On power, means and the collapse of ideals

Since the mid-1950s, and not since its premiere in 1941, everyone has considered “Citizen Kane” the best movie in the history of cinema. It often tops the charts in movie magazines. I am not a supporter of consensus, as there is often some ambiguity and intellectual delivery in consistent decisions. Choosing the movie as the best ever seems a bit daring. But many factors went into creating this celluloid masterpiece, especially the crystallization of various artistic, narrative and photographic innovations and the important history that was made in it. A film with theatrical narrative power, and a highly contrasted image that appreciates the small details. The insistence on depth of field and wide angles in photography and long sequential shots, taking the camera out of the frame and montage and using sound as a narrative tool, was a revolution in the aesthetics of the seventh art. The film is not only an autobiography of a “fictional character”, but also of a society and a time. Its deep complexity and perfection of composition make it an indisputable cinematographic masterpiece.

Orson Welles was allowed to produce the film, direct it, play the title role, write the script, and make an independent decision about the details in front of and behind the camera, as well as the final version and how it should be portrayed for film. Welles had an extraordinary expressionist emergence and maturity in film history. He was just 26 years old when he presented the strength of the relationship between power and the media, and demonstrated Charles Foster Kane’s (Orson Welles) use of his newspaper for propaganda purposes, campaigns and personal interests, and as a tool to destroy enemies. The film opens with Ken’s death in his huge “Xanadu” mansion amid vast gardens, where he spent his last years alone in his palace surrounded by works of art and statues. Ken had all the ingredients of power: money, fame, power, and the media. Moments after meeting death, he utters the word “rosebud” with his last breath. From here, the film begins with a “flashback” of Kane’s life, which posed a mystery to many, and his death, which raised questions. Journalist Jerry Thompson (William Alland) decides to search and investigate to discover the secret of his last word.
Apart from its impeccable text, which addresses issues such as the absurd, nostalgia, the value of simplicity, ambition, love and vanity, “Citizen Kane” is a critique of the power of the press and the tremendous influence of the press. in citizenship and politics. The film is primarily a caricature of the businessman, politician and owner of the largest newspaper series of the 20th century, William Randolph Hearst. The latter controlled the press and in 1898 accelerated the declaration of war by the United States against Spain. That year, a battleship of the United States Navy sank in Havana Bay. The journalist Hearst sent the cartoonist Frederick Remington to the scene, who made sure upon arrival that there was nothing strange and that the drowning did not justify the war. He sent a telegram to Hearst, in which he said: “Everything is calm, there are no problems, there will be no war, I hope to return.” But the answer came: “Please stay. “Prepare the photos and I will prepare the war.” Like Hearst, Kane’s journalistic ambition only depended on the number of newspapers he could sell. Both men engaged in pretending and making up success stories rather than reporting real events. The result of these practices led to the creation of a new type of journalism called “yellow journalism.” Hearst’s strength is reflected in the film. Photography was not an easy task. He tried to stop filming and actually succeeded more than once, then the premiere was postponed due to pressure from a powerful press mogul who was attacking the film in the media and trying to prevent it from being distributed. Wells was accused of being a communist. When it was released, the film was not commercially successful.
“Citizen Kane” is everything, the essence of life and the vicissitudes of the years. Young Kane made a name for himself when he took over a troubled newspaper. Seizing the opportunity to make a difference, motivated by socialist ideals, he wanted to be a citizen like everyone else. The movie shows the effect of capitalism on everything. Kane’s strength pushed him into politics and building his empires without scruples. He betrayed his ideals and isolated himself from his friends. He was someone who needed love, but couldn’t give love. “Citizen Kane” is not just a movie story. Cinema in the United States before 1941 is not the same as after.

The film shows the effect of capitalism on everything

The power of the film’s many images cannot be ignored. The power does not diminish with the years, but it gains intensity and mystery. The hyperbaroque world of Ken and Wells is ideal for talking about many topics. The power of journalism, investigation, innocence, American political hypocrisy, the greed of the banks and the use of money in the greedy capitalist system … and all this without losing the human dimension such as friends, betrayal, the One man’s love and struggle to change the world and how life mercilessly defeated him. What appears at first glance as a parody of a journalistic monster, then turns into a moral myth, then into overwhelming melodrama, and finally into film in every sense of the word, like a dream. Dreams of strength and ambition, an impossible return to a distant past, where happiness was only possible thanks to a wooden sled.
Welles never appeared as a cinematographer on his debut film. He defined the use of cinema and each point of light. In each scene, there is something early visual that changes the notion of dramatic sequence and contains thoughts or feelings of emotional or psychological depth. In the movie, the shadow is more important than the light. The scenes are dense, the great palace, with its enormous walls and doors, deepens the space and returns to the dramatic roots of the theater. Allow life, in all its complexities, to penetrate its fissures. Watching “Citizen Kane” today does not give the impression that seventy-nine years have passed since its first appearance, but there are still seventy-nine years left before it was understood and absorbed in all its aesthetic, moral, intellectual, and philosophical grandeur.

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