A Touch of Welles, Mancini
"I don't care for your mustache, muchacho."
For the uninitiated, Touch of Evil is a film noir by director Orson Welles starring Charlton Heston and Janet Leigh. It was intended* as a pulpy, sensational story of sex, violence, and corruption. It has influenced generations of film lovers, filmmakers, and academics who have elevated it to the status of classic. So much so that in 1998, a restoration of the film was commissioned to bring it closer to Welles’ original vision. Prior to its release Evil was heavily re-shot and re-edited by the studio who did not appreciate the director’s efforts. A recurrent motif in Welles’ career.
For many Touch of Evil is right up there with Citizen Kane.
In the film Heston plays a Mexican police officer and though this has been the subject of much ridicule by academics and film lovers alike, I would like to point out that Orson Welles a few years prior played the role of Othello (yes, in black face, just like Lawrence of Olivier in the 1965 production) and Heston had previously been cast as an Israelite in The Ten Commandments, and later – possibly because of this film – as a Spaniard in the infamous production of El Cid. What I’m saying is, it’s not as ridiculous as it sounds given the time, but it can be confusing, especially when he pronounces his character’s last name, Vargas, in a thick American accent. (As a Spanish-speaking individual it really confused me).
Evil is said to have influenced the French New Wave and American directors alike with its stylistic flourishes, such as its fluid camera work, stark lighting, long-takes, overlapping dialogue, and staging. Many of these traits can be found in Welles’ previous work but their inclusion in a genre picture such as Evil make them all the more prominent.
One of the more famous moments in the film is the opening scene, which was the first thing altered by the studio. I realize for some, the following might be considered obscene but I argue that while the inclusion of theme music (and credits) to Touch of Evil’s opening credits went against Welles’ wishes, the score by Henry Mancini is pretty sweet. It would be a greater disservice to ignore it solely on the basis that it was commissioned by the studio. Mr. Mancini, I hope you agree, is a talented, dynamic composer.
For the sake of comparison, I give you the Welles’ version – that is, an approximation of what he may have intended for the scene. It is preceded by a summary of the film’s production and restoration, which was overseen by famed editor Walter Murch. More on the film, it’s production history, and legacy can be found on wikipedia. Also, at your local library.
I would like point out what may be obvious for those who have seen both versions; that the soundtrack can be a huge difference for a film. The Mancini score gives the opening of the film a certain flavour altogether while in the latter case, the use of a diegetic soundtrack, an unconventional approach by Welles, infuses the scene with a much darker, less whimsical, tone. The mark of a gifted filmmaker, such as Welles, is his ability to recognize the importance of sound and use it to great effect, forgoing the more obvious approach. Having said that, it’s also important to note that Mancini, in his role of composer, creates a score that captures the danger and labyrinthian quality of the motion picture we are about to see.
Mancini, who may know through his more famous compositions (the Pink Panther theme) started at Universal creating music for B pictures (Creature from the Black Lagoon, It Came From Outer Space) and was the obvious choice to score this film, a “B-picture.” He would go on to work on more “A-list” material such as Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Mancini’s music would later be refused by Alfred Hitchcock in 1972 on the director’s penultimate film Frenzy for other reasons.
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*one story has it, and this may entirely apocryphal, that Welles took on what he thought was a terrible picture to prove to Hollywood he could turn it into something great. Of course, at the time, the studio considered it a hapless mess, thus their attempts to re-work the material.
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Tags: charlton heston, film history, henry mancini, long take, Orson Welles, touch of evil
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