Why is Citizen Kane such a highly regarded movie?

Question

I see this movie listed as so many peoples' #1 favorite move (as well as the #1 on the American Film Institute list of best films), and am curious as why. I thought it was a good film and definitely worth seeing, but I wouldn't consider it the best American film ever. The acting was great, but I thought the story line was a little choppy and if Kane really wanted Rosebud he could have gotten it any time. Is it just because of the acting? Film direction? The moral of the story?

Why do you think Citizen Kane is such a great film?

Answer 1

Citizen Kane is considered to be great because of the story telling technique and various other techniques that this movie started off. Apart from acting, story line : the imagery, the flashback etc etc were handled in a fresh trend setting way. The greatness is wrt to the context. If you shift yourself to that timeframe and that artistic paradigm, you probably will see why this is such a ground breaking movie.

Answer 2

There are tens of reasons why Citizen Kane is ranked number one.

To begin with the film was amost never shown because William Randolph Hearst, the real Kane saw a screening of the film and knew it was about his personal life and did everything he could to get the movie shelved. He would have succeded but he ran out of money trying to buy the whole world one piece at a time.

Next, the film was written by a blacklist jewish writer Mankiewitz who was thought to be a communist.

Also, it was the first film by Orson Welles who orginated many of the camera shots used to get the images he wanted. Many of those techniques have become standard now but they were innovative then.

As for Rosebud, that was Hearst's nickname for his girlfriend's vagina. That was the thing that incensed Hearst the most. The puzzles, and the statues were all true along with the mansion. They took some liberty with the girls career.

Anyway, Hearst threatened the studios to expose the fact that they were all Jews and that many of their actors were gay if they did not shelve the film. Instead, the film can out and studios have had the upperhand on publications ever since.

Answer 3

It might be helpful to watch the movie "RKO 281" about the making of "Citizen Kane". There are some insights to what was actually going on behind the scenes and the true meaning of "Rosebud"and it's not a sled. There is also a documentary that I have yet to see but plan to called
"The American Experience"
The Battle Over Citizen Kane.

Answer 4

I think it's definitely in the top ten. Definitely better than Casablanca. My personal favorites are Double Indemnity and Chinatown. I think you need to remember when Citizen Kane was released; 1941. America was still getting over the great depression. Before the depression, everyone had that American dream to go from rags to riches. Then by the early 1930's, the dream was gone. Citizen Kane is a story America could really relate to at the time. It's the story of an average,poor American who became extremely wealthy but in the end none of it mattered. In the end, it was just his old sled that he really wanted. Americans could probably relate to it again today with everything that's going on in the economy.

Answer 5

the dialogue and camera work and acting make it an outstanding film. the significance of rosebud is not the sled per se but the happiness of his chilhood. the happiness that was lost and that all his money couldn't get back.

but what someone thiks is the best is subjective.

oh, and the name rosebud was an inside joke. a pet name that hearst had for marion davies' private parts.

Answer 6

I liked the movie, but i wouldn't say it was the greatest. It's because of the film directions and i think he was the first to use flashbacks....

Answer 7

rosebud, it was his sled, there i just saved you two long boring hours

Answer 8

I don't know, because I think it s*cked.