LAB CLASSICS: F FOR FAKE (4K RESTORATION)
A precursor of the modern ‘video essay’ as well as the so-called ‘mockumentary’, the term ‘documentary’ does not do justice to Orson Welles’ wonderfully erudite and witty mix of archive footage, home video, magic tricks and fake news avant la letter. We’re proud to bring this late Welles masterpiece to our cinema in a brand-new 4K restoration.
Deception. Fraud. Illusion. In F For Fake, a free-form quasi-documentary by Orson Welles (Citizen Kane), the legendary filmmaker (and self-proclaimed charlatan) once again deals with the central preoccupation of his career: the thin dividing lines between illusion and truth, art and forgery. Beginning with portraits of world-famous art forger Elmyr de Hory and his equally devious biographer Clifford Irving, Welles embarks on a dizzying journey criticizing and adorning forgeries and swindlers of all kinds – not least Welles himself. Charming and inventive; F For Fake is at once an inspired cinematic experiment and a clever examination of the undeniable duplicity of cinema.
