Why watch Citizen Kane?

Citizen Kane is often called “the greatest American movie ever made.” But why? What is the historical significance of Citizen Kane, and why do so many consider it the best American film ever made?

It was its stunning cinematography, integral sound production, non-linear screenplay, and a thought provoking ending that resulted in influences on modern day cinema.

Cinematography

How movies are shot today is heavily influenced by Citizen Kane's cinematography. Orson Wells, a first-time director, brought ideas to the set that traditional Hollywood filmmakers would never contemplate or be brave enough to try. He used cinematographer Gregg Toland, who considered Citizen Kane to be the height of his career.

Citizen Kane did not look like most American movies of its era. One of the reasons the movie was so distinct was because they used lighting and editing to their advantage, something different from other films at the time.

Lighting was used for scenes depicting Kane’s youth, stylistic virtuosity, as well as for symbolic effects. For example, in some instances Kane's face appears split in half, one side glowing brightly and the other obscured by darkness. The contrasting lights suggest Kane’s mixture of decency and corruption.

Editing and special effects also helped in crafting the story. There was some type of special effects work in over 80% of the film, such as miniatures, matte shots, double exposures, and multiple exposures. This film's editing often works in conjunction with sound techniques, making it more difficult to isolate it. 

Sound

Sound was also an integral part of the production of Citizen Kane. Every sound had to evoke images.

James G. Stewart (pictured on the left), Welles' sound operator, helped him discover that virtually every visual technique has its equivalent sound.

Welles would often transition from one time period or location to the other with a shocking sound transition.

In addition, the dialogue was frequently overlapped, especially in comical sequences where multiple characters are trying to communicate simultaneously.

Welles also incorporated musical themes as well, assigned to numerous characters and events in the film. The Rosebud motif, for example, is introduced in the opening sequence, and when Rosebud is mentioned during the investigation, a variation of the motif often underlines the dialogue.

The Rosebud in Citizen Kane is the brand name of a cheap wooden sled which Kane was riding the same day he was taken from his home and mother. It symbolized the simplicity, comfort, and lack of responsibility. Most importantly, it represented his mother's affection, which he never truly lost. 

Screenplay

The film 'Citizen Kane' is the biography of Charles Foster Kane, a powerful newspaper tycoon. It was based on the life of the newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst.

The screenplay was intriguing, as it lays out the plot in a non-linear manner. We have seen similar techniques that have been used in Shakespeare plays.

In the opening scene of Citizen Kane, we start off with a newsreel that showcases the entire life of the antihero, deflating any traditional tension seen from other films.

In the past, movies followed a straight timeline, starting with the opening scene and ending with the finale.

By hopping between contradictory and overlapping versions of Kane's life, Citizen Kane had introduced the unreliable narrator into cinema.

Later, a reporter pieces together Kane's personal life as Citizen Kane's story alternates between several narrators, with the subjective perspectives coming together to convey the story's message. Each perspective provides a cohesive picture of the man's life, and proves that no individual account is adequate enough to encapsulate a person’s life and its overall impact.

Consequently, this leaves viewers with no full understanding of the character, and it is a technique that filmmakers even avoid today. But, the introduction of subjective viewpoints to cinema had proved transformative, as characters grew more complex and multidimensional.

Ending

The thought provoking ending in Citizen Kane needs to be discussed. The audience still does not have an understanding of the main character even by the end of Citizen Kane.

However, the film makes it apparent that they couldn't have possibly done so, and the story somewhat ends without a satisfying resolution. It was unusual and unheard of at the time, but it has been used quite commonly since.

Final Thoughts

Even if Citizen Kane was groundbreaking at the time, why do so many still continue to call it one of the greatest movies ever made?

It really is difficult to debate against the idea that Citizen Kane "is the best American film ever made," because any subsequent film striving for that title would have almost certainly have borrowed heavily from Welles' film techniques.

Welles' use of cinematography, sound that's an intrinsic element of the production, a screenplay which sets out the story in a non-linear format, and then a thought-provoking finale, resulted in a tremendous influence on modern day film.