Othello (1951 film)

• 1. Financing The Tragedy

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  Shooting began in 1949 when the original Italian producer announced bankruptcy on one of the first days. Orson Welles poured his own money into the project to keep filming alive. He ran out of funds and needed to stop for months at a time to raise cash. Production stopped at least three times due to this lack of resources. Welles used money from acting roles like The Third Man released in 1949 to help finance the film. These pauses were complicated by shifting actor availability which meant key parts had to be recast. Whole scenes then reshot as actors changed over the years. Micheál Mac Liammóir detailed this lengthy shoot in his book Put Money in Thy Purse published in 1952. One scene where Roderigo is murdered was shot in a Turkish bath because costumes were impounded. Using replacements would have caused further delays so they filmed it in that form instead.

• 2. Restructuring The Play

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  The movie opens with Othello and Desdemona's funeral before any other action occurs. This opening funeral scene does not exist in Shakespeare's original play text. Iago complains to Roderigo about not being advised of the marriage between Othello and Desdemona. Roderigo contemplates killing himself but Iago says he would change his humanity with a baboon rather than drown himself for love. Iago urges Roderigo to sell all lands and give money to him to convince Desdemona to have sex. Brabantio accuses Othello of bewitching his daughter after learning of the union. Othello convinces Brabantio that witchcraft was not involved but rather tragic tales. By planting a handkerchief Iago convinces Othello that Desdemona is having an affair with Cassio. Othello strangles Desdemona while Iago knifes Emilia to death as she protests innocence. Othello realizes his mistake only after the act is done.

• 3. European And American Cuts

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  An Italian-language version premiered in Rome on the 29th of November 1951. Welles's English-language version premiered at Cannes on the 10th of May 1952 under the Moroccan flag. The European cut features different edits of many scenes from other versions using alternative camera angles. A print remains stored in the Paris Cinematheque today. Welles supervised a different version for America released on the 12th of September 1955 in New York City. This had major soundtrack changes including replacing spoken-word titles with written credits. Suzanne Cloutier's entire performance was dubbed by Gudrun Ure who played Desdemona opposite Welles in 1951 theatre production. Paul Squitieri argues the U.S. version represents a compromise forced upon Welles by United Artists. The original European cut represents the truest version according to scholars. A Criterion LaserDisc came out in 1994 but was withdrawn after legal action by Beatrice Welles.

• 4. Festival Acclaim And Neglect

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  Othello won the Grand Prix du Festival International du Film at the 1952 Cannes Film Festival. Welles could not find a distributor in the United States for over three years. Even after its U.S. release it was largely ignored by audiences and critics. Film critic Pauline Kael suggested the film tended towards a more faithful record of stage production rather than cinema. The film re-released to theaters in 1992 screened out of competition at that year's festival. It received acclaim in the United States though sound restoration would be criticized later. Critics noted the film was seldom screened despite its artistic merit. Jonathan Rosenbaum defended the out-of-synchronization dubbing typical of early 1950s European films.

• 5. Restoration Controversy

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  Beatrice Welles-Smith supervised a restoration spending over one million dollars on picture quality improvements. She resynchronized audio added extra sound effects and completely rerecorded music in stereo. The restoration faced attack for technical flaws and alterations made between theatrical and home media releases. An opening scene lacked Gregorian chanting until restored for DVD distribution. One scene was missing from cinema but restored for video versions. Visual elements utilized a fine-grain master positive discovered in New Jersey storage facilities. Audio came from a distribution print resynchronized syllable by syllable to match the master positive. White noise remains audible throughout dialogue and music in places where it cuts out during action. The new score used three mandolins while the original version had forty playing. Lavagnino's son argued the new score is no longer his father's work due to differences.