Citizen Kane

History has been far kinder to "Citizen Kane" than it has ever deserved. I cannot be convinced that the opinions of many of our online reviewers have not been influenced by that history. To begin with, I note that nearly every positive review opens with a mention of praise for the photography. Without debate, Gregg Toland is one of the visual masters in the cinema (i.e., "The Little Foxes", "The Grapes of Wrath", "Wuthering Heights", etc.), but here one must recognize the director's influence. Welles intended to overlay the film with a style and mood that would point up the action, characterization, and relationship. The placement of cameras, choice of lenses, use of motion, and deployment of lighting often achieve this brilliantly; but more often, the effect is misjudged and overdone, sometimes grossly--the lighting, particularly, is usually painted in SO sparingly, that the look becomes TOO dark and murky (darker than any film noir) as befits such a subtle medium as the cinema (indeed, it is far more suited to the theatre, Welles' old stomping grounds); not pointing up, but rather obscuring its objects. Welles achieved his heavy-handed approach to photographic style far more successfully in "The Magnificent Ambersons". Even though in "Citizen Kane", the combination of its photography, camerawork, art direction, editing, and special effects--all crafted with an artisan's care--achieve a technical near-masterpiece; popularized (if not invented) many revolutionary techniques; and proved to be the real object of the endless gushing, all such elements cannot obscure the two gaping holes in resonance. Its entertainment value is hurt by its sometimes lumpy narrative, and Welles' typical lack of a sense of humor. Additionally, hindering its entertainment value, and utterly fatal to its emotional force is the fact that you don't give a damn about the main character. Welles' cannot create audience sympathy for his performance of the classic tragic hero; simply because, Welles' has tremendous personal charisma--in his own mind. He wields it like a sledgehammer, rather than a rapier; thus, he fails to connect with anything but sand. This further mars the "detective story" facet of the film. Along the way, I found I had repeatedly forgotten there was any investigation for the enigmatic "Rosebud" at all; there again, if you don't care about the character, how can you care about his love? I award one extra star in my rating of "Citizen Kane" for its hand in advancing the art of cinema; its techniques were new; but not PERFECTED until used in such movies as "The Little Foxes", "The Devil and Daniel Webster", and "Oliver Twist." I honestly relate that, approached with a completely open mind, during my first viewing of "Citizen Kane", I found myself repeating throughout, "THIS is 'the