F for Fake [Criterion Collection] [Blu-ray] in Bloomington, MN

"Orson Welles appears as himself in this witty and subversive film essay on fakery and forgery, art and illusion. Welles first appears in a European rail station, performing some sleight of hand for a sparse collection of onlookers. He then edits himself into -- and comments upon -- an unfinished documentary (in footage originally shot by Francois Reichenbach) about art forger Elmyr de Hory. In this documentary within a documentary, the gentleman conducting the interviews with de Hory happens to be Clifford Irving, author of a biography on de Hory entitled ""Fake"" and infamous for authoring a notorious forged autobiography of Howard Hughes in the early 1970s. Welles also digresses throughout this section of the film to make tongue-in-cheek remarks about his long dormant Hollywood filmmaking career. In the final section of the film, Welles re-creates a tale involving Pablo Picasso and a beautiful young woman (Oja Kodar) who agrees to be painted by him. The film ends on a sly twist that can only be termed ""Wellesian."""