Welles trapped within a puzzle box

If someone told you at least eight different versions of a film existed, which version would you watch? \nNobody has ever had more trouble when it came to editing control than the legendary Orson Welles. Granted "Citizen Kane" remained under his control, the rest of his output rarely was. While "The Magnificent Ambersons" and "Touch of Evil" became the victims of deadly studio scissors, nothing was more admittedly painful for Welles than watching his own "Mr. Arkadin" be torn from his grasps and shredded to pieces.\nThere may be many versions of this fateful film, but the general story follows that of Guy Van Stratten (Robert Arden), a smuggler hired by tycoon turned amnesiac Gregory Arkadin (Welles himself with curly wig and curlier beard) to investigate his forgotten past. It is a journey across the world for secrets that might not even exist. It mirrors "Citizen Kane" in many ways and perhaps it could've been greater than Welles' debut, but sadly we'll never really know.\nWhat the Criterion Collection has done, much like when offering two different versions of Terry Gilliam's "Brazil" or Ingmar Bergman's "Fanny and Alexander," is show us just how powerful editing can be. We are given three versions of "Arkadin": the commonly seen "Corinth" version, the British release titled "Confidential Report" and an all-new version dubbed the "Comprehensive" version containing as much of Welles's original ideas, editing structure and varying shots. \n While the "Comprehensive" may be the closest to Welles's vision, no one can say for certain if it's better than the other two because it still isn't the definitive version nor will any such version ever exist.\nThe thing about "Mr. Arkadin" though is the history behind this project is more fascinating than the film itself -- something this boxset captures, feeling more like a museum piece than just another DVD. The "Corinth" version comes with commentary by two notable scholars: "Chicago Reader" critic Jonathan Rosenbaum and Indiana University's own Communications and Culture professor James Naremore who penned "The Magic World of Orson Welles." The commentary is enriching, essential viewing material as it covers the history, Welles' style and every aspect on the film.\nFor the "Comprehensive" version, we're treated to a documentary with important words from Stephan Droessler and Claude Bertemes who aided in assembling this edition along with Welles supporter Peter Bogdanovich giving us the personal angle thanks to so many long talks with the auteur. \nMany versions of "Arkadin" exist so rather than just provide the films, we're also treated to three radio episodes of "The Lives of Harry Lime," which inspired the film and even the "Mr. Arkadin" novel which Welles once claimed he wrote. \nOn top of all this, outtakes, deleted scenes, photo stills and one packed booklet containing essays on each version and a complete timeline on "Arkadin's" fate are included for this release. Simply put, Criterion has gone out of their way to guarantee this is the greatest treatment Welles's most troublesome project could receive.\nUse any synonym you want to describe "Arkadin" and it fits. Puzzle box, jigsaw puzzle, Rubix cube, this is a cinematic labyrinth begging to be explored by anyone willing to take a chance on what is easily the best DVD release of the year.