From director Richard Linklater (Waking Life, School of Rock, A Scanner Darkly), I heard of this film not being rated very well by the critics, but there was a lot of praise for the actor playing the title role of the famous Citizen Kane and The Third Man star, so I had to watch. Basically set in 1937, Richard Samuels (High School Musical's Zac Efron) is the high school student who has a day trip in New York City, and there he meets and becomes friends with Gretta Adler (Zoe Kazan) and they both share of love for the creative arts. Richard also finds the Mercury Theatre and meets actor Orson Welles (BAFTA nominated Christian McKay), and after a quick improvisational audition he manages to get a part in his new play, a modern retelling of William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. He will acting alongside Orson, and other Mercury players such as Joseph Cotten (James Tupper) and George Coulouris (Ben Chaplin), and onlooking is producer John Houseman (Eddie Marsan), but of course Orson is the great unofficial dictator of the production. Whatever Orson wants he gets, he has the power to fire anyone and everyone and he wants the perfect show, but he doesn't believe in all conventions, and he does not have a fixed opening night. He realises that his name will be triumphed or ruined with the result of the show, and Richard acting the part of Lucius along with everyone else, including leading lady Sonja Jones (Claire Danes) aka The Ice Queen, is making sure he follows the "master". Sonja is the woman that all the men are afraid to ask out, being so close to Orson, but Richard takes up the challenge and seems to get rather far that they go out and get closer, but he cannot get away from the bluster of Orson. Eventually it comes to the opening night, Richard was originally fired but is allowed back for the opening night, and the audience give high praise for the production, but in the end Richard is forced to leave after finding out he was only required for the opening night, but he does gain a new girlfriend. Also starring Kelly Reilly as Muriel Brassler, Leo Bill as Norman Lloyd and Al Weaver as Sam Leve. Efron is obviously a little cheesy but he is alright in this, Danes does well with her time as well, but of course the one who steals the show is the magnificent uncanny looks and charismatic voice of McKay playing the established actor, the story is not bad, but you do feel it could have been a little better in some of the scripting and apart from McKay it all feels a little bland, not a terrible period drama. Okay!
Review of Me and Orson Welles
