Rating: 
Summary: why do people like this movie?
Review: I have never understood why this movie is consistently rated as the best American film ever made. The cinematography is too dark almost the whole time, making the viewer strain to see faces clearly enough to tell the characters apart. The plot is too psychological to follow without effort, and Kane himself is not a good enough character to justify such effort. I never felt strongly enough about him (either way) to care about anything he does or experiences. Basically I would rate this movie as a pretentious waste of two perfectly good hours.
Rating: 
Summary: one of the best
Review: the cinematography in this movie may be the best of all time. the deep focus cameras used here are STILL not in widespread use (why? i have NO idea), but seeing the foreground and the background in focus at the same time is something that separates this movie from almost all others. it really creates a feeling that is laregly unmatched. buy the movie, you wont regret it.
Rating: 
Summary: One of the greatest ever
Review: Citizen Kane is a beautifully crafted series of flashbacks and remembrances. It is a wonderfully engaging story of a dynamic man in a dynamic world. It is a remarkable statement for the wide range of time periods that it covers. It is a deceptively simple story centering on perhaps the most meaningful word in all of moviedom.Behind all that, Citizen Kane is the American cinema. There is not a major director today who has not been influenced by the genius Orson Welles put forth in his debut masterpiece. The film centers around a group of reporters investigating the origin of the dying newspaper tycoon (loosely based on William Randolph Hearst), Charles Foster Kane's last word: Rosebud. The movie begins with an unforgettable newsreel montage summarizing the man's life. From there on, the viewer is thrown into a gloriously chaotic world of flashbacks upon flashbacks, in which the viewer slowly learns just about everything about Charles Foster Kane's enthralling life. From his trying childhood to his rise to power to the pinnacle of his success to his marital difficulties to his fall from grace, the story of Charles Foster Kane is presented for the viewer in a way that few other movies can offer: magically. Citizen Kane, arguably, is THE triumph of the American cinema, and one of the greatest films every created. To many, iy is THE greatest. To me, it stands next only to THE GODFATHER.
Rating:
Summary: It's hard to think of anything new to say about this film...
Review: It's truly difficult to come up with anything original to say about Citizen Kane, as it is one of the films that has been endlessly discussed, dissected, and reviewed over the years. To get to the point, though, there IS a reason for all this fuss. Admittedly, Citizen Kane may not be THE GREATEST FILM OF ALL TIME because that title really doesn't have any meaning - there are so many types of films that to compare them ALL in one category is ridiculous. Nevertheless, as stated earlier, there is a reason why Citizen Kane has been ranked as it has. Although it is easy to dismiss Citizen Kane as no longer being as groundbreaking as it once was, this is a silly way to approach film. So what if it is no longer new technologically? Watched as objectively as possible, like any other film, Citizen Kane is very entertaining and has many obvious merits. For instance, the acting is top notch, as is the insightful, cynical script. Yes, the cinematography is good too. Just in case there are people out there who aren't familiar with the plot of this film, it is a series of flashbacks on the life of Charles Foster Kane, a man who controlled numerous newspapers and a vast fortune. Many films dealing with tycoons have been made before and since Citizen Kane, but none have been able to deal with the topic as brilliantly as Orson Welles did in his remarkable debut. Anyhow, it may be that Citizen Kane has aged some, and it is hard to identify ONE FILM as the greatest of all time. But after watching Citizen Kane with an open mind it becomes clear why people might rate it as such - from start to finish, this is a beautifully rendered, interesting, and amusing film. As far as unforgettable moments go, it's tough to beat ROSEBUD! So go see what the fuss is all about and enjoy two hours of classic entertainment!
Rating:
Summary: This is film artistry at the top of the form
Review: Many call it the best film ever, and I disagree with that only because I don't think there is any one best film. But in the realm of perfectly executed movies, this baby is in the short list, for sure. The story is believable, the characters interesting and played with great energy by the actors, the plot is up there with the best GReek and Shakespearean tragedies, and the filming - Wow! - what can one say about the filming other than that it is pure artistry? Every camera angle, every actor positioning, every light, all thought out seriously by Welles for dramatic and symbolic pointing. This is one of my favorite movies because it does everything well - plot, acting, filming, and creative and symbolic use of placement of people and objects. This is one to own.
Rating:
Summary: Just watch it and get over it
Review: For those of you wondering if you want to watch this movie or not, come on let's get real. You have to watch this movie sooner or later, simply because it is ranked, over and over again, the best movie ever. Vanity? Sure it is. But isn't it bother you, when people talk about it all the time and you don't know what the hack? So let's just watch it and get over it. I did exactly that. Well, it is a good movie. The use of lighting, the angle of the camera, blah blah blah. It just doesn't seem original to me. I guess I should blame this on the movie's originality, I mean its technologies are repeated by later movies so so many times, that its originality doesn't look original to me anymore. I guessed out what "rosebud" long before the ending, these tricks are no longer new. I have the same problem with Star Wars. People keep telling me:"Do you know how innovative, how shocking the movie is at THAT time?" Yeah I can see that, but I live at THIS time and I am spoiled into having higher expectations than the people lived at THAT time, right? So let's watch this wonderful movie (at THAT time) and move on with our lives.
Rating:
Summary: The gratest film ever made? NO SUCH THING.
Review: Citizen Kane is not the best movie of all time,because there is no one movie that can be considerd to be better than any other. The only film that you can say is the best is your personal favorite, but that is an individual thing and not an overal sweeping statement. But what is undeniable is that Citizen Kane is one of, if not the, most influential films of all time. My personal opinion is that Citizen Kane is one of the best movies of all time. It is not my all time favorite, The Passion of Joan of Arc is, but it is certainly on my short list of all time favorites. So my opinion is watch it, if you like it, fine, if you dont, thats fine to, but if you are lover of films like i am, you realy should see this film at least once, if not twice, if for nothing else than to see the film that ifluenced so many other films and filmmakers since.
Rating:
Summary: Three Lives Converge to become One Great DVD
Review: These two discs tells the story of three men William Randolph Hearst, Orson Welles, and Charles Foster Kane. The film stands alone as the greatest film barring maybe Casablanca. With commentaries by critic Roger Ebert and filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich, You will begin to understand the importance and brilliance of Citizen Kane. The other disc includes a brutally honest look at the lives of Welles and Hearst. After watching "The Battle Over Citizen Kane," you will notice interesting paralells not only between Kane and Hearst, but even Kane and Welles such as their childhoods and tempers. Buy it and do not be afraid to learn too.
Rating:
Summary: 61 years after its release, still the greatest film by miles
Review: Simply the greatest film ever made. The use of the camera is absolutely stunning. Genius at every turn. Cameras moving through furniture, spectacular deep focus photography, interesting angles, the camera coming in through a sky light, alot of the movie is an illusion using drawings in lieu of actual sets, but who would know? Look for brilliant compositions at every turn, particularly when the young Kane is taken from his home by Thatcher and in the night club where Susan Alexander performs. My least favorite part of the movie: Kane dancing and singing at the party w/ the greatest newspaper men. This seems to be Welles wanting to show that he can dance and that he's the master of his domain. Brilliant transition:
"Merry Xmas Charles", 20 years pass, "and a happy New Year". Note the use of lighting to highlight or de-highlight a character and make them seem mysterious/obscure.
Rating:
Summary: Paved the way for great cinema
Review: I first watched "Citizen Kane" in college in a class called history of journalism. We were drawing parallels between fictional newspaper giant Charles Foster Kane and real-life media mogul William Randolph Hearst. There are so many coincidences that it's no wonder this film was almost halted before it hit theatres.
But it's still fantastic and especially revolutionary for 1941. Multi-hyphenate Orson Welles and cinematographer Gregg Tollan employed innovative filmmaking tricks that had never been thought of before. And Welles delivers a stirring performance as sometimes carefree, sometimes brutal, but always wealthy Kane. It's an engrossing and interesting story filled with success, heartache, and scandal.
In order to appreciate the caliber of this movie, you must understand film history and how advanced this movie was compared with other films made around the same time. You must also have some knowledge of Hearst's life so you can appreciate some of the humor and satire. Otherwise, you will find it boring and certainly won't understand why the AFI called it the greatest movie ever.
Do I think it's the greatest movie ever made? No. What is the point in calling a movie the greatest ever made when movies are still being produced today? Who's to say that a movie won't come along in the future that leaves "Citizen Kane" in the dust? It hasn't happened yet, but it could. Either way, this film will still have a prominent place in cinema history that will never be taken away from it.
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