Citizen Kane (1941) Reviews

girl by lockers says: Knowing that Citizen Kane has been rated the number 1 movie of all time on various lists and also knowing it is Juror #3’s favorite movie, I had very high expectations. Fortunately, I was not disappointed and was, in fact, wowed. I’m sure if I did in-depth research and was more familiar with film technique, I could quote the ways in which this film was ahead of its time. However, I will just say that it was beautiful, simply beautiful. The lighting, the camera-work and the way the image helped shape the story knocked my socks off. I was impressed with the solid acting and a script that captured my attention. I can’t say that it is the number 1 movie of all time, but I can say that it is a must-see for any movie buff and I might possibly put it in my top 10. I gave it 4 out of 5 stars on Netflix.


Juror #3 says: Occasionally a movie comes along where you are amazed at the attention to detail and the subtle creativity imposed.  Citizen Kane is legendary for exactly that.  But the technical achievements applied weren't used by the 26-year-old Orson Welles to be different or dictate a "style" for himself.  No, they were used to help tell the story better visually...in all aspects, and for no other reason.  I could talk for days about the success of the production of Citizen Kane but instead I'll direct you to watch the commentary by Roger Ebert on the special features of the disc.  Citizen Kane is my favorite movie of all-time for several reasons - 1) it's nearly flawless in its production, 2) it's an engaging story with a life lesson, and 3) the background for the movie is as dramatic as the production itself.  Orson Welles was granted complete control of a Hollywood studio at the age of 26 and created a masterpiece which ended up blackballing him from Hollywood for the majority of his professional career.  Again, I'll direct you to watch the documentary "The Making of Citizen Kane."  It was this documentary that catapult Citizen Kane to #1 on my all-time list and added Orson Welles as one of my answers to everyone's favorite dinner question, "what 3 people alive or dead would you like to dine with?"  Need I say that I rate Citizen Kane 5/5?


The White Stripes, one of my favorite bands made the song "Union Forever" using lines from Citizen Kane.  There are a bunch of these mashups on youtube, here are two of my favorites:

Film 23: Citizen Kane (1941)

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Netflix Summary: Orson Welles reinvented movies at the age of 26 with this audacious biography of newspaper baron Charles Foster Kane, which, in essence, was a thinly veiled portrait of publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst. Welles's complex and technically stunning film chronicles Kane's rise from poverty to become one of America's most influential men -- and it's considered one of the best movies ever made.


A few fun facts from IMDB.com:
*The camera looks up at Charles Foster Kane and his best friend Jedediah Leland and down at weaker characters like Susan Alexander Kane. This was a technique that Orson Welles borrowed from John Ford who had used it two years previously onStagecoach (1939). Welles privately watched Stagecoach (1939) about 40 times while making this film. 
*William Randolph Hearst was so angered by the film that he accused Orson Welles of being a Communist in order to keep the film from being released. 
*During filming Orson Welles received a warning that William Randolph Hearst had arranged for a naked woman to jump into his arms when he entered his hotel room, and there was also a photographer in the room to take a picture that would be used to discredit him. Welles spent the night elsewhere, and it is unknown if the warning was true. 


Note from Juror #3:  This is my all-time favorite movie.  I greatly urge you to watch the documentary about the making of the movie within the special features.  The story behind the story makes the film that much more legendary.





Viewing Due Date: 11/3

Rebecca (1940) Reviews

Juror #3 says: I went through a Hitchcock phase a few years back but had never seen Rebecca.  I find it odd that this picture net him his only Best Picture Oscar when, in my humble opinion, this may not even crack his top 5.  Rebecca seemed more like a play than a film, with long stretches of dialogue.  The positives however included the acting - Lawrence Olivier was sublime as were the entire cast - and the directing was perfect, big surprise.  Hitchcock did a fantastic job creating creepy and suspense-filled scenes through techniques still used today. But no one has ever done a better job of using shadows to help elicit suspense, all lighting professionals should make this a mandatory viewing.  In the end though, having just watched Gone With the Wind, I was slightly disappointed in Rebecca.  I rate it 3/5 


girl by locker says: I wasn’t sure what to expect from Rebecca. I had heard Hitchcock fans think there are better movies made by him and that this shouldn’t have been the only movie of his to win an Oscar. As someone who hasn’t seen much by him, I was prepared to love it, and I did. I hadn’t read the book by Daphne du Maurier, but I am a fan of the Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights. It wasn’t that the love story reminded me of Heathcliff and Cathy but rather I got a similar feeling. The dark foreboding, the creepiness of Mrs. Danvers, the tension and apprehension I felt as I watched the second Mrs. de Winter fight to overcome the powerful memory left by Rebecca. The cast was stellar, and I was particularly impressed by Judith Anderson as Mrs. Danvers who, in my opinion, embodied everything great about the movie. She was subtle and sinister and kept me on the edge of my seat. I give this 5/5 on my Netflix ratings.

Film 22: Rebecca (1940)

Netflix Summary: The only Alfred Hitchcock film to win an Oscar for Best Picture, this mystery stars Laurence Olivier as Maxim de Winter, a widower whose hapless second wife (Joan Fontaine) moves into his mansion only to find the memory of his first wife still governs the household. Intimidated by the home's hostile staff, the living Mrs. de Winter begins to go mad in Hitchcock's eerie adaptation of Daphne Du Maurier's Gothic classic.


Wikipedia fact: The theatrical release of Rebecca was delayed in order to give it a shot at the 1940 Academy Awards - the 1939 Awards would (obviously) be dominated by Gone with the Wind, another Selznick production.

From Hitchcock's Rebecca (1940)
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Viewing Due Date: 10/12

1939 Film Reviews

Often considered the best year in film history, girl by locker and I decided to watch two films for 1939.  I had already seen Mr Smith Goes to Washington (two thumbs up), and girl by locker had already seen Gone with the Wind.  So here are our reviews.

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

girl by locker says: Mr. Smith Goes to Washington is one of the movies you’ve heard about all your life. You know who is in it and you even know the general plot outline. Despite all this, you are still completely sucked into the story, along for the ride and cheering for Jefferson Smith (James Stewart, who is amazing) to root out political corruption and get his boys camp built. It is a classic story of good versus evil and though I was initially worried that the characters would either be too evil or too good, it was an unfounded fear.

I loved certain aspects of the camera work as well. There is a scene in which Stewart talks with Senator Paine’s daughter, whom he finds very attractive, and though we hear the conversation all we actually see is Stewart fumbling with his hat, nervously dropping it.

This movie gets 5 out of 5 stars on Netflix, two thumbs up and even a back flip. I liked it that much. My only negative comment is that I thought it wrapped up a little too quickly and neatly…but it is a minor observation on what is obviously a masterpiece.

Gone with the Wind

Juror #3 says: So I had obviously heard a lot about Gone with the Wind and had even quoted the movie - "Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn" - about a million times.  But I was extremely unaware of the depth of the film.  Forget the fact that while we are choosing movies year-by-year in witness of the advancements in filmmaking, and Gone with the Wind could, technically, be made today without question, the real impact made upon me was the depth of the theme.  Here we played out the civil war in all its intricate detail side-by-side with a tale of human nature.  The tale's main characters were chasing love, sometimes mixed with entitlement, during a time where the nation was at war, it could be said, over those very two ideas.  The acting was so good that at times I wanted to forward through Scarlett O'Hara's scenes because I despised her.  And I love that in the end I'm not sure whether to believe in her attempt at reconciliation.  There haven't been many movies in my life that I felt really examined human nature in a unbiased way.  And then you weave in the Civil War with similar scenes and I've just witnessed an enduring masterpiece for all the right reasons.  I've, naturally, rated it a 5/5 on Netflix.  

Film 21: Mr. Smith Goes to Washington...and is Gone with the Wind

1939 is widely regarded as the best year in film history.  To commemorate this spectacular year we have decided to watch 2 films.  girl by locker has never seen Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, so that's her movie to review.  I've never seen Gone with the Wind (I know, I know) so that's my movie.  Here are the Netflix summaries:

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington: When idealistic junior senator Jefferson Smith (James Stewart) arrives in Washington, D.C., he's full of plans and dazzled by his surroundings - qualities he retains despite widespread corruption among his cynical colleagues. Jean Arthur puts in a sharp performance as Smith's streetwise secretary, who helps him navigate his way through Congress, in this Academy Award-winning classic from director Frank Capra.

Gone with the Wind: Margaret Mitchell's sweeping Civil War saga remains one of the greatest examples of cinematic storytelling. Vivien Leigh's tempestuous Scarlett O'Hara and Clark Gable's handsome rogue Rhett Butler bicker and battle from antebellum plantations to the streets of postwar Atlanta.

Film Viewing Due Date: 9/21

Angels with Dirty Faces (1938) Review

Juror #3 says:  This was the 1930's movie I was most excited to watch when we assembled our list.  I absolutely love the premise - two boyhood friends take separate paths in life with one becoming a priest and the other a criminal.  The criminal is revered by the same children in the neighborhood that the priest is trying to mentor.  In the end, with the criminal sentenced to the electric chair, the priest asks his longtime friend to give up the only thing he has left, his reputation as a tough guy, and die a coward...for the children.  As much as I loved the premise (and the ending didn't disappoint), I felt the overall production value was lacking.  The directing was poor and the story ended up more fragmented than it should have been.  I would absolutely love if this movie was remade, as the motif is timeless.  I rate it 3/5.


girl by locker says: I'm not sure what it is, but I have had a lot of high expectations this era, perhaps because it is the golden age of Hollywood. We recently watched "Angels with Dirty Faces" and though I definitely liked the movie, I thought I was going to fall in love. It had all the makings to have my socks blown off - gangsters, Cagney, Bogart. And while every aspect was solid, I just wanted more. In the end, there is a battle between good and evil - between the city corruption run by gangsters and the town priest who wants to start a boys club to help keep the kids away from the life of crime - and I felt it was all tied up in a neat, little bow. Life isn't that tidy.

There were 2 high points of the movie. 1. Bogart. I had never seen him in a villainous role before. He completely rocked. 2. The final scene in which Rocky Sullivan, played by Cagney, walks to the electric chair. His childhood friend, who is a priest, asks him to die in a way in which the town children will not look up to him. He says he won't do it but ultimately, he cries and begs for his life. As the viewer, we are left to wonder if he was actually scared or if he pulled off the final wishes of the priest. I choose to believe he did it for the priest. In other parts of the movie when his friend's life was threatened, he protected him. I think he did the same here.

Overall, entertaining movie. Solid. Well done. I give it 3 out of 5 stars on Netflix.