No longer "the best film of all time"

Rating: 9/10 (31 March 2005)

I have shown "Citizen Kane" several times to my film classes, and the result is universally the same: So what?
And they're right. While the film may have broken ground in its day, like Kane himself it's aging not-so-gracefully in the 21st century.
The acting is stilted  especially Joseph Cotton's. The scenes sometimes go on way too long. The music is ponderous.
As film history it's still a gem. But as measured by current cinema standards it's getting a bit senile. I look forward to the day it slowly slides from "10 best" lists so that I no longer feel compelled to show it to introductory film students.
UPDATE (12/26/07)
That day has come  that is, I know longer show "Citizen Kane" to introductory film students, though sometimes I allow them extra credit for viewing it on their own. The film I show instead from the same era is "Casablanca", which receives much better reviews from this generation of audiences, especially young women.