Synopsis

A newspaper reporter investigates the final word of powerful publisher Charles Foster Kane, who dies alone in his vast estate. As the reporter interviews people from Kane's past, the film reconstructs his life through conflicting memories, revealing his rise from poverty to influence, his political ambitions, troubled relationships, and growing isolation. The mystery of "Rosebud" becomes a key to understanding the man behind the public legend.

Factoids & Trivia

• Citizen Kane was Orson Welles' first feature film. At 24, he received an unusually generous contract from RKO that gave him control over producing, writing, directing, and acting in his projects.

• The screenplay began under the working title "American." Herman J. Mankiewicz and Welles eventually shared the Best Original Screenplay Oscar for the finished film.

• Cinematographer Gregg Toland volunteered to work with Welles, allowing the inexperienced filmmaker to experiment with techniques that were unusual in Hollywood at the time.

• Deep-focus photography, low camera angles, wide-angle lenses, and visible ceilings helped give the film its distinctive visual style. Many of the ceilings were made from muslin so microphones could be positioned above them.

• William Randolph Hearst objected strongly to the film because of its similarities to aspects of his life and public image. Newspapers connected with Hearst were reportedly discouraged from mentioning the movie or advertising it.

• The film was released on September 5, 1941, but its reputation grew substantially after a 1956 re-release and renewed critical attention.

• Citizen Kane received nine Academy Award nominations and won only for its screenplay. It later became a defining example of how a film can gain greater recognition over time.

• In 1989, plans to colorize the film were abandoned after the contract's provisions protecting Welles' creative control were reviewed.

• Citizen Kane topped the American Film Institute's 1997 and 2007 lists of the greatest American films.