Citizen Kane

           In Citizen Kane, as we discussed in class, the shots in the movie showed a lot of depth.  I noticed that many shots did have a lot of depth, and I feel like that added to the movie a lot.  I think it added a lot of room to the shots and I never felt like a shot had too much action or was cramped.  Almost every shot Incorporated more than just the main characters of that scene.  Some shots showed things through windows or even the ceiling of a room.  I also liked how shots panned extremely long distances.  The very first shot, and the very last shot of Kane's mansion I liked very much.  In one shot you could see much more than even in an extreme long shot.  The depth made it very easy to watch and enjoy.
           Citizen Kane was directed, produced, and co-written by Orson Welles, he also played the lead role.  Citizen Kane proved to be his most important and influential film, it was a drama loosely based off of the life of William Randolph Hearst.  Citizen Kane is frequently cited as the best American film in history.  Foster Kane dies in his massive Florida estate uttering he last words, "Rosebud."  Reporter Jerry Thompson tries to uncover the meaning of his final words.  While the reporter interviews Kane's friends and family the viewer learns of Kane's accomplishments and pitfalls of his fantastic life.  Everything goes downhill when he runs for office and his opponent reveals that Kane is having an affair with a vocalist.  After forcing his now wife (Susan Alexander the vocalist) to be an opera signer he begins filling his massive estate called Xanadu with statues and novelties.  The only award that this film received was best original screenplay due to its controversy with William Randolph Hearst. 
           This article supported what I knew about the article.  We learned in class how Orson Welles based the film on William Randolph Hearst's like.  That it also did not receive very much recognition when it was first released and was almost destroyed.  I think it is awesome how Orson Welles can create such a fantastic movie and still play a main character. 
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/citizen_kane/
            I think that the cinematography of this movie was very well done.  I think that and movie director can learn from this movie.  Every shot was planned and done perfectly.  Every object located in each shot was put there intentionally and played a part in that scene.  Not only were the people involved, but the props also played an important role.  This movie was very easy to watch due to the planning of shots.  Every direcor can take lessons from this movie in order to learn how to set up every scene to make it count.
   
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5) ( x) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read.

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7) ( x) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks interpretation or originality.

8) ( x) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper.

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