Black Magic

Stylish period piece
Orson Wellles was ,in real life ,a noted amateur magician ,and this may account for the relish with which he attacked his role in this 1949 United Artists movie.He is playing another real life character ,the self -styled "Count "Cagliostro ,a man of French Romany origin who learns the arts of hypnotism from Doctor Anton Mesmer (Charles Goldner)and deploys them -along with large doses of charlatanism and showmanship-to attain wealth and power at the court of the French King .His allies are the scheming and devious Viscount De Montagne and Madame DuBarry-played respectively by Stephen Bekassy and Margot Grahame .They plan to substitute the real Dauphine ,Marie Antoinette ,with a double ,Lorenza,and so manipulate the throne to achieve ultimate power .They are assisted by two of Cagliostro's companions from his gypsy days -played with suitable melodramatic menace by Akin Tamiroff and the splendidly sinister Valentina Cortese -and opposed by L;orenza's lover (Frank Lattimore)
The...

This Release is REGION 1
This review is for the November 2012 Hen's Tooth DVD release of "Black Magic", and it is aimed at those of you who may opt not to purchase this stunningly produced and photographed black & white gem because of misinformation.

First of all, it is NOT a Region 2 DVD. It is a Region 1 DVD, as clearly stated in the product details section, and it WILL play on ANY US DVD player.

If you've never seen this sumptuous 1949 costume movie and you enjoy this genre you absolutely must acquire it. I have not seen this goody on cable - ever, but I remember a local station in my hometown showing it often many years ago. Maybe there have been some copywright complications that have kept this film from circulation all these many decades, but it' a good thing that it is available once again in a beautifully restored print.

The film was shot in Italy using at times real locales. The only drawback for me is that I wish the studio had beefed up the budget and photographed...

Orson Wells over looked film worth a look!
This is one of Orson Wells least known roles, however for my money, one of his best. This is long over due a release on DVD.

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