Five Minutes, Mr. Welles

Directed, written and starring the renowned Vincent D'Onofrio, "Five Minutes, Mr. Welles is a witty, imaginative and insightful portrayal of Orson Welles, as he is rehearsing scenes with a young lady, smartly played by Janine Therault. A short film rounding the film festival circuit in 2004, "Five Minutes, Mr. Welles" gives very thoughtful insight into the Man himself, peppering in aspects of some rumored character idiosyncrasies, along with brilliant dialog, that allows the viewer a fly-on-the-wall perspective. A magnificent homage from Vincent D'Onofrio, with a style of filming and dialog true to its intended time period. "Five Minutes, Mr. Welles" is bound to delight fans of Orson Welles, and Vincent D'Onofrio alike.

I saw this movie at the SF Film Festival. The fact that it does not seem to be available for purchase (anywhere!) is literally the only negative thing I can say about it.

It struck me as one of those films that offer something new with each viewing and I've only been able to see it once. At the risk of sounding whiney, that's just not enough! Intelligent dialog, a captivating visual experience, terrific acting - Holy Toledo! - trying to pay proper attention to each bit of excellence wore me out. The experience was ... I don't know... frantic and delicious at the same time. I'd love to be able to watch the movie and savor it, but I have neither the time nor the resources to traipse all over the globe locating and attending film festivals that run it. Dang!

Full Disclosure: I am a huge fan of Vincent D'Onofrio. Watching him on-screen knowing he also wrote the script is incredible. You can see his genius and his professionalism when he says, in character, he is "serving the story" (which D'Onofrio has said in interviews). Watching D'Onofrio fumbling his lines as Welles is brilliant and knowing that he wrote the script adds another layer of brilliance. The one-room scene is full of depth and watching D'Onofrio struggle as Welles to "make the script his own" reveals his commitment to his craft. His opening lines about listening to how a scene "sounds" feels like another authentic window into D'Onofrio's approach to his own acting. Definitely needs to be watched more than once or twice to unpack its many levels. In two words: BEYOND CLEVER!