The Complete Mr. Arkadin (a.k.a. Confidential Report)

At once fascinating and dismaying, Orson Welles' 1955 Mr. Arkadin, a rather transparent reworking of his classic Citizen Kane, frequently borders on self-parody—a consequence attributed by the filmmaker's fans to the meddling of producer Louis Dolivet, who reportedly refused to release Welles' cut. The director stars as Gregory Arkadin, a shadowy arch-capitalist who lives in a Spanish castle with his overprotected daughter (Paola Mori—at that time Welles' wife). An amnesiac, Arkadin hires small-time American smuggler Guy van Stratten (Robert Arden) to investigate his past…and eliminate threats from the nefarious associates of his salad days. Available under two titles and in several differently edited versions, Mr. Arkadin never achieved much success, although its ultimate restoration remained a long-cherished dream of Welles partisans. This Criterion Collection edition finally collects for the first time the many faces of Mr. Arkadin—from the story's beginnings in radio to the novel published under Welles' name to an all-new “comprehensive version” of the film. Included here are three different cuts of the film, an all-new documentary, an audio commentary with Welles scholars, outtakes, rushes, alternate scenes, three 30 minute radio episodes of “The Lives of Harry Lime” (the inspiration for the film), a stills gallery, a quality paperback edition of the novel, and more. Recommended. (E. Hulse)