Campanadas a medianoche (1965)

Director:

Orson Welles

Writers:

William Shakespeare (plays)
Raphael Holinshed (book)

Release Date:

17 March 1967 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | War

Plot:

The career of Shakespeare's Sir John Falstaff as roistering companion to young Prince Hal, circa 1400-1413.

Plot Keywords:

Shakespeare's Henry IV | Historical | Beautiful Woman | Based On Multiple Works | Shakespeare's Henry V

Awards:

Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 3 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Orson Welles	...	Falstaff
Jeanne Moreau	...	Doll Tearsheet
Margaret Rutherford	...	Mistress Quickly
John Gielgud	...	Henry IV
Marina Vlady	...	Kate Percy
Walter Chiari	...	Mr. Silence
Michael Aldridge	...	Pistol
Julio Peña
Tony Beckley	...	Ned Poins
Andrés Mejuto
Keith Pyott
Jeremy Rowe	...	Prince John
Alan Webb	...	Shallow
Fernando Rey	...	Worcester
Keith Baxter	...	Prince Hal

Also Known As:

Falstaff (France) (Switzerland: German title)
Campanades a mitjanit (Spain: Catalan title)
Chimes at Midnight (UK)

Runtime:

Spain:113 min | Switzerland:119 min | USA:115 min | Argentina:117 min

Country:

France | Spain | Switzerland

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Barcelona, Cataluña, Spain

Company:

Alpine Films

Trivia:

In August 2004 restoration work began on the film by the same team that restored Welles's The Tragedy of Othello: The Moor of Venice (1952).

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: The corpse of Hotspur opens and closes his mouth several minutes after his death.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Wages of Sin (2003) (V)

Awesome Welles

By far the best of Welle's three Shakespearean adaptations this is also arguably THE best Shakespeare on screen. Most filmmakers go for the tragedies - vide Welles himself - or settle for Romeo and Juliet but the History plays are seldom tackled. Here the maestro dips into several texts - most heavily into the two parts of Henry 1V but also Merry Wives, Henry V, Richard 11 - and then welds them together seamlessly to give an in-depth portrait of Falstaff. With a nice touch of irony the narration is spoken by Ralph Richardson who, prior to Welles here, was the definitive Falstaff - and remains so as far as theatre is concerned. It's hard to fault so I won't try, merely revel in a touch of greatness. 10/10