Me and Orson Welles
Orson Welles is a fascinating character, who's been portrayed several times on screen in the last couple of decades, but never convincingly. Angus Macfadyden was pretty terrible in 'Cradle Will Rock'. Vincent D'Onofrio was just about acceptable in 'Ed Wood'. And Liev Schreiber did an OK job in the TV movie ' RKO 281'.
In this charming period drama about the founding of the Mercury Theatre Company in 1937 (the company that would go on to make 'Citizen Kane' in 1941), Welles is portrayed as an arrogant, egocentric talent by Lancashire's Christian McKay. And McKay plays the part to perfection. He suggests, rather than impersonates Welles - and the success of this film is down to his superb central performance.
Zac Efron also deserves credit for bringing a believable naivety to the character of Richard (the 'Me' of the title) - a teenager who finds himself catapulted into Welles's world, after earning a small role in the actor/director's groundbreaking Broadway production of Julius Caesar. 'Me and Orson Welles' is a small, independent production (directed by Richard Linklater) and, as such, was a brave choice for Efron. But it gives him the opportunity to prove he's not just a pretty boy with a good haircut and a better-than-average singing voice.
This movie is a love story. But, while there's a romantic relationship between Richard and the theatre's ambitious production assistant Sonja (Claire Danes), it's not a boy-meets-girl story. It's the tale of a love affair between a young man and the arts. While the world of the stage is portrayed as shallow and cut-throat, it's also shown to have a magical appeal that's impossible for "God-created actors" to resist.
