Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Gary Oldman | ... | Herman Mankiewicz | |
Amanda Seyfried | ... | Marion Davies | |
Lily Collins | ... | Rita Alexander | |
Tom Pelphrey | ... | Joe Mankiewicz | |
Arliss Howard | ... | Louis B. Mayer | |
Tuppence Middleton | ... | Sara Mankiewicz | |
Monika Gossmann | ... | Fraulein Freda | |
Joseph Cross | ... | Charles Lederer | |
Sam Troughton | ... | John Houseman | |
Toby Leonard Moore | ... | David O. Selznick | |
Tom Burke | ... | Orson Welles | |
Charles Dance | ... | William Randolph Hearst | |
Ferdinand Kingsley | ... | Irving Thalberg | |
Jamie McShane | ... | Shelly Metcalf | |
Jack Romano | ... | Sid Perelman |
1940. Film studio RKO hires 24-year-old wunderkind Orson Welles under a contract that gives him full creative control of his movies. For his first film, he calls in washed-up alcoholic Herman J Mankiewicz to write the screenplay. That film is "Citizen Kane," and this is the story of how it was written. Written by grantss
1940. Film studio RKO hires 24-year-old wunderkind Orson Welles under a contract that gives him full creative control of his movies. For his first film he calls in washed up alcoholic Herman J Mankiewicz to write the screenplay. That film is Citizen Kane and this is the story of how it was written.
I was quite excited at the release of this movie. Citizen Kane is one of the greatest films of all time and the making of it deserves a movie. And here we have it, directed by the great David Fincher (Se7en, Fight Club, Zodiac, The Social Network, Gone Girl, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) no less and with a good cast - Gary Oldman, Amanda Seyfried, Charles Dance, Lily Collins. Surely a recipe for a masterpiece?
Unfortunately, no. On the plus side, the story is reasonably interesting and the cast put in solid performances. Fincher's direction is spot-on, with the black-and-white cinematography an homage to Citizen Kane.
However, the plot is never very engaging. The story never really finds a centre and pretty much drifts along. It's not dull but has a listlessness to it nonetheless. The flashbacks, while adding information, don't help the momentum either, resulting in a start-stop feel to the main plot and a bit of confusion at times.
The conclusion is also a damp squib and is disparaging to one of the greatest creative forces in the history of cinema. It smacks of trying to make a controversy out of nothing.
Overall it's okay, but nothing more.