1941. Who knew?

Since I have little knowledge of classic films, I tried to watch Citizen Kane with an appreciation for how differently filmmaking was accomplished before sophisticated special effects. I was told this film was groundbreaking, so I looked for clues. For example, I wonder how they created the shot moving through the sign and into the skylight of the nightclub where Susan worked. (They must have been happy with the payoff, because they used the shot 3-4 times.) There's some other stuff with windows and ceilings, but I don't have any unique insights, so I'll leave my musings at that.

Walking out of the theater, my biggest critique was that Dorothy Comingore, as Susan, was not such a good actress. So much yelling! At the top of her lungs! But then I looked at the script:

SUSAN

Love!  You don't love anybody!
Me or anybody else!  You want
to be loved - that's all you want!
I'm Charles Foster Kane.  Whatever
you want - just name it and it's
yours! Only love me!  Don't
expect me to love you -

So maybe she was just following direction. ...but she also didn't work so much after Citizen Kane.

To Todd: I take issue with "brief doze." I missed maybe two seconds of film immediately after the breakfast montage that ends with Emily Kane reading The Chronicle. My head snapped up before the scene changed. Oh well.

I give Citizen Kane an 8.5. Who knew good stuff was happening in 1941? I'm learning.

Citizen Kane

1941 Drama directed by Orson Welles. We watched a 35mm print, which was by no means pristine, but a 35mm print none the less.

Citizen Kane tells the story of the rise and fall of Charles Foster Kane (Orson Welles). The film begins at Xanadu, the larger than life estate of Kane, where we find Kane on his deathbed. The enigmatic last word of "Rosebud" on Kane's lips. The rest of the film is told though flashbacks from those closest to Kane, as we watch a child of modest means become a newspaper man, a shoo in for Governor, and finally a broken shell. The story is driven by a reporter who talks to Kane's associates, trying to find meaning in the word Rosebud. The reporter hopes that Kane's last words will unlock the secret of who Charles Foster Kane really was.

The film is amazing on so many levels. Cinematography was ground breaking, from deep focus to low angle. The story telling techniques were brilliant, especially how Welles handles the passage of time. The story itself was epic, and satisfying.

Citizen Kane is simply one of the best films ever made. I give it a 9.5

If you've not seen this film, you must.

It kept Joy awake for all but a very brief doze!

on the scoreboard

...with my first sleep. I'll get this on the record right now: my propensity for falling asleep during a movie has nothing to do with how much I am enjoying the movie. That said, I have no idea how to score this one. I was asleep before we were even introduced to Harry Lime's lover.

Best lines in the script while I was still engaged:

MARTINS

I was going to stay with him, but he died Thursday.

CRABBIN

Goodness, that's awkward.

I'll give it a .15, representing the 15 minutes I was awake.  

The Third Man

1949 British film noir, directed by Carol Reed. We watched the Criterion Collection, which had the original version, not the David O. Selznick chopped American release.

The Third Man follows Holly Martins (Joseph Cotton) as he arrives in post WW2 Vienna, looking to start a job for his friend Harry Lime. Holly expects Harry to be waiting for him at the airport, only to find out that Harry has just died. The police tell Holly that his friend was involved in some very shady racketeering. Holly suspects that Harry was murdered, and tries to get to the bottom of the mystery, mixing it up with Harry's friends, his lover, and the local police.

First off, I love film noir, and this film looked spectacular. The cobblestone streets of Vienna gleamed at night, and the city itself served as an amazing backdrop for this thriller.

The acting was top notch, although I was disappointed that Joesph Cotton and Orson Welles only shared the screen briefly.

The film was enjoyable, but the sense of urgency and danger was never really there for me. Like a true film noir, The Third Man kept me guessing, but once the secret was revealed...the film really lost its steam.

Scale of 1-10, I give it a 7.5. Since this is the first film I reviewed, I have to start somewhere, leaving plenty of room above and below.

In 1999, BFI put this film at #1 on its list. I'm not so sure...

-Todd

P.S.

Correction: the AFI 10th anniversary list was released in 2007.

Reference: check out the AFI 100 years...100 movies, 10th anniversary edition, for yourself.

I'll just add that, based on a skim, I've only seen 14 of these movies. (Todd? 61!) I basically do not make it a priority to watch movies that were produced before I was born. The exceptions on the list are Jaws, The Sound of Music, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and The Wizard of Oz.

...which reminds me, a great impetus for finally starting up this cinematic journey is the fact that we have an awesome neighborhood movie theater that plays one new release and one classic each week or two. We missed The Wizard of Oz when it played a couple of months ago, but we won't miss Citizen Kane.

I won't comment on Todd's prediction for falling asleep and crying because... he's right on both counts.

Now on with the show!

Joy

the first post

Let me be brief. Joy and I plan to work our way through the AFI Top 100 films list, blogging about them as we go. We'll be using the updated 2008 list, and plan on watching one film a week, starting at the top. We're seeing a 35mm print of Citizen Kane tomorrow!

Why? Since when did someone need a good reason to start a blog? Exactly.

I'll be watching the films not as a filmmaker, but as a audience member. Joy will be counting how many films she can stay awake for. And how many will make her cry. I'm predicting the numbers will be high in both categories.

We'll also include a segment called "What Joy thought the movie was going to be about" and "What the movie really was about." This was inspired by a near disaster screening of Blue Velvet when Joy thought we were going to see National Velvet.

As a warm up, we're watching The Third Man, which comes in at the top spot of the BFI's top 100. We'll see if those Brits know anything about making movies.

Cheers,
Todd