Some consider Citizen Kane the best movie ever. I’ve seen it myself and thouroughly enjoyed it…and it was made in 1941! However, I’m having a hard time believing that it is the best movie ever. I mean it had a hard time getting made, it is revolutionary in every part, it is intelligent, and it has a good plot, but is it the BEST? Maybe it depends on your mood, or the kind of person you are. For example, after I watch The Incredibles I don’t say “Wow. That was so lame compared to Citizen Kane.” Should there ever really be named a “best movie ever?” I’d love to hear your thoughts.
I didn’t include it in my list of top films, although I must admit - I started watching Citizen Kane at midnight so I got pretty sleepy midway through the movie (not because of the movie, but because it was 1:00 in the morning!), which means that my opinion is perhaps a little skewed. I’ve been meaning to give it another shot for years, but I just haven’t gotten around to watching it a second time. I’m graduating from university next year, so I’m hoping I’ll have more time to watch movies by then
Best movie or not (this is purely subjective anyway, and therefore depends entirely on the person that you ask), it is an undeniable fact that Citizen Kane is one of the most important films ever to be released. It defied many conventions, and is now considered a source of inspiration by many modern filmmakers.
No, but it’s acting, special effects, and camerawork broke new ground in the film genre. For example when they removed portions of the floor for camera setups to get extreme low angles. Also the film holds up incredibly well despite it’s age, and I would say is easily the greatest character piece ever made.
There can never be an answer to a question like this when it comes down to opinion. It’s all subjective
But as was mentioned above, i think people consider it to be one of the best mainly because of how groundbreaking it was for its time. Historians believe that at the time he essentially created a new style of filmmaking, as well as doing something innovative with Cinematography, Time compression, Special effects, Make-up, and sound. It’s all of the technical aspects which make people consider the film to be one of, if not the best ever.
Also, it’s well written and has a decent theme throughout about honesty. I quite like it, but it’s not what i would call a favorite of mine.
Though I do believe for all of its achievements that it is one of the best.
I really agree with Mark-E here. How can we label one thing as the best? Through history, there has been so many examples of this same type of question.
Michael Jordan or Larry Bird? The Great Gatsby or Adventures of Huckleberry Finn?
Beethoven or Mozart?
It really is all a matter of opinion, and we all have different opions. And perhaps most film critics believe that Citizen Kane is the best film ever made, but that is just what they think. Who ever said these people had the final decision on the best film ever?
Just look at the Academy Awards versus the Golden Globes. Since the Golden Globes were established, only 45 of their 66 Best Picture winners have gone on to win best Picture at the Oscars. That means there has been major discrepency 21 times. Most notably, these two organizations chose two different winners every year between 2004 and 2007. For example, in 2005 the GG chose Brokeback Mountain as the Best Picture of the year, and most critics would agree with that choice. However, the Academy chose the film Crash as their winner, in a huge upset. The Oscar is often considered the more respected award, yet they in 2005 a movie that was not even nominated for Best Picture at the GG.
Now of course, who is to say that either of these awards is correct? Winning is all about politics anyways… but still. It just proves that picking the best of anything is all about your own opion.
It will be impossible to ever find a 100% consensus on the single best film ever made. If any film were to do it though, Citizen Kane is certainly a good choice.
I didn’t even really like the movie, but I seem to be the minority. I can see why it was considered so groundbreaking, and has achieved the status of a classic, but I just didn’t enjoy it.
Problem solved.