Citizen Kane (70th Anniversary) [HD]

A vanguard motion picture
Probably the most unfortunate thing that ever happened to `Citizen Kane' was that it found itself atop the AFI top film list. Now, no one can simply enjoy the film. Everyone feels compelled to scrutinize it and make a decision about its greatness. Asking whether `Citizen Kane' is the best film of the century is like asking if Marilyn Monroe was the most beautiful woman. It depends on whom you ask.

`Citizen Kane' is not the most entertaining film I've ever seen, but it is certainly one of the most important. It is a vanguard motion picture and a gargantuan achievement for Orson Welles. If you consider the fact that Welles was a 24 year old Hollywood outsider who had only done radio and theater when he landed the contract for this film, you begin to appreciate what a big deal it was. This was during a time when a few studios controlled every film that was made. How many 24 year old actor/directors can you name today, even in a world where independents abound?

The...

Ok...everyone relax!!!!
I had no intention of writng a review, but after reading several I couldn't stop myself.

It seems like most of the people here are falling into two camps, the "Film Snobs" and the " Folks whose brains have been rotted by MTV, etc..."

The comments of the"MTV people" seem to be typified by this quote I picked from out of many bad reviews: "Maybe you intellectual, artsy types go for this, but give me Star Wars any day!"

Where the "Snobs" counter back with:

"I cannot think of another film which so challenges the viewer time and time again. I still pick up little nuances, incredible effects and camara angles, and overlapping dialog on subsesquent showings. Gregg Toland's camerawork is justifiably among the most memorable in film."

Oh boy!

I, of course believe Citizen Kane is a great film, but I believe both sides in this argument are missing the point.

I really wish those who defended this movie...

Hmm...Worth the Upgrade From the Standard Disc Version? Depends!
This 70th Anniversary Blu-ray release of arguably the best film of all time is a bit of a mixed bag especially for those who already have the standard disc version Citizen Kane (Two-Disc Special Edition). My copy of the standard disc upscales very well in 1080p on my blu-ray player and while the picture quality is very good and bright, there are still very faint white spots in some frames for example in the scene where the reporter is reviewing the manuscript in the vault. The sound quality is also good there but this blu ray version has a vastly superior sound quality coming in DTS mono. The strange thing is that when it comes to the picture quality, the blu-ray shows a lot more grain when compared with the vault scene in the standard version and while the white spots are virtually a thing of the past, the lighting is pretty dark and at the end when the reporters leave Xanadu, you can hardly see a thing on the...

Click to Editorial Reviews