Success is a double-edged sword!
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Abhishek Asthana (Hyderabad, India)
Email :
abhishek.asthana [at] hotmail.com
Success is a double-edged sword!
Some months back I read the book review of ‘Orson Welles: A Biography’ by Barabara Leaming.
I have always known Welles as the creator of the great ‘Mars Attack’ hoax on radio. This article however was focussed on Orson Welles, the director of ‘Citizen Kane’ (for those who don’t know, this movie repeatedly tops the list of ‘Greatest Movies of All times’).
Barabara Leaming has argued that the initial acclaim that got associated with ‘Citizen Kane’ and hence with Welles has been a double edged sword for the prolific writer-actor-director-producer Welles. On one hand, it established him as one of the ‘greatest’ creative geniuses in the cinematic world and on the other it robbed him and the world of so much that he could have done. (She says that many film critics feel forced to include ‘Citizen Kane’ in their favorites’ lists because it is ‘considered’ to be such a great film!)
According to Leaming, after the grand success of ‘Citizen Kane’, Orson Welles spent many years and many millions (of studio money, ofcourse!) trying to recreate something as grand and successful. But very few of his works after ‘Citizen Kane’ got to see the light of the day, and they too were hardly a patch on his on own previous work.
I have always thought of similar stories in Hindi cinema where too much early acclaim has had not-so-good impact on the makers.
Mahesh Manjrekar: I have not seen ‘Vaastav’ (actually I went inside the hall, but had to leave because my sister was with me and I thought obscenities were too inappropriate!) but I remember that almost all the critics hailed Manjrekar as hope of new generation ‘aggressive’ cinema. He changed gears and delivered ‘Astitva’ and proved that he could handle sensitive issues as deftly. But after that the downfall started! 16 flop and insipid films tell tale.
E. Nivas: ‘Love ke Liye Kuchh Bhi Karega’ was bearable, but the man who debuted with ‘Shool’ seemed to be finished with first outing itself! What followed were disasters like ‘Dum’ and ‘Bardaasht’! Surprising indeed. Let’s hope ‘My Name is Anthony Gonzalves’ and ‘De Taali’ are better.
Sujoy Ghosh: This may seem pre-mature and I WANT that it proves to be. Because I loved ‘Jhankaar Beats’. This was a farm fresh film with a farm fresh attitude and amazing style of narration. Everything that could go right was, and I can watch reruns as many times as they show. But what was ‘Home Delivery’? Ghosh got lost in his own style and delivered such a great dud, not only commercially but also creatively that it was almost heart breaking!
Farhan Akhtar: Surprised? Well, though I believe ‘Lakshya’ was not as bad as critics made it to be and ‘Don’ also got 2 stars from me, I don’t think these two came anywhere near the cult status quality that ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ earned rightfully. But I believe he has still lot to deliver.
Ram Gopal Verma: Ahem! I know you are ready to kick me for this one, but I really think that if someone has been spoilt by acclaim, it is this gentleman. He is supposed to be a ‘maverick’ and taking risk with new themes and newer talent is his favorite pastime, but has it gone to his head? I think it has. Making inane movies and then remaking them (anyone remember ‘James’ and then ‘Shiva’?) hardly sounds to be the stuff coming from the director of ‘Rangeela’, ‘Satya’, ‘Company’ and ‘Sarkar’. But then ‘truth is stranger than fiction!’
You may agree, you may disagree with my list. I am ready for the brickbats, but all I would want to say is that I would be more than very happy if these people make me eat my words!
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Declining success rate has affected lot of directors…it can be attributed to various reasons…style of film making,etc…wud like to add few more names to the list
Yeah, i really felt like kicking your ass when I saw RGV’s name. It is true that some of his latest movies are crap, this is the guy who will prove the naysayers wrong. Afterall he is the guy who brought cult classics to India.
Anyway, nice post.
Man, you also succeeded in making me believe the article is something about welles. I clicked in, went downwards and the article seemed to follow the same pattern which it accuses of several film-makers… initial flash —-> eventual downfall…
:d
No offence meant.
I think its more to do with the audience’s expectation than anything else. The audience expects the person to deliver the same kind of high or experience if I must say. This is where it becomes really tough. The director has to take a decision between what he wants to do and what the audience expects. Somewhere in this confusion or indecisiveness the spark is lost. I can think of only one person who has a clean record. (Sir)Steven Spielberg. He simply gets better and better.
Hmmm,
CZ was rejected by the public because of its unconventional storytelling (this and an extremely limited release because of Hearst’s media muscle).
This made studios wary of giving Welles complete control of his projects in the future. He went on to make ‘Othello’ and ‘A Touch of Evil’ (critically acclaimed). I will always remember him as the voice of Unicorn (in Transformer : The Movie - 80’s) and the narrator/presenter in ‘The Man who saw tomorrow’.
As for the rest of the names mentioned, they have time. And there is something called the law of diminishing returns in economics. That might explain something.
Agree with Omprakash Seresta
What was the need?
Anyway,
Some critics like Derek Malcolm rate A Touch of Evil higher that Citizen Kane.
About the list.
Vidhu Vinod Chopra - Parinda and the other assorted experiments
Sanjay ji Leela ji Bansali ji - Khamoshi
For that matter even
Subhash Ghai - Kalicharan
@ no. 3, same effect here too, I thought it was about Orson Welles too, he he
Apologies to all the Welles fans!!!
I just wanted to highlight that how even a genius can get trapped in the boundaries set by his own achievements. And best example is Welles. You may like it or not!
That’s why RGV is here Srikanth. Yes he has given us great stuff and he is doing the unimaginable things now.
And Vinayak I won’t quite agree with your list, because a flop film isn’t necessarily bad film! Haven’t seen ‘Kalicharan’ but remember that one bad film doesn’t spell the creative doom.
About Welles.
Well, Welles went exactly opposite of what you say. His creativity flourished in face of commercial failure and deliberate sabotage. Something akin to what happened to Ritwik Ghatak in India.
@Abhishek
Exactly my point. My list isn
//Mahesh Manjrekar//–
Vaastav I have always felt was infinetely overrated. It has always evoked a feeling in me of being Satya’s ugly cousin and nothing more..
And everytime I watch that sequence where Tabu explains her stance in Astitva, the movie just falls flat and fails to evoke any sentiment or sympathy..
E. Nivas– Any movie that tries to sell itself on the basis of a loud-mouthed villian speaking one-liners aka Groucho Marx should never be taken seriously..
Sujoy Ghosh— Jhankaar Beats, hmm hmm..
Farhan Akhtar– Dil Chahta Hai would have to be one of the finest debut films ever.. I mean, for the first time, u were watching South Mumbai kids as they were. It might have brought in freshness, tenderness and style.. But what I really cared for was the sense of truth in those characters.. Here was a director who knew the people he was presenting. With Lakshya and Don ,there was a man trying hard to know his characters and failing miserably..
RGV— Rangeela, Satya, Company.. we should not be complaining I guess… He will regain his lost sensibility as and when he wants to..
More about Welles:
After ‘Citizen Kane’ Welles started working on another project. The shooting started in Bahamas but after spending lot of money and time that film got packed up. Even worse was the fact that very few shots were actually taken.
Welles worked later but more as a writer. I am not aware of any sabotage!
Vinayak:
I agree with you. Ashutosh Gowarikar is a prime example. Started with Madhosh and then Bazi and then Lagaan and Swades! Creativity going uphill, but I bet he will want to forget his start
More about Welles:
Ingmar Bergman always felt ‘Citizen Kane’ was the most overrated movie in the history of cinema… He has also gone on record saying that he has never felt anything for Welles’s directorial style or his acting prowesses, stating that the latter was merely a case of an actor’s personality overpowering the characters he played..
That just goes to prove again that interpretation of creative finesses is always a relative concept and shud be taken in the right spirit..
I have a friend who thinks that everyone has one great book to write and one great movie to make. Reading your list, one has to wonder if maybe a brilliant first film was that filmmakers best idea?
I am not applying that to any of the above films, just throwing the question out…
@ Sreehari, love your comment about relativity. Because, I love Orson Welles films, but never understood why Citizen Kane is such a classic. Good film, nothing more. Enjoyed some of his other films much, much more…
But, then I read $IDS comment (yes, I read the comments from the bottom to the top), and laughed. Because, I think Spielberg is overrated, and really don’t enjoy most of his films. Yet, my favourite films of his, “Always”, “The Color Purple”, and, one of the best films EVER - “The Goonies”, are the ones people rarely associate with the name “Spielberg”.
Relative indeed. Will never again cringe when I hear someone talk about how great a filmmaker is and I don’t agree.
Just as long as no one laughs at my life-long love of The Goonies
Since t! mentioned