Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #27050 in VHS
• Released on: 1992-03-11
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Formats: Color, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of tapes: 1
• Running time: 88 minutes

Amazon.com essential video
Citizen Kane is considered by many to be Orson Welles's masterpiece, but more than a few prominent critics have argued that his second film, 1942's The Magnificent Ambersons, is an even greater artistic achievement. It's certainly the source of the most painful injustice of Welles's brief career in Hollywood, having been seized from the director's control, drastically cut from over two hours to merely 88 minutes, and reshot with a different, upbeat ending that Welles vehemently disapproved of. Adapted by Welles from the novel by Booth Tarkington, it remains a truncated masterpiece, as impressive for what remains as for the even greater film it might have been. The story is set during the late 19th century and follows the rise and fall of the wealthy Amberson family of Indianapolis, Indiana. Central to the drama is George Amberson Minafer (Tim Holt), who is snobbishly to the manor born, and whose petty jealousies and truculent pride compel him to prevent a wealthy inventor (Joseph Cotten) from marrying his widowed mother (Dolores Costello). This in part is the cause of the Ambersons' downfall, and ultimately leads to George's humbling "comeuppance" at the film's dramatic conclusion. It's an absorbing tale of fading traditions and changing times, and it's also a magnificent showcase for Welles's cinematic audacity, famous among film students for its long, fluid shots and ambitious compositions. Responding to the film's drastic cutting and re-editing, Welles justifiably complained that "they destroyed the heart of the film, really." And yet, the director's stamp of genius is evident throughout--the work of a young master (Welles was only 26 when the film was made) that still shines despite its unfortunate fate. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews

The Magnificent Orson Welles
This 1942 classic was written, produced and directed by Orson Welles (who is also the narrator) and based on the 1918 novel of the same name by Booth Tarkington.

The movie chronicles the life of Isabel Amberson/Minafer (Dolores Costello) - a matriarch of an Indianapolis family dynasty - and her pompous son, George Minafer (Tim Holt), who destroys what has taken several generations to create due to his jealousies and greed.

With the backdrop of old money and the new ways to seize a slice of the American Dream, it is a timeless story of a perilous journey on eroding trails in life during the heavy rains and cold crosswinds that are bringing permanent change.

The original rough cut by Welles clocked in at an epic length of 2-hours, 28-minutes, but he ultimately lost control of the final editing to the studio, RKO. About one hour was deleted and a different ending was shot. There are no surviving prints of the rough cut.

In 1991, the movie was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry. It was included in Sight and Sound's 1972 and 1982 lists of the top 10 films ever made.

This film deserves to be released in a special set that brings to the forefront its importance in cinematography.

Magnificent stupidity that this is not on dvd...
It is simply unbelievable that this film is not available in a deluxe remastered dvd edition. The fact that it's not available at all in a region 1 version, even a poorly executed edition, tells us much about those who run the media conglomerates that control the rights to film masterpieces like the Magnificent Ambersons.

The executives at such corporations must be coarse, unsophisticated, lawyeresque troglodytes, the type who eat $100 ala carte steaks while quaffing a central valley merlot in trendy restuarants... and if they even know of Agnes Moorehead, it's as Samantha's mother from Bewitched. There is no sense of culture, no concept of history, no love of cinema, much less any understanding of art and its importance to culture and life.

And yet, they are, quite simply, among the most powerful driving forces in modern American culture. They'll put American Pie on DVD, but not the Magnificent Ambersons. That is very, very depressing.

And what, I wonder, would Booth Tarkington have to say about this situation...

Region One Release Ever Coming?
This is a five star film if there ever was one. It still amazes me that there is no Region 1 release of it. Memo to Criterion: this wonderful film, as well as "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn", is crying out for the first-class DVD you'd provide. How about it?