The Lady from Shanghai

Director: Orson Welles
Release Date:

An itinerant Irishman finds trouble after a life insurance scam leaves him accused of a murder he didn't commit.

4.7 (3 customer reviews)

Slow Great Crazy Movie

The movie starts out very slow but so do the subtle twists. Gradually you realize this is something you have never seen before and do not quite understand. By the end of the movie (which is absolutely insane) everything about how this movie was developed makes sense. And it is insane. They used to paint Rita Heyworth on the sides of fighter planes and bombers during WW2 - this movie alone proves she was so much more.Wow.


SAN FRANCISCO, my home!!

Listening to the voice of Orson Welles reminded me of Brain, the short, smart mouse from Animaniacs. I grew up with that show in the 1990s...


Don't know if I'd call it a masterpiece...

BUT, neither would Orson Welles. If you know much about Welles, you know that he constantly butted heads with whatever studio he worked for. In England, Welles was putting on a Shakespeare play (I want to say it's MacBeth, but I don't remember exactly which one), and he called up one of his Hollywood producer "friends." Welles begged the producer for money, and offered to direct a film for them. The producer asked what he was going to direct, and, looking around the phone booth, he saw a woman sitting and reading "If I Die Before I Wake." So, Welles threw that suggestion out there and the producer held him to his word. But they didn't let Welles have free reign with the budget, which frustrated him. So, he intentionally stayed out of contact with the studio, filmed things on location and with longer takes. In this way, he actually finished the film ahead of schedule and under budget. Lots of Orson Welles history is tied up in this rather unsubstantial film. Of course, the hall of mirrors scene at the end has inspired soooooo many movies since. My personal favorite is Woody Allen's Manhattan Murder Mystery.

Title
The Lady from Shanghai
Director
Orson Welles
Release Date
Sales Price
12.99 USD
Rental Price
3.99 USD