Citizen Kane (1941) Official Trailer #1 – Orson Welles Movie

Today’s movie of the day is Citizen Kane (1941). It was directed and produced by Orson Welles, who also starred in the movie. Many critics and experts consider Citizen Kane the greatest film ever made.

Synopsis

A team of reporters is attempting to decode Charles Foster Kane’s final words: “Rosebud.” Charles is a millionaire newspaper tycoon. The film opens with a news clip summarizing Kane’s life for the general public, followed by flashbacks of Kane’s life. As the reporters continue their investigation, the viewers see a fascinating man’s meteoric climb to popularity and final fall from grace.

Fun Facts

• Citizen Kane was a remarkable film in that it included performers who were new to cinema.
• Ten actors were identified as Mercury Actors, members of Welles’s professional repertory group established for the Mercury Theater’s stage and radio performances. Welles founded the Mercury Theater alongside Houseman in 1937.
• Robert Wise and associate editor Mark Robson edited Citizen Kane. Both would go on to become successful filmmakers.
• The film received Academy Award nominations in nine categories, including Best Writing (Original Screenplay), which was done by Mankiewicz and Welles.
• Citizen Kane is lauded for its photography by Gregg Toland, editing by Robert Wise, music by Bernard Herrmann, and storyline, all of which are regarded as creative and precedent-setting.
• Despite critical acclaim, Citizen Kane failed to repay its production expenses at the box office.
• After its first release, the movie slipped from view but was reintroduced to the public eye when it was lauded by French critics like André Bazin and re-released in 1956.
• In 1958, during the 1958 World Expo, the film was voted ninth on the renowned Brussels 12 list.
• On September 13, 2011, the movie was released on Blu-ray as a special edition for the 70th-anniversary.
• Citizen Kane was inducted into the United States National Film Registry in 1989 as part of the initial collection of 25 films chosen for preservation due to their “cultural, historical, or artistic significance.