Comparison Of Citizen Kane And Sullivan's Travels

The 1940s film industry favored films that were based on reality, such as Citizen Kane. Orson Welles is the director of the 1941 film, Citizen Kane, which uses the cinematic techniques of long takes and deep focus shots. Long takes and deep focus shots are associated with space and time. I will be writing about scene D where Susan, the second Ms. Kane, is in the middle of a singing lesson. Scene D contains examples of long takes, deep focus takes, and camera movements.

Two of the first film noir pieces, The Maltese Falcon and Citizen Kane, share many similarities in structure and style. Their biggest similarities are the plant and payoff technique, and meaningless quests the main characters embark upon.

The debate over Casablanca and Citizen Kane has been a classic argument between film critics and historians alike because both of these pieces contain great cinematographic value, and are timeless pictures that have managed to captivate audiences well beyond their era. However, the real question at hand is which film is the greatest? Which film transformed the future of American film making? It is these questions that I as many others have, will attempt to answer in the following essay as I explain why I believe Citizen Kane has achieved the status of greatest film ever made.

The movie Citizen Kane brings in the audience into the life of Charles Foster Kane who is the main focus of the story and gives information on his life via a parody of the old “March of the Times” newsreels that were commonly used in the

Citizen Kane is presumably the best that American Cinema has ever offered, impeccable from beginning to the end. Frequently rivaling Its a Wonderful Life for number one, Citizen Kane is in a group of its own and unmatched in artistry on a number of fronts. The innovative development and the specialized headways used during production, can be minimally viewed as inconceivable and amazing, for a 1941 film. Citizen Kane has stood the test of time for well over six decades, serving as a benchmark and wellspring of motivation to storytellers of all walks of life. Citizen Kane is a sad tragedy about the fictions character Charles Foster Kane, a business head honcho and a daily paper investor. Through this movie, Orson Welles deified Charles Foster Kane as well as showed his determination, as an author, chief, on-screen character and above all as an auteur. The scenes displayed as flashbacks, not simply show his flexibility as an on-screen character (dealing with the subtleties and the nuances anticipated that would depict the diverse stages and parts of Kane's life), additionally his narrating brightness. Kane's muttering of "rosebud" at the moment of his demise and him openly destroying his political adversary, Jim Getys, speak to the two extremes of human life, the low and the high, individually. The scenes in the middle of Welles and Joseph Cotton are a flat out treat to watch. Feelings of sensitivity and disdain towards his childhood friend,

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

Film critics, scholars, and organizations all over the world tend to select Citizen Kane as the the greatest film ever made. While some may argue that this claim is utterly subjective, it raises the question of what makes a movie great. It is undeniable that elements such as the plot, cinematography, and acting can make films better than one another but two rather unspoken elements are a film’s influence and implementation of new traits. This is where it ultimately garners its reputation. Citizen Kane is one of the greatest and most influential cinematic films made because of its creative originality, exceptional coherence, underlying message, and innovative camerawork.

The 1941 film, Citizen Kane, is a dramatic tragedy that chronicles the life of Charles Foster Kane from boyhood to newspaper magnate. Along the way, characters try to figure out what life really means and question if the “American Dream” is really all it is cracked up to be. Directed by Orson Welles with cinematography by Gregg Toland, the film won the New York Film Critics Award as best picture, and received nine Academy Award nominations, but won only one for best Screenplay for Welles and Herman J. Mankiewicz (Synthesis: Citizen Kane 439). Is Citizen Kane worth all the hype? Yes and no. Citizen Kane throws in every imaginable filmmaking technique, except the kitchen sink, to make it a masterpiece in composition, but a fizzle in narration.

The use of lighting in this film was very pretentious and was used to add good aspects to Citizen Kane. The lighting changed based off what the mood corresponded-for example, some scenes had a copacetic or pleasant mood. In the beginning, the scene was a very formidable scene. The lighting was dark which portrayed fear towards the audience. The mood was implying fear and almost an alarming mood for the viewers-the lighting helped entail this by giving dark, hair raising lighting.

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.

Widely recognized as one of the most iconic films of its time, Citizen Kane made nothing short of a thunderous debut in May of 1941. An article from the NY times refers to it as “the most surprising and cinematically exciting motion picture to be seen” [1]. But why? What makes this film standout in what the article notes to be the “withering spotlight” of Hollywood? Let us start with the narrative itself.

The party is roaring as the camera descends on the celebratory dinner at the Inquirer. As old and new reporters alike engage in merry conversation, the beloved publisher Mr Kane stands to make a toast. As all eyes fall on him, he envisions a beautiful future for the newspaper. After his old friend Mr Bernstein heckles him, Kane just smiles. “You don’t expect me to keep these promises, do you, Mr Bernstein?” Although this exchange is quite brief, it is quite telling about the personality of Kane, who is a man who will say (and do) anything to reach his personal aims. A drama brought to the world by renowned writer-turned-producer-turned-director Orson Welles, Citizen Kane (1941) was created by a team of visionaries, including producer George Schaefer, cinematographer Gregg Toland, and composer Bernard Herrmann. Made by no fewer than five screenwriters, Citizen Kane is an iconic film that stands the test of the time. Citizen Kane is the best film of all time as it features a gripping storyline, meaningful lighting and props in mise-en-scene, intricate cinematography, effective editing, and compelling sound design.

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.

Citizen Kane incorporates a well-rounded variety of shots and angles that make the film more entertaining. This movie is significant because the American people will always be able to relate to it. There will always be a rich politician who wants to change things for the better. Sometimes, scandal and broken promises ensue. The American people will always want someone that they can trust to make their lives better. It is interesting to note that this film combines multiple genres, giving it a factor of intrigue. It combines “a mystery, a character study, a drama, a political thriller, a romance, a tragedy, etc.” (filmstudy). Part of what makes films truly great and have a lasting impact is their ability to connect with people and keep them

The use of light sets the mood for the entire movie. Welles begins this from the first scene in Citizen Cane where the dark and spooky shade of light sets the mood for the rest of the movie. The spooky light offers a dramatic feel and catches the audience’s attention so that they want to pay attention to the film. He uses the gloomy lighting in the opening scene because he illustrates that overall his idea of the American Dream is not as great as people make it out to be. Welles also uses a technique of lighting that singles certain things out. For example, when they go to look at the document hoping to find out something about “Rosebud” he uses light to shine down onto the single document lying on the table. He positions everything and everyone else in the background so the audience focuses on the document. Welles uses the different lighting techniques to show the happy points of living as well. In the scene where Kane and his workers are partying in the newspaper office, he brings out bright lights that promotes the American Dream by showing how it represents the high point of being