Citizen Kane

1) In class, we watched Citizen Kane. The film was voted the greatest film ever made and although there are other films that I think could be better than this film, I can see why it was voted the best film ever made. We discussed the significance of the film for the content within it and the specific shots that made it iconic. Orson Welles directed and starred in the film and although some of the scenes were a little confusing, the overall quality of the film is really great. We also discussed in class why the film was banned for a while but then was brought back and went on to become the greatest film of all time. This title was given to the film in 1998 by the American Film Institute. However at the time, when the film was made in 1941, it was almost not released and the studio RKO almost burned the negative.

2)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizen_Kane
This article basically tells about the history of the film and how the film was made as well as any history of Orson Welles and his involvement of the film. Probably the biggest part of this article was the section where it tells about the revival of the film and how it went from a box office failure to the #1 spot of AFI's (American Film Institute) 100 years...100 movies list. The biggest part of the article was the reception section of the film. What made it so big was that of nine nominations, the film only won one oscar for best screenplay. The article also said that not many people were happy with this decision. The last thing in the article that was really important was that it talked about how some contents of the film became huge in culture and then formed icons. One such icon was Welles' sled in the film, Rosebud. What made this such a film icon is that "Rosebud" was the last word that Welles' character says  before he dies.

3) The article basically tells about everything that the film has to offer, like we discusse in class. However, it can only tell you so much about the historical context. That context about pre-production, production itself, and post production is what the article tells about. However, it is not until you watch the film that you can trully appreciate how great the film really is and how and why it has made its way to take the number one spot and become the greatest film of all time. What made it so memorable was how you can appreciate it for its content and quality. 

4) I thought that the film was very well made and I can see how and why it should be and is number one on the list. However, I think that there are other films that should be in front of Citizen Kane on the list. I think that the film was very well done and that the camera shots were very well done by Orson Welles. I thought that it was very interesting about how they displayed the personal and professional struggles of Charles Foster Kane (Welles). I think that he is a character that we can all relate to at some point in our lives. What makes the film so great is just the story and how it tells the personal struggles of Welles' character and it shows the the strength and yet vulnerability of human life and luck. That is why the film is so important to film history. Because it helps us to relate to Kane and his struggles.