Citizen Kane (1941)

Following the death of publishing tycoon Charles Foster Kane, reporters scramble to uncover the meaning of his final utterance; 'Rosebud'.

Director:

Orson Welles

Writers:

Herman J. Mankiewicz (original screen play), Orson Welles (original screen play)

Stars:

Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Dorothy Comingore

Top Rated Movies #95 | Won 1 Oscar. Another 9 wins & 13 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Joseph Cotten	...	Jedediah Leland / Screening Room Reporter
Dorothy Comingore	...	Susan Alexander Kane
Agnes Moorehead	...	Mary Kane
Ruth Warrick	...	Emily Monroe Norton Kane
Ray Collins	...	James W. Gettys
Erskine Sanford	...	Herbert Carter / Screening Room Reporter
Everett Sloane	...	Mr. Bernstein
William Alland	...	Jerry Thompson
Paul Stewart	...	Raymond
George Coulouris	...	Walter Parks Thatcher
Fortunio Bonanova	...	Matiste
Gus Schilling	...	The Headwaiter / Screening Room Reporter
Philip Van Zandt	...	Mr. Rawlston
Georgia Backus	...	Miss Anderson
Harry Shannon	...	Kane's Father

Storyline

A group of reporters are trying to decipher the last word ever spoken by Charles Foster Kane, the millionaire newspaper tycoon: "Rosebud". The film begins with a news reel detailing Kane's life for the masses, and then from there, we are shown flashbacks from Kane's life. As the reporters investigate further, the viewers see a display of a fascinating man's rise to fame, and how he eventually fell off the top of the world.

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Plot Keywords:

new york | narcissism | materialism | newspaper publisher | suicide attempt | 

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Taglines:

The classic story of power and the press.

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

5 September 1941 (USA)

Also Known As:

American

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$839,727 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$1,585,634

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,594,107

Company Credits

Production Co:

RKO Radio Pictures, Mercury Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

119 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

For this movie Orson Welles, along with cinematographer Gregg Toland, pioneered "deep focus", a technique that keeps every object in the foreground, center and background in simultaneous focus. This brought a sense of depth to the two-dimensional world of movies.

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Goofs

The long dolly shot from outside the Kane house in Colorado and all the way back inside through two rooms, ending on the far side of a table, could not have been achieved with the table in place and, instead, the table had to be moved into position once the camera was past. It's an almost perfect illusion except that the hat on the table is still wobbling slightly (from the sudden movement) by the time it comes into shot.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Charles Foster Kane: Rosebud...

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Crazy Credits

In a very rare move the director's credit is shown on the same card as the cinematographer's. This was Orson Welles's personal decision to show his thanks to cinematographer Toland for his enormous contributions to the film, meaning equal rights.

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Alternate Versions

Some of the Turner prints have the famous RKO logo removed and replaced with the Turner logo.

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Connections

Referenced in Citizen Sam (2006)

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Soundtracks

Pilgrim's Chorus
(from "Tannhäuser")
Written by Richard Wagner
Performed in a "News On The March" sequence

User Reviews

A great piece of cinema, a magnificent example of storytelling

I've heard so much told about Citizen Kane and Orson Welles, so I finally decided to get the film, and find out if it really is all that it's cracked up to be... I must say, it's great. The plot is great, and the way it's told is amazing. The story is first summed up in a matter of minutes, about 15, to be more accurate, and then the rest of the film has characters telling the story through flashbacks and retelling. We hear just about every opinion about Charles Foster Kane, apart from his own. The story is told after his death, and we see everything important that leads up to it, and only in the very end do we understand him, only then do we fully understand who he was, and what made him so. The ending also reveals one of the very most important things in any man or woman... one thing that everyone needs and knows of. I won't reveal it here, as it would almost be a crime to spoil the experience of this film to anyone. The acting is excellent; Welles himself is stellar as Kane, and his impressive appearance, along with his commanding voice, makes the character a forceful sight, nay, experience. The characters are well-written and credible. The character of Kane is probably the most well-rounded and perfectly built up I've seen in a movie, ever. The cinematography is excellent... the editing is great. I can't praise the angles, pans, zooms and transitions enough... it just has to be experienced. Now, for the one thing I can criticize in the film; the pacing. It's only two hours long, but it feels like much, much more. There were portions of the film where it felt like it didn't move at all. When there weren't great dialog or something equally as good in the film, it dragged terribly. There were too many scenes where the dialog seemed pointless, as well, I think. It didn't seem to be leading to anything. However, this criticism is so minor, due to the ending more than making up for it, that I still give this film a perfect score. I can't do anything but agree with its placing at the top of the top #250 films of all time, here on IMDb. As I'm writing this, it's #11. That's pretty much what it deserves, in my opinion. Not higher, not lower. Not the greatest film of all time(that pretty much still belongs to The Godfather, I think... at least, I haven't seen a better film than that, yet), but definitely far up there. I recommend this to any fan of film in general, and anyone who thinks they can understand it; it has a truly profound point that any man(and woman) should know of(preferably through seeing the film for themselves). Don't let the fact that it's old and black & white deter you from seeing this masterpiece. A true cinematic masterpiece, in every sense of the word. 10/10