1941 Directed by Orson Welles
Newspaper magnate, Charles Foster Kane is taken from his mother as a boy and made the ward of a rich industrialist. As a result, every well-meaning, tyrannical or self-destructive move he makes for the rest of his life appears in some way to be a reaction to that deeply wounding event.
Orson Welles Joseph Cotten Dorothy Comingore Ray Collins George Coulouris Agnes Moorehead Paul Stewart Ruth Warrick Erskine Sanford William Alland Everett Sloane Fortunio Bonanova Gus Schilling Philip Van Zandt Georgia Backus Harry Shannon Sonny Bupp Buddy Swan Gregg Toland Don Ackerman Nat King Cole Gino Corrado Maurice Costello Demetrius Alexis Gene Coogan Art Dupuis Rudy Germane Mike Lally Walter Lawrence Show All…
El ciudadano, Obcan Kane, O Mundo a Seus Pés, 시민 케인
Politics and human rights Humanity and the world around us Epic history and literature artists, biography, musician, songs or emotional political, president, historical, politician or democracy political, democracy, documentary, president or propaganda death, profound, symbolism, philosophical or vision historical, royalty, sumptuous, lavish or drama Show All…
have you guys ever heard of this movie? citizen kane? directed by orson welles? ever heard of it? citizen kane? probably not, it's pretty indie
[Redundant praise]
[Joke about sleds]
[Regurgitated and bastardized interpretations of technical feats of skill on display]
[Insincere complaint about waiting so long to watch]
[Unnecessary recommendation for anyone who hasn't seen it to finally do so]
watching an almost universally loved work of art and not connecting with it in any way whatsoever has got to be one of my least favorite film-related experiences
100
Greatest opening scene in cinema history. The 'no trespassing' sign, the camera tracking upwards as the fence scales higher and higher, almost to the clouds. Dissolves upon dissolves. Inching ever so closer to Xanadu: a mansion and a castle, a fortress and a paradise - something out of horror and fantasy and adventure seemingly all at once. The light from the window remains stationary, signaling to the spectator that our story begins in that high tower, a sole fragment of warmth amidst this vast canvas of fallen excess. And the dissolve after the bedroom light goes out and the composition switches from exterior to interior, illuminating Kane's figure laying on the bed as another dissolve brings the audience *into*…
I’m not naïve enough to think that I have anything new to offer in my entirely unnecessary ode to Citizen Kane, but I'll continue writing this anyway because I like writing about films, and Citizen Kane is a film, all right, and a Towering Masterpiece of Cinema at that. I’d have to be exceedingly smart or exceedingly stupid to dispute that, and I reckon I fall somewhere in between.
Pulling apart Citizen Kane shot by shot is more than enough to learn how to make a film, but pulling apart the film's circular structure is also a brilliant way to learn how to tell a story. Since I attempt to write, it's the narrative structure of Citizen Kane that interests…
an astonishing fictional rise-and-fall biopic where an entire life in all its complications and contradictions is expressed through a series of non-linear, subjective fragments of storytelling showmanship that simultaneously construct and deconstruct an enigmatic myth of american empire. every time i sit down to watch this i go "ok but is it really that good?" and every single time i am sucked in by the form which combines expressive deep-focus images with lots of wide and low-angle compositions that take in the gorgeously-designed, idiosyncratic interior spaces (including miniatures and optical illusion set extensions) and serve to heighten the constantly overlapping sound design and montage that collapses all of the techniques (and the sense of time and space they establish) into a panoramic stream of memory. a cinematic and psychological parade of wealth, power, ego and ultimately isolation that feels like watching one big, strange funeral.
anyway i guess its pretty good. you guys heard of this one?
