Directed by:
Orson WellesCinematography:
Gregg TolandComposer:
Bernard HerrmannCast:
Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Dorothy Comingore, Agnes Moorehead, Ruth Warrick, Ray Collins, Erskine Sanford, Everett Sloane, Paul Stewart, George Coulouris (more)VOD (2)
Plots(1)
psychological study of Charles Foster Kane, a powerful newspaper tycoon whose idealism was corrupted as he rose to enormous wealth and power. The story unfolds as a mystery: when Mr. Kane dies uttering cryptic last words, a magazine reporter interviews the tycoon's friends in an effort to uncover the significance of the word "Rosebud." (official distributor synopsis)
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Reviews (10)
There’s in fact nothing to complain about. Citizen Kane is a phenomenon talked about in every movie lecture or a movie discussion. It is a movie which was, with its theme but also the filmmaking aspect, totally ahead of its time. Even though I don’t understand how Orson Welles was able to make movies in Hollywood in 1941 when the rest of the boys, even 10 years younger, were getting ready or were already on the battlefield in WWII, it must be acknowledged that he was in the right place at the right time. I don’t give it five stars for purely subjective reasons that the movie was not always able to hold my attention, which is often the case for me with movies from that era.
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A very good film on the theme of "Having everything and having nothing", undoubtedly timeless, not only in terms of the way it looks and how imaginatively it is shot. But is it necessary to talk about it as the best film of all time? Ummm... Anyway, Orson Welles the actor transformed admirably during 120 minutes, while Orson Welles the director never once bored me during 120 minutes and always surprised me with something. And I finally know what a "bud" is, which was on my mind when I watched an episode of Columbo, and I also know what movie the Simpsons parodied in the Mr. Burns teddy bear episode.
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Citizen Kane is undoubtedly one of the gems of world cinema, and even though I am not giving it a full score, because I have seen (subjectively speaking) better films from the last century, it still deserves my admiration. From a technical point of view, this film is really well made, and there's probably no point in mentioning here the work with space, depth of field or cinematography - suffice it to say that in this respect Citizen Kane is a progressive film. As far as the plot is concerned, it is a very well-written story, told from multiple perspectives and inviting the viewer to take an active part in deciphering the mysterious word "rosebud". In short, a gem of world cinema, where perhaps only the running time and the expectation of something (relatively) perfect prevents me from giving it a full score.
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The work of Orson Welles is like a curse to me, and all my attempts to understand him have ended with the realization that we are consistently not on the same page. In fact, I have avoided Kane for many years because I suspected that I wouldn't share the enthusiasm of refined film connoisseurs and critics in this case either. Perhaps it's because I categorize Orson Welles with the same group of creators as Federico Fellini or Lars von Trier, i.e., those whose excessive ego conspicuously enters into their works. In other words, they are self-centered manipulative crooks who deter me emotionally. It is then hard to appreciate the innovative elements, the complex structure of the film, and the fragmentary narrative. Of course, I can state that much of what he worked with is truly revolutionary, but Orson did not win me over personally. I perceive Kane as a school assignment, where the teacher asks students to analyze a work of art. I appreciate the technique, but as a viewer, I am indifferent to Welles. Overall impression: 65%, and that is certainly the maximum the legendary director could ever get from me.
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One of my big classic outstanding items that I kept putting off for a while until I finally couldn't take it anymore and I just had to get it and watch it. In many ways, it is undoubtedly a timeless work whose ideas fittingly reflect even today's media world. With a narrative style revolutionary for its time, consisting of newspaper articles, interviews, and memories of people close to the film, is certainly one of the many reasons why it is an absolute and much quoted classic even from today's perspective. The four stars are purely subjective, as it didn't grip me as much as I imagined it would.
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