"I don't think any word can explain a man's life."Well this is certainly one way to start the list off.
After seeing CITIZEN KANE for the first time, with all of the buzz it has received, all the prizes it has won, and all the mystique it holds fresh on my mind, I can say with all honesty that in my opinion, it is a masterpiece. Its genius is undeniable, as are the repercussions it has had on cinema to this day. As a film on its own, it is a remarkable story of the downfall of a larger-than-life man. As a notable accomplishment in the art of film, with its reputation of being the single most important movie ever made, it is eternal.
The story of CITIZEN KANE is well-known. At its simplest form it is the biography of one of America’s wealthiest and most important tycoons, Charles Kane ( a conglomeration of the real life Howard Hughes and William Randolph Hearst), wrapped in the investigation of a reporter who is looking to find out what Kane’s dying word, ‘Rosebud’, meant. Orson Welles, in only his third role, plays Kane uncannily well. His performance could be considered the true birth of method acting, as he dives into the role headfirst, completely losing himself in the skin and emotional feel of the character. He is always convincing as a man who ages over thirty years, which is a testament to not only him, but the makeup crew as well as other personnel working on the technical aspects of the film.
I can’t say anything that hasn’t already been said about the technicalities of the film, only what I got out of them. Not only is the low-angle camera work, an angle which glorifies its shot as well as giving it a godly aspect to it, brilliant, it is not overused, which surprised me the most. Before watching the film I had read that CITIZEN KANE was the birthplace of the low-angle camera, so I assumed it would be used in every shot. It isn’t, Welles (who directed the film as well as starring in it), which could be one of the best compliments I could give the camerawork. Welles and cinematographer Gregg Toland don’t overindulge their work by making everyone and every location seem as important as life itself through the angle; they opt rather to use the appropriate angle at the appropriate time.
While CITIZEN KANE is an exemplary example of the importance of technical aspects in film, no film can reach the level of praise that KANE has received without a story. As is the camerawork, CITIZEN KANE’s story and the effects it has had in the film community are undeniable, and brilliant. From his raising as a child to his expulsion from every college he attended, from the purchase of his first newspaper firm to both of his terminated marriages, the story of CITIZEN KANE deconstructs its main character with a ferocity and depth unknown in film before its release. Welles lays all the emotions of his character on the table as they would have been seen in life, and the repercussions of his actions can be seen in Kane’s face as well as in the scenery around him, as his dream slowly unravels day-by-day, until the day he finally dies in his empty mansion, alone.
Although there are obviously other actors in the film, who play their roles well for the time in which CITIZEN KANE was made, this is Welles’ show. He directed it, he wrote it, he produced it, and he is Kane. He is the reason why the film is as great as it is, both technically and story-wise. In my opinion, this is one of the truly greatest films ever made.
A+
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