Movie review – “Chimes at Midnight” (1965) *****

Was Orson Welles a great director of Shakespeare? Definitely. Of film noir? Absolutely. Or comedy? Not really. Of action? Yes! You don’t think of Welles as a great action director – he never made an action movie – but consider his hall of mirrors shoot out in Lady from Shanghai and the incredible Battle of Shrewsbury here. The latter in particular hasn’t dated a jot. It’s the highlight of this Shakespeare adaptation, which concentrates on the relationship between Prince Hal and Falstaff.

Henry IV Part 1 goes up to about the hour mark, then it’s Part Two. It takes a while to get going again after the Battle of Shrewsbury – I feel it might have been better if Welles had taken scenes from Part 2 and incorporated them timeline-wise prior to the Battle.

Welles’ distancing effects – titling camera work, extreme close ups, deep focus – work better with Shakespeare than naturalism because the language is more stylised. This suffers from some technical problems (especially dubbing) but is impressive. It feels medieval – creaky taverns, chilly castles, wind swept fields – and the acting is strong. I found Margaret Rutherford a bit odd but Keith Baxter was very good – smart, funny, a bit of a prick. You do understand why Hal has to dump Falstaff, but you still feel sorry for him – the close up of Welles as the end when Hal gives him the flick is one of Welles’ most effective pieces of acting. The coldness that seems to seep into all Welles’ films (for me at any rate) suits this story because Hal becomes cold.

There are some unusal choises – Hotspur is slightly comic, ranting about his plot to overthrow the monarchy while getting changed out of a bath (we see his bare arse), and tripping over, with a sprightly, comic wife, continually cutting away to trumpeters moving their trumpets around on the parapet. (On the page this feels stronger and more emotional.) It’s a shame we don’t see Falstaff actually die – it’s reportage. I know that’s the way it was in Henry V (which provides the last five minutes of this movie) but still you think Welles would give himself a close up or something. The recruitment scene goes on a bit long – its moved from Part 2 to be put before the Battle of Shrewsbury (I admit I wasn’t that wild about it in Part 2 either; it feels too distracting).

Welles’ performance is one of his best – most of his famous performances involve him playing an enigma, but here he’s front and centre. Warm, human and funny, he really gets into it. I also enjoyed Jeanne Moreau and John Gielgud in their parts. It's a shame this isn't more easily available, I think it would do really well on the art house/Shakespeare circuit.