Voters Include: Paul Schrader, Ridley Scott, John Walker.

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Product Description

A fascinating story of idealism corrupted by wealth Citizen Kane is frequently named the greatest film of all time and is credited with inspiring more directorial careers than any other film in history. Orsen Welles and Agnes Moorehead star.Running Time: 119 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA UPC: 053939656527 Manufacturer No: T6565DVD

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1061 in DVD
• Brand: Warner Brothers
• Released on: 2001-09-25
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Black & White, Closed-captioned, Dolby, DVD-Video, Subtitled, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, French, Portuguese, Spanish
• Number of discs: 2
• Dimensions: .25 pounds
• Running time: 119 minutes

Amazon.com essential video
Arguably the greatest of American films, Orson Welles's 1941 masterpiece, made when he was only 26, still unfurls like a dream and carries the viewer along the mysterious currents of time and memory to reach a mature (if ambiguous) conclusion: people are the sum of their contradictions, and can't be known easily. Welles plays newspaper magnate Charles Foster Kane, taken from his mother as a boy and made the ward of a rich industrialist. The result is that every well-meaning or tyrannical or self-destructive move he makes for the rest of his life appears in some way to be a reaction to that deeply wounding event. Written by Welles and Herman J. Mankiewicz, and photographed by Gregg Toland, the film is the sum of Welles's awesome ambitions as an artist in Hollywood. He pushes the limits of then-available technology to create a true magic show, a visual and aural feast that almost seems to be rising up from a viewer's subconsciousness. As Kane, Welles even ushers in the influence of Bertolt Brecht on film acting. This is truly a one-of-a-kind work, and in many ways is still the most modern of modern films from the 20th century. --Tom Keogh

DVD features
No minuscule "featurette" for the greatest movie ever made. The backbone for this grand two-disc set is the 1995 Oscar®-nominated documentary The Battle over Citizen Kane, a very rich two-hour film on how this masterpiece was almost destroyed by Welles's adversary, William Randolph Hearst. A great remastered print is complemented by two running commentaries, the better one by critic Roger Ebert. Don't think you want a two-hour lecture by Mr. Ebert? Just listen to his 10-minute talk over the gallery of photographs from the movie (which you can flip through manually with your remote or see as a slide show), and you'll want more. Ad campaigns, storyboards, and even call sheets are included in this must-have DVD. --Doug Thomas

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Customer Reviews

The best film ever?
It's the best I've ever seen. Why? Because it enters a world of psychology in a unique and powerful way. It exposes the selfish tyrant that lies in all of us. Do we not all do what we do for "I?" What drives us to be what we become? What is our most basic need, our most primal desire?

This film deals with these things in a visceral experience of entertainment. This film had to be quite a risk for 1941 but it's clear that it could not have been any better if made in 2001. I thoroughly enjoyed every last second of it.

If you were expecting an adventure through the mountains and woods there's no doubt that you hated it. But, if you enjoy a trek through the secrets of the human mind, then this film is right up your alley.

And, for Pete's sake, don't desire to see Star Wars in everything.

The work in this film creation is astonishing in 2008. In 1941 it would have been state of the art. In fact, it's hard to believe the film wasn't made in 2008. It's clearly ahead of it's time.

still number 1
No matter how many times I have seen Welles's film, I continue to be impressed. Its acting, directing,and writing keep the story moving. Even knowing what "rosebud" is by now makes no difference. It is always worth watching. The second video, the battle Hearst waged against the film, was also fascinating. Quality service. Thanks !

I really enjoyed this movie...
I thought "Citizen Kane" was well acted and well written and produced. It is a glimpse into the life of "a big American", as Thompson's boss Rawlston pointed out, but ultimately it is a story of how consumed we can become by our own demons if we allow them to overtake us. Kane could be seen as a hypocrite--championing the workingman and fighting for his interests, while at the same time employing the tactics of those he rails against (the rich, privileged, and powerful). But at heart, he is just a man looking for love and acceptance (from friends, family--particularly his mother, who sent him away at 10 years of age--and the people). And because it never works out for him, he takes his losses in the most personal way, until finally he is consumed by it and it takes its toll on him (symbolized by the Rosebud sled being consumed once and for all by the flames of the furnace). Rosebud was, indeed, something he lost--his link to his childhood and it would forever have an impact on him.

We had to watch this movie for an English class in college, and I've been intrigued by it ever since--perhaps because, deep down, there's a little Charlie Kane in all of us.