The perfect film.

Rating: 10/10 (4 October 2006)

Citizen Kane is the film that is widely considered to be the best film ever made. It tells the story of Charles Kane, a young man with barely any idea how to run a business, who decides that he wants to run a newspaper. We follow through his life from his childhood all the way up to his death, where he mutters one word: "Rosebud". The subplot of the film is a reporter who is interviewing everybody that ever knew or worked with Kane, in hopes of finding out what Kane's famous last word means. While I personally wouldn't call this the greatest movie ever made, it is indeed the perfect film. Anybody who wants to study fine acting and fine directing, need only watch Orson Welles at his absolute best.
Citizen Kane is the study of an eccentric's life. He starts out as a young and cocky newspaper editor who eventually becomes an old and wise politician eccentric, building an insanely large mansion on a huge chunk of land just for his wife. The story of the film is very good, and the way it's put together makes the movie very interesting. It bounces back and forth between present day and flashbacks, weaving the story in and out as the reporter begins to get frustrated. Everyone spills their guts about Kane, but not one person can account for "rosebud". It seems no one will ever know, except the viewing audience when the classic twist ending is shown. Orson Welles' direction is very good, and you can tell that some present day director's have taken some tips. One of the best techniques is using ground shots to make Kane look larger than life.
The acting in the movie is very good, especially from Orson Welles. His awesome voice coupled with his amazing on screen dynamic makes him really fun to watch. Most of the Citizen Kane stars come from the Mercury Theatre radio program that Welles was a part of, and they all do very well in their first time on screen.
Overall, this is an amazing film, and though it's not my favourite personally, it is quite possibly the perfect film.
10/10