Can you believe people actually don't like Citizen Kane?

Rating: Null/10 (24 January 2001)

Perfection! Masterpiece! What more can you say about THE Citizen Kane. On my list as one of the best films of all time. The technical genius amazes me every time I watch it. No wonder this film is in every film class. Now I understand why some people do not like this film. These people do what I like to call "passive viewing". You can't just watch a film and give it the thumbs up or thumbs down. You must PAY ATTENTION to the details that make the movie. What makes this film so great is that Welles tells his story of the newspaper tycoon not only with words but with the camera. Every shot and person is framed accordingly for a specific reason. For example, in the famous scene where Kane's mother signs him away to Thatcher the banker Welles uses what is called a deep focus. The frame is set up so that from left to right it goes father, Kane, Thatcher, and Kane's mother. The brilliance is that Kane can be seen through the window of the shot in the foreground. The shot symbolises the struggle between kane's father and Kane's mother and Thatcher. Kane is in the middle of this outside not knowing that his future is being decided for him while his father fights for him to stay. Perfect deep focus shot showing the relationships and struggle over young Kane. This is just one example that you can say but you could analyse EVERY shot in the entire film and point out why it is so brilliant. I also enjoyed the beginning of the movie where it shows the trespassing sign and then the camera works its way up the fence dissolving from fence to fence. Then when you see the house a careful viewer would notice that as the house shots dissolve into closer shots of the house you would notice that the light on in the room never moves. The entire shot changes except that one window with the light on never moves. Not easy to do. The brilliance of the shots of the fence are that they really capture how empty and closed in he was. An active viewer would notice that these shots symbolises the "jail" that he built from himself. Look around the shot next time you watch. You will see so many things and if you think about you will understand the meaning. I think people don't enjoy this film because it requries something that most people don't like doing. This activity is THINKING!! People prefer movies that tell them how to feel and think. Film is art and can be entertainment. Citizen Kane is a masterpiece of artisic cinema. If you don't like Citizen Kane you just don't understand it and should go watch that new stupid movie with the cheerleaders. Bottom Line: Welles is GOD go see his other movies and appreciate his genius!