Citizen Kane

When you have a 100 movie bucket list eventually you get to Citizen Kane.

Directed, starring and co-written by a 26 year old Orson Welles and claimed to be based on the life of William Randolph Hearst. It’s 1941 and business man and newspaper magnate, Charles Foster Kane (Welles), has passed away, alone in his Florida monument he built to himself. As his staff at the New York Inquirer watch an obituary to him, it feels empty never getting under the skin of the man. How do they find out more? Is there more to know by understanding his last words “Rosebud”? Reporter Jerry Thompson (William Allard) is tasked with going to meet those who knew him and try to understand Kane better.

Seen by many as the greatest film ever made, Citizen Kane is indeed a cinematic masterclass. It’s a film that even ayt 81 years old it has a story that is incredibly relevant, exploring the influence of the media and entitlement. We also have a personal story of a young man who feels abandoned by his parents and spends the rest of his life compensating via control and a refusal to let things go.

Welles towers over the film, not only directing and co-writing but the story revolves around his superb performance as Kane. There’s a wonderful support cast, with many making screen debuts, from Welles own theatre company, with Joseph Cotton, Dorothy Comingore and Everett Sloane amongst the standouts.

The story itself is not only still relevant, but also beautifully layered, it’s dramatic, humorous and dark in equal measure.

Then of course there is the cinematic genius on show, because it’s reputation well earned. The way it’s shot, the way scenes are framed, the way we look up at some characters and look down on others and smart metaphors seamlessly worked in. All coming together to show how a story should be told on screen and many of them used time and again since.

Citizen Kane is a classic with good reason. Welles shows his genius as a writer, performer and director. Guidng us through a tale of obsession, power, regret and loneliness. Beautifully shot it is and remains a cinematic treat.