Ishaghpour's 37-Year Study of Orson Welles Published

Youssef Ishaghpour's three-volume study 'Orson Welles Cinéaste, une caméra visible' has been published by Éditions de la Différence after 37 years of work. The book examines Welles's oeuvre through literature, philosophy, politics, history, aesthetics, and economics. Ishaghpour positions Welles as a founder of modern cinema, alongside Griffith, Stroheim, Eisenstein, Dreyer, and Lang. The analysis covers Welles's tragic vision, his critique of power and capitalism, and his subjective camera technique. Key films discussed include 'Citizen Kane' (1940), 'Macbeth' (1947), 'Othello' (1949–52), 'Mr Arkadin' (1954–55), 'Touch of Evil' (1957–58), 'Falstaff' (1964–65), 'The Immortal Story' (1966), 'The Lady from Shanghai' (1946), and 'F for Fake' (1973). Ishaghpour explores Welles's engagement with Roosevelt's New Deal, his critique of tycoons through Kane, and his response to McCarthyism and the Cold War. The study highlights Welles's use of deep focus, disorienting angles, long takes, and reflexive imagery to question representation and identity. It also addresses the commodification of art and the role of the artist in an age of simulacra.