Citizen Kane: Film Analysis

Citizen Kane by Orson Welles is a story that was made for excellence. However, since it was about William Randolph Hearst, it did not do too well. Many movies didn't want to play the film because they were scared of Hearst and his power. Although, many could not see the movie it still became one of the greatest films ever made through its uncommon angles, montages, and lighting.

The film was made in 1941 and won best screenplay at the Oscars and was also nominated for best picture, best director, best actor and best cinematography. It was directed by Orsen Welles and its main actors were Joseph Cotten , Dorothy Comingore and Agnes Moorehead. The film has aged incredibly in the last 75 years from its release and has defined film in how good it really was. Citizen Kane changed the way movies are made because it became the starting point for many filmmakers first learning about how films are made and how a director can give a film a particular style. The editing (by Robert Wise) was as innovative as the cinematography by Gregg Toland - add these two talents to the talent of director Orson Welles not knowing how to direct properly and you have stylistic flourishes and a film that still impresses today. It didn't immediately change how movies were made citizen Kane was actually a somewhat forgotten film for several years until it was rediscovered in the late 50s - but it was definitely ground-breaking and many of the techniques used were copied and used by later directors.

Since the beginning of the Industrial Age, Americans have idealized the journey towards economic success. One thing people do not realize, however, is that that journey is not the same for every individual. For Charles Foster Kane (Orson Welles), the main character of Citizen Kane, directed by Orson Welles, the path towards riches and a fulfilled life is being well liked. He serves to please others. He strives for that attention. This view cost him his happiness in the end. In this man’s rise and fall through prosperity, Welles shows the futility of striving solely for likeability.

The scene we’re analyzing starts off with a shot of the New York Daily Inquirer. It’s a close shot, taking up the entire screen. I feel this close up is to show the viewer that the newspaper company is going to be the primary focal point for Kane, and his two partners at this point in the film. After the close up, the camera pans down to show Kane and Leland sitting in a car looking up at the building. Kane says “Take a good look at it Jedidiah, it’s going to look a lot different one of these days.” Despite the look on Kane’s face being one of optimism and promise, this statement gives leeway to all of the bad things to follow. Kane specifically says, “look a lot different” as opposed to anything else (i.e.

Citizen Kane is filled with symbolic imagery. In most of the movie you can pick out scenery, character actions, lighting, camera movement, and the composition within the frame of key shots that help tell the story without the character orally telling the full story. However, because of its new and experimental use of mise-en-scene, the movie did not do well in the box office. In time Orson Welles movie would become one of the best movies of all time and would even come to change filmmaking in

Orson Welles’ 1941 classic film Citizen Kane tells the story of Charles Forster Kane. The turning point of the film is when Jim Gettys attempts to blackmail Kane. The scene demonstrates Kane’s fall from grace through pride. His reactions to the other characters in this scene (Mrs. Kane, Susan Alexander, and Mr. Gettys), the angles that are shown in his perspective, and the lighting of the scene helps to demonstrate this point. It is after the blackmail scene that, in desperation, Kane tries to regain his credibly with the public and

The aspect of the Citizen Kane’s mise-en-scene that stood out to me the most were the sets. The first scene showing the once amazing and repugnant Xanadu now in disrepair helps to portray the psychological disrepair Kane experiences over the film. The giant oversized office of Mr. Thatcher portrays the cold decrepit old men who are in it. The huge interiors of Xanadu show the isolationism of his relationship towards Susan and his own loneliness in the world. Each of the sets in the film help to show the progression of the character. The sets along with the other aspects of mise-en-scene create the effect of reality by its change. The mise-en-scene of the film is a reflection of the character progression throughout the movie. The scene where

Often regarded as one of the best films of all time by AFI, IMDb and film critic Roger Ebert, Citizen Kane, is a movie directed, co-authored, produced and starred by Orson Welles and released in 1941. The film follows a series of flashbacks to solve a mystery, and is based upon newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst. The movies subtle comparison between the fictional protagonist, Charles Foster Kane (played by Orson Welles) and William Randolph Hearst leads Hearst to ban any mention of the movie in his newspapers. Citizen Kane shows the harsh realities of the lack of ethics in journalism as well as yellow journalism’s effect on public perception and politics that is ever-present to this day.

When discussing the greatest films of all time, Citizen Kane, directed by Orson Welles, usually comes up. It’s influence in American cinema can still be felt today, but at the time the film was not released without controversy. The main character in the movie, Charles Foster Kane, is undeniably based of the real life figure of William Randolph Hearst, a famous American newspaper publisher. Hearst was very aware of this fact and tried to hinder the success of Welles’ picture by denying it any sort of press in his newspapers. Despite the smear campaign Kane’s influence lives on through Welles’ revolutionary filmic techniques and its presence in pop culture.

When the film Citizen Kane, directed by Orson Welles, was released on September 5, 1941 the industry in Hollywood was churning out mass quantities of musicals, westerns and dramas. Citizen Kane, a precursor of film noir, used a variety of film elements, including the technique known as “deep focus” to produce the biopic of magnate Charles Foster Kane through the eyes of the journalist assigned to decipher the meaning behind Kane’s last word, “Rosebud”.

Citizen Kane brought the aspects of a newspaper tycoon in the 1940’s to life in a form of a dramatic narrative. This film is based on a true story of a newspaper magnate, William Randolph Hearst and based off of some aspects of Orson Welles(Writer and Director). This filmed has been named, “The best American film of all time” due to the fact that, during the time of its making, it was the first film to take on many new techniques of cinematography. Citizen Kane is a revolutionary film not only in the drama genre, but in filmmaking of all forms.

To help create his debut film Citizen Kane, Orson Welles assembled a talented group of artists and technicians who together produced a film that redefined cinema forever. During the film’s production process, Welles himself stated that making a film “is the biggest electric train set any boy ever had.” By this he meant that the production studio was his playground and he intended to use every tool at his disposal. Starting from the film’s very first shot; he proves this to be true. As the film begins, the camera silently cranes up over the fences that surround Charles Foster Kane’s mansion and then slowly transitions to a montage of palatial estate. In this unique sequence the viewer understands that they are watching no ordinary film! Since its release in 1941, Citizen Kane consistently is called one of the greatest films ever made. It also is one of the most analyzed films ever created as well. In watching the film, a person can select from a countless number of famous scenes on which to review, comment, admire, and draw conclusions. For this assignment, I chose my personal favorite scene from the film to analyze in depth. The scene occurs near the end of the film just as Kane’s second wife Susan Alexander leaves him for good. The scene lasts about 3 and a half minutes in length, consists of 12 shots, contains almost no music, and just one word of dialogue is spoken. However, even with these limitations, the scene has more impact and film techniques packed into it

Throughout history filmmakers have made specific narrative and cinematic choices to create compelling storylines. There are many different strategies that can be explored when developing a narrative. The 1941 film, Citizen Kane directed by Orson Welles is a phenomenal example of the exploration of innovative uses in photography, sound and editing. Orson Welles uses staging, shadows, low-key lighting, deep focus and overlapping dialogue to emphasize various aspects of the film. The main character Charles Foster Kane is sent away by his parents when he is just little boy after they come into a large amount of money. Due to this, he grows up to be an insensitive and vain man. Kane becomes very successful but uses his wealth and position of power to govern the people in his life. Welles uses these cinematic techniques to accentuate the idea that Charles Kane 's desire to control the people around him eventually drives away those who care about him, leaving him powerless and alone.

Orson Welles’s Citizen Kane is a revolutionary film. Although it might not look like much to the modern viewer, many aspects of the film were the first of their kind to appear and are still used today.

Directed by Orson Welles in 1941, Citizens Kane is a magnificent film for its time. This feature film brings film making to a whole new level. The film theme has very many different themes; Power, Corruption, Vanity, The Media, Innocence, and The American Dream. Citizens Kane has a genre that is almost of a gangster film, Charles Foster Kane is made of money and he makes sure everyone knows that. Charles Foster Kane never let anyone truly in, not his wives, close friends, if you can call them that. Charles Kane was such a private person that when he said his last words, “Rosebud.” No one knew what that meant. Citizens Kane is an iconic film about fame and fortune that is given to a young boy, at a very young age, which led to power, corruption,