Movie Review: Citizen Kane

Citizen Kane is regarded as one of the best films in the history of the cinema. In viewing the movie, one of the first aspects that I noticed was the acting by Orson Welles. Having seen Orson Welles in movies and hearing some radio broadcasts, I was familiar with his work. The movie examines a newspaper tycoon known as Charles Kane, who dies at the beginning. The movie's script is centered on discovering the meaning behind Kane's last dying words. Directed by Orson Welles himself, the movie is particularly innovative in its cinematography. This is what has driven the movie to be so well known and regarded as the best film of all time. While the other areas: acting, editing, directing and script contribute significantly to the overall presentation, it is the cinematography of shadow and light that stands out.

The audience becomes fascinated with Rosebud, which is the word that Kane speaks before dying. Displayed on a sled that is then tossed into a furnace, it is this mysterious close-up that sparks a nail-biting frenzy into wanting to discover the persona of Charles Foster Kane. The cinematography in this scene is phenomenal achieving something that is low-angled and up close. The movie is shown in flashbacks. I am not a fan of movies that have flashbacks in them, but I found Citizen Kane to be quite entertaining in depicting the childhood as well as the adolescence of Kane as well as cheating with Susan Alexander, played by Dorothy Comingore. The movie delves into an assortment of subject matter including infidelity, humiliation and the joys and pitfalls of success.

The script seemed a bit static and boring despite the subject matter being biographical of Kane, but is nevertheless brought to life by Welles and his co-stars including Kane's friend, Jedidiah, played by Joseph Cotten and a slew of other prominent actors such as Agnes Moorehead. Having seen the former, Cotten, in an episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents and the latter, Moorehead, in Bewitched on MeTV, I was fascinated by their true to life performances. They have an acting essence that makes the audience root for them even though they were not the main characters. Moorehead plays Kane's mother and Cotten, who plays Kane's friend, superbly acts the role when he is fired for writing negatively about the debut of Susan Alexander.

Ebert (1998) writes that Citizen Kane is a manifestation of cinematographic genius and complete with a variety of actors who embody depth and help piece together the memories of the man Charles Foster Kane (1). All throughout the movie, the word Rosebud swims inside the mind as the screenplay provides an underscore to Kane's life and progress as a newspaper mogul. Welles helps by focusing intently on Rosebud, which is a symbol of Kane's childhood - a wooden sled. Welles, in both his editing and directing seems intent on influencing the audience and forcing them to pay attention to the minute details and following the cookie crumb trail to discover the true worth and significance of the film. In other words, he wants the viewers to revel in the characters - each rich in their persona - and like them.

McGinty (1987) argues that Citizen Kane was the first movie to capture a memoir type feeling. One where the main character explains his life in a series of scripted documents. The film is not necessarily a life story, but the most important relics of Kane's life that corroborate the greatness of man and his accomplishments (47-48). It is difficult to agree with Citizen Kane being the best movie ever made, but it definitely is an excellent movie. There is a notable amount of components to it making it like a fine wine that has to be sipped to truly savor the flavor. One area where the movie definitely shines is in its projection. Citizen Kane is a literal and figurative enigma of what a visual masterpiece should have. Having been on the radio prior to being made into a film, Citizen Kane "amplifie[d what] could be done with cinema through visual imagery" (Brophy) that Hollywood later heavily utilized.

Does Citizen Kane meet the criteria?

Citizen Kane meets the criteria of a quality film. Each aspect presented in my list, the movie uses. The acting is the foundation of a great film, and each of the actors in Citizen Kane is excellent. While the cinematography was the prime focus for Welles', that didn't take away from leaving a profound effect on the viewer in terms of its images and symbolism. Additionally, Welles operated as the director of the movie, which allowed for both the overt and subtle dynamics of bringing the audience along as he was able to capture the main character from both the perspective of the actor playing the role and the director showing the actor playing the role. Finally, music is a centerpiece of the movie. It does not distract, but in fact, plays a pivotal role in the viewer better understanding why Welles' does what he does with certain scenes such as the emphasis on Rosebud. Citizen Kane is definitely classic cinema and meets the criteria of a great movie.

Works Cited

Brophy, Philip. "CITIZEN KANE The sound of the look of a 'visual masterpiece'." Sonicinema. 2008. Web. 7 Feb. 2014. <http://www.philipbrophy.com/projects/sncnm/CitizenKane.html>.

Citizen Kane. Dir. Orson Welles. Perf. Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Dorothy Comingore. RKO Radio Pictures, 1941. Videocassette.

Ebert, Roger. "Citizen Kane." 1998. Web. 8 Feb. 2014. <http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-citizen-kane-1941>.

McGinty, Sarah M. "Deconstructing "Citizen Kane"." The English Journal 76.1 (1987): 46-50. JSTOR.

My Criteria for A Quality Film

1. A great movie has characters that you can root for and be both sympathetic and empathetic to.

2. Films are meant to entertain audiences and viewers by either making them laugh, shocking them or making them cry. Whether the story is based on something real or false, movies should keep viewers wanting more and to know what will happen next.

3. Having concrete protagonists and antagonists is an important element to a movie despite its subject matter. Directors should not leave that up to the audience's imagination in terms of who's who unless the main character(s) are a combination of both protagonists and antagonists.

4. Acting is the foundation of a great film. While directing is one thing, the actors have to be believable as their character otherwise the film becomes absurd or boring.

5. Cinematography should be inviting and have an impact on how the viewer sees the film. In other words, the audience must be taken into the experience of the film with the various effects and techniques the director uses.

6. When touching on subject matter that many find off-limits, the director can overtly or subtlety bring the audience along for the journey without damaging the overall objective of the film.

7. Music must be included in films but it must not be too overpowering because it then becomes a distraction.

8. Biographical film scripts should take the audience on a journey. There should be no wasted dialogue in movies, but biographies in particular.

9. Films that are drawn from radio or other mediums should be distinctively different from their predecessors, but also have similar elements.

10. Imagery is essential. Imagery can make or break a film especially biographical or memoir type movies.