F for Fake (1976) - The Criterion Collection

ORSON WELLES'S DELIGHTFULLY SHIFTY DOCUMENTARYTrickery. Deceit. Magic. In F for Fake, a free‐form documentary by ORSON WELLES (Citizen Kane), the legendary filmmaker (and self‐described charlatan) gleefully re‐engages with the central preoccupation of his career: the tenuous line between illusion and truth, art and lies. Beginning with portraits of the world‐renowned art forger Elmyr de Hory and his equally devious biographer, Clifford Irving, Welles embarks on a dizzying journey that simultaneously exposes and revels in fakery and fakers of all stripes-not the least of whom is Welles himself. Charming and inventive, F for Fake is an inspired prank and a clever examination of the essential duplicity of cinema.Features:Restored digital transfer, with uncompressed monaural soundtrackAudio commentary from 2005 by co‐writer and star Oja Kodar and director of photography Gary GraverIntroduction from 2005 by filmmaker Peter BogdanovichOrson Welles: One‐Man Band, a documentary from 1995 about Welles's unfinished projectsAlmost True: The Noble Art of Forgery, a 52‐minute documentary from 1997 about art forger Elmyr de Hory60 Minutes interview from 2000 with Clifford Irving about his Howard Hughes autobiography hoaxHughes's 1972 press conference exposing Irving's hoaxExtended, 9‐minute trailerPLUS: An essay by critic Jonathan Rosenbaum