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It's All True

Play trailer Poster for It's All True G Released Oct 17, 1993 1h 25m Documentary Play Trailer Watchlist
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83% Tomatometer 23 Reviews 71% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings
In 1942, fresh off the success of "Citizen Kane," director Orson Welles journeys to Brazil to make a documentary. The unscripted look at bullfighting, the samba and three fisherman making a voyage of protest on the open sea stuns the studio with its daring storytelling and politics. The unfinished film is scuttled, and so is the director's career. The story of the debacle is told through interviews with Welles and others involved in the project, plus rarely viewed scenes from the documentary.
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It's All True

Critics Reviews

View All (23) Critics Reviews
Anthony Lane New Yorker It would never have been one of [Welles'] major works, but the swiftness and urgency with which the tale is told, and the potent composition of even the most simple scenes, reveal the touch of the master. Mar 12, 2013 Full Review Marjorie Baumgarten Austin Chronicle Even in its redundancy, it is nevertheless fascinating. Apr 6, 2007 Full Review Jonathan Rosenbaum Chicago Reader Welles had intended to narrate the section himself, but the writers and directors of this documentary have wisely opted not to second-guess Welles, simply presenting the material as it stands and adding music and sound effects. Apr 6, 2007 Full Review Quentin Curtis Independent on Sunday It is still a remarkable portrait of the fisherman's life, with its craft and dedication, and of people whose ravaged, hopeful faces speak to us across the years. Dec 1, 2017 Full Review Michael E. Grost Classic Film and Television Visually spectacular documentary, one of Welles' sympathetic looks at countries around the world, their life and culture. Aug 22, 2014 Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews It's an amazing film for how it shows the Hollywood studio system couldn't tolerate creative artists. Rated: B+ Apr 6, 2008 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (20) audience reviews
Skylar M It was a beautiful film! I felt my heart beat and fill up through the movie! I never expected this movie to talk about history, but it definitely was needed given the current climate of the world. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 04/30/23 Full Review Audience Member Bill Krohn, Myron Meisel, Catherine Benamou and the late Richard Wilson are to be commended for their work. The footage shot by Orson Welles in 1942 is gorgeous and the story behind the movie is engaging. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/15/23 Full Review Audience Member (***): [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/user/icons/icon14.gif[/img] Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/18/23 Full Review Audience Member It is a master piece, and a huge lesson about Brazil's culture. I am astonished with Orson's sight, and how he fell in love with Brazilians. It is impressive! Besides the fact that it is *still* all true. Nothing really changed. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/14/23 Full Review Audience Member Interesting look at a little known Orson Welles project involving the capturing of footage of life in South America. Probably works a little better if they just released the footage and scrapped the documentary portion. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/07/23 Full Review Audience Member This film offers a look into the undoing of Welles' goodwill South America film called it's All True. With interviews from cast, crew, and even Orson Welles himself, we get to hear exactly what went wrong with It's All True (and what it did to Welles' career.) Inter-cut with these fascinating interviews is actual footage of the unfinished sequences from the original project; black and white for what was to be the first third of the film (My Friend Bonito) and later technicolor footage for the second part of the unfinished project. The Best part about this semi-documentary semi-Welles film is, however, that it contains the entire last third of the original film (Four Men on a Raft.) This footage was shot when the budget had significantly dropped and Welles had nothing but a single cameraman, no sound equipment and a few dozen actors who had never even seen a movie before. Let me tell you, this footage was simply inspiring. This was film making in it's simplest and barest form, and really demonstrates what the medium is capable of achieving. The story rides on the use of clever cinematography and the beautiful performances Welles somehow drew from these nonprofessionals; and with the exception of one or two titles at the bottom of the screen to establish a new location, the film doesn't even use inter-titles as a way of conveying dialogue. We see character's mouths moving, but we understand what they are saying by the emotion they convey whilst saying it. Welles truly made the best out of a bad situation with Four Men on a Raft, and this third of his unfinished project (to be called It's All True) is probably the most expertly told story in motion picture history. I most also say, that it contains some of the most beautiful cinematography I've ever seen (the funeral procession especially.) In short, the documentary part of this film is extremely interesting if you're a Welles fan, and is put together quite well. The portion of the Orson Welles film (Four Men On a Raft, and what there is of the other two segments) are absolutely perfect and must be watched by all who value this medium. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Read all reviews
It's All True

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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis In 1942, fresh off the success of "Citizen Kane," director Orson Welles journeys to Brazil to make a documentary. The unscripted look at bullfighting, the samba and three fisherman making a voyage of protest on the open sea stuns the studio with its daring storytelling and politics. The unfinished film is scuttled, and so is the director's career. The story of the debacle is told through interviews with Welles and others involved in the project, plus rarely viewed scenes from the documentary.
Director
Norman Foster, Bill Krohn, Myron Meisel, Orson Welles, Richard Wilson
Producer
Régine Konckier, Bill Krohn, Myron Meisel, Jean-Luc Ormières
Screenwriter
Bill Krohn, Myron Meisel, Richard Wilson
Distributor
Paramount Pictures
Production Co
Le Studio Canal +, Paramount Pictures, Les Films Balenciaga, PolyGram Audiovisuel
Rating
G
Genre
Documentary
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 17, 1993, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Jul 23, 2019
Runtime
1h 25m
Sound Mix
Stereo, Dolby
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