“Me and Orson Welles” (2008)
One of Linklater’s more bafflingly overlooked entries is “Me and Orson Welles,” which seemed commercially acceptable enough. A historical comedy/drama about a young man who goes to work for Orson Welles (Christian McKay) in his Mercury Theatre days (around the time of his influential “Julius Caesar” production), it featured none other than “High School Musical” hunk Zac Efron in the lead. But it was crippled by an absolutely terrible promotional campaign (including one of the worst posters imaginable – why is Claire Danes wearing that rictus grin?) and a bizarre, underfunded roll-out (courtesy of Freestyle Releasing) that made it virtually impossible to track down and see. (It’s even hard to find on home video — even though Warner Bros. put it out on DVD, it was sold exclusively at Target.) Even more heartbreaking is the fact that if somebody like the Weinstein Company had been in charge of “Me and Orson Welles,” McKay’s fine performance would have at least been nominated for the Best Supporting Actor Oscar (and just might have won). Instead, he was barely noticed. “Me and Orson Welles” isn’t one of Linklater’s masterpieces, but it’s just as breezy and entertaining as “School of Rock,” with an unexpected emotional punch. It’s worth seeking out…if you can find it. [B]
— Oliver Lyttelton, Rodrigo Perez, Drew Taylor, Christopher Bell