Reflection Of Citizen Kane - 758 Words

The 1941 film Citizen Kane was written, directed, co-produced and starred by Orson Welles. The film won an Academy Award in 1942 for Best Screenplay and was also nominated for 8 other categories in the same year. The black and white movie was a hit for its time. The film challenged the traditional narrative and technical elements of the classic Hollywood cinema on multiple levels, especially for this time period in history. One of the first traditional narratives that Welles challenged was the order of events in the movie. Most films present their stories in chronological order, Citizen Kane does not do this. The film opens with narrated scenes of the entire life of Charles Foster Kane, however the series of events goes from the later†¦show more content†¦The plot duration is the time it took for Jerry Thompson to interview Kane’s ex-wife and friends in search of answers on Kane’s life and death, this took approximately one week. And then the screen duration is the entire movie, this would be almost 2 hours in length. (Barsam, Monahan 143) The setting in the movie is the time and place of the story. Citizen Kane showed multiple settings a many different times. The death had a setting of Kane alone in his home in his later years, in the 1940s. Other settings included an estate in Florida called Xanadu, where Kane and his wife Susan lived in his later years. Another setting was a music hall that Kane owned and where Susan performed for audiences, this as well was in his later years. His younger years included settings of his businesses are also shown throughout the first of the film. Thompson’s interviews of Kane’s ex-wife, his colleagues, his friends and even his butler provide settings of their locations (after his death) and then their flashbacks to Kane’s life including those time periods and settings. Another way that Welles challenged the technical elements of the Hollywood cinema was through the mise-en-sce`ne. Mise-en-sce`ne is the staging or the action of putting on a scene. One of the concepts in putting on a scene or staging is the illusion created from the lighting and camera angles. In one scene in the movie, Kane is in one door way watching his wife Susan leave out of their home,Show MoreRelatedReflection Of Citizen Kane757 Words   |  4 PagesOrson Welles’s Citizen Kane is a revolutionary film. Although it might not look like much to the modern viewer, many aspects of the film were the first of their kind to appear and are still used today. One thing I noticed throughout the film was the use of reflections. The movie starts off with a montage of images of Xanadu, Charles Kane’s personal estate. One of the shots includes a beautiful reflection of the building in the water. When Kane dies and drops the snow globe, you see the nurse’s reflectionRead MoreCitizen Kane As A Dramatic Tragedy1372 Words   |  6 PagesThe 1941 film, Citizen Kane, is a dramatic tragedy that chronicles the life of Charles Foster Kane from boyhood to newspaper magnate. Along the way, characters try to figure out what life really means and question if the â€Å"American Dream† is really all it is cracked up to be. Directed by Orson Welles with cinematography by Gregg Toland, the film won the New York Film Critics Award as best picture, and received nine Academy Award nominations, but won only one for best Screenplay for Welles and HermanRead MoreFilm Analysis Of Citizen Kane1299 Words   |  6 PagesCitizen Kane incorporates a well-rounded variety of shots and angles that make the film more entertaining. This movie is significant because the American people will always be able to relate to it. There will always be a rich politician who wants to change things for the better. Sometimes, scandal and broken promises ensue. The American people will always want someone that they can trust to make their lives better. It is interesting to note that this film combines multiple genres, giving it a factorRead MoreOrson Welles’s Citizen Kane (1941) and Akira Kurosawa’s Rashomon (1950)1852 Words   |  7 Pages Introduction: At first glance, Citizen Kane and Rashomon seem structurally similar to each other and as well each explores the concept of truth. They both use multiple narratives to tell their stories; however, the idea of truth is handled differently in each. Citizen Kane is a fictionalized documentary about the life of wealthy newspaperman Charles Kane. In Rashomon, while each narration widens understanding of the motivations of the narrators of the event, only one of the varying accounts isRead MoreCitizen Kane : Character Analysis : Citizen Kane1337 Words   |  6 PagesAnalysis: Kane Citizen Kane one of the consistently top ranked films of all time, A film that would change the course and style of film from that point on Its ability to direct the audience’s attention with its many remarkable and breath-taking scenes. It employed many new cinematic and innovative techniques that apply to lighting, sound mixing and editing that been emulated ever since. The character that we see take the greatest advantages of these new techniques is Charles Foster Kane, utilizingRead MoreGreat Gatsby and Citizen Kane compare and contrast Essay examples677 Words   |  3 Pages The Great Gatsby Citizen Kane You are today where your thoughts have brought you; you will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you. - James Allen The Great Gatsby and Citizen Kane are both classic American stories about the so called â€Å"American Dream†. The main characters in both stories are Mr. Gatsby and Mr. Kane. They each come from similar backgrounds. They also both hold much power as adults. A difference between the two is one chose their way of living the other did not. He wasRead MoreWhy Citizen Kane is the Best Movie Ever Made Essay760 Words   |  4 PagesThe debate over Casablanca and Citizen Kane has been a classic argument between film critics and historians alike, and this is because both of these pieces are timeless pictures that have managed to captivate audiences well after their era. On a broad spectrum analysis this is an apples and oranges debate as the two films both have great cinematographic value but for different reasons. However, the real question at hand is which film is the greatest? Which film transformed the future of AmericanRead MoreCitizen Kane Essay1194 Words   |  5 PagesCiti zen Kane Citizen Kane is often called the greatest film ever made. Its use of film techniques often taken for granted nowadays were completely new and had not been done before. Simple things like ceilings on the sets and realistic scenes such as the newsreel, which would not stand out in a modern film, were combined to make a film full of innovative techniques. The director, Orson Welles, developed the use of deep focus to make the flat cinema screen almost becomeRead MoreEssay on Citizen Cane Questionaire1377 Words   |  6 PagesCitizen Kane Questionnaire View the movie CITIZEN KANE (1941) for discussion in class on week four and to submit week five. Be sure to view the film at least twice before workshop number four. Read the information in this syllabus about this movie. Research it online at http://www.filmsite.org/citi.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizen_Kane, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0033467/, http://www.cinepad.com/reviews/kane.htm, etc. Then complete the following questionnaire A. Literary ElementsRead More Citizen Kane: Exposing the Truth about William Randolph Hearst3876 Words   |  16 PagesCitizen Kane: Exposing the Truth about William Randolph Hearst Many have called Citizen Kane the greatest cinematic achievement of all time. It is indeed a true masterpiece of acting, screen writing, and directing. Orson Welles, its young genius director, lead actor, and a co-writer, used the best talents and techniques of the day (Bordwell 103) to tell the story of a newspaper giant, Charles Kane, through the eyes of the people who loved and hated him. However, when it came out, it was scorned