overrated but still moving and poetic

Rating: Null/10 (21 March 2002)

first of all, no matter what anyone might say, "citizen kane" is not the greatest movie of all time. people have a right to their opinions, but it's a safe bet that those who profess to consider this the best movie they've ever seen are trying to look sophisticated and 'in the know'. there are parts of this movie which, blaspheme i might, drag like a dead corpse and put you to sleep quicker than tylenol PM.
on the other hand, there are very touching parts in this film, the highlight for me being the dialogue about the ferry girl. it points to the ultimate incomprehensibility and perhaps even the hopelessness of life, with it's ephemerality and occasional moments of beauty and inspiration. the other moment that got to me was when kane trashes his mansion in a fit of fury at the extravagant, luxurious and absolutely empty objects that surround him. welles does a damn near perfect job of playing kane, who seeks for meaning and purpose in all the places they do not exist, and ends up regretting it. "rosebud" is, ultimately, the failure of the american dream:pretty women and wealth only promote and quicken spiritual decay, and success in society can leave a person unbelievably impoverished and unworthy on the inside.

watch the movie, but don't buy the hype.