights to extant footage of the Don Quixote project. Material was provided to them by numerous sources including Oja Kodar
Oja Kodar
Oja Kodar is a Croatian actress, screenwriter and director, best known as the girlfriend of Orson Welles for the last 24 years of his life.-Life:...
, the Croatian
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
actress who was Welles' companion in his later years, and Suzanne Cloutier
Suzanne Cloutier
Suzanne Cloutier was a Canadian film actress.She was born in Ottawa, Ontario. In 1952 she appeared in the film Derby Day as a maid who wins a trip to the Epsom Derby in the company of a famous film star. She appeared as Desdemona in Orson Welles' 1952 film adaptation of Othello...
, the Canadian actress who played Desdemona
Desdemona
Desdemona is a character in William Shakespeare's play Othello.Desdemona may also refer to:People* Desdemona , a soprano role in the 1816 opera Otello by Gioachino Rossini...
in Welles' film version of Othello
Othello (1952 film)
Othello is a 1952 drama film based on the Shakespearean play, made by Mercury Productions Inc. and Les Films Marceau and distributed by United Artists . It was directed and produced by Orson Welles, who also played the title role . The screenplay was adapted by Welles and an uncredited Jean Sacha...
.
However, Irigoyen and Franco were unable to obtain the footage with McCormack, which included a scene where Don Quixote destroys a movie screen that is showing a film of knights in battle. This footage was held by Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
film editor Mauro Bonanni, who was engaged in a legal dispute with Kodar over the rights to the film. He refused to allow its incorporation into the Irigoyen-Franco project, although he would later permit some scenes to be shown on Italian television.
Irigoyen and Franco faced several problems in putting the Welles footage together. The filmmaker worked in three different formats – 35mm, 16mm and Super 16mm – which created inconsistent visual quality. The lack of a screenplay also hampered efforts. Welles recorded a one-hour soundtrack where he read a narration and provided dialogue for the main characters, but the rest of the footage was silent. A new script was created and voiceover actors were brought in to fill the silence left by Welles’ incomplete work. A further controversy was the inclusion by Franco of footage of Welles filming in Spain, taken from a documentary he had made in the 1960s. Welles had not intended to appear in the film himself, other than as its narrator.
The Irigoyen and Franco work premiered at the 1992 Cannes Film Festival as Don Quixote de Orson Welles. Initial reaction was predominantly negative, and this version was never theatrically released in the U.S. In September 2008, a U.S. DVD edition was released as Orson Welles' Don Quixote by Image Entertainment
Image Entertainment
Image Entertainment, Inc. is an independent licensee, producer and distributor of home entertainment programming and film & television productions in North America, with approximately 3,000 exclusive DVD titles and approximately 250 exclusive CD titles in domestic release, and approximately 450...
. The footage of Don Quixote in the cinema that is in Bonanni's possession has turned up on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
.