There are 4 films versions, not 7 as many people believe. This new version, done by the munich Filmmuseum, supposedly follows many of Welles' editing notes and uses some, but not all, footage from the various versions to make a more comprehensive story that's the closest to Welles' intentions.
The following was posted at wellesnet.com in one of the forum's after a Welles' fan had seen its first screening last summer,
MR ARKADIN: This would be the reconstruction under way, and it works quite well, though it still needs some work to finish it up. As I think has been mentioned, there aren't vast quantities of new material, it's more a question of how it's been organized. The film opens with the shot of Milly on the beach, and uses the Spanish title card, moving straight into the film. The band is now playing "Silent Night" as Van Stratten walks to Zouk's place, which I don't think worked a well as the original music, but part of that was due I think to the music not fading out as the camera pulls away down that dark corridor as Guy climbs the steps. The flashback structure is used, and there is some subjective footage within the place at end, taken from the Spanish version, in addition to a silent shot of the plane crashing. The credits with the hanging bats plays at the end, with the cast introduced via clips, as we've seen. Regarding the inclusion of this version in Criterion's DVD edition of the film, I'm not sure I'm at liberty to say what I heard, but I imagine people will be pleased.
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