What is so great about Citizen Kane?

Answer 1

There are several unique and special things about Citizen Kane that make it a classic. To begin, Orson Welles as the director and co-author. Welles was famous for the Mercury Theatre radio plays, especially "War of the Worlds" where he frightened the pants off of most of the New England states, thinking an alien invasion was actually happening.

Then there is the thinly disguised reference to William Randolph Hearst, a newspaper magnate of the time, who had a grand estate at San Simeon (between LA and San Francisco) that almost exactly matches the descriptions in Citizen Kane - fireplaces big enough to stand in, a private zoo, a remote location.

Also worth mentioning is the cinematography by Gregg Toland, who specialized in shots with an amazing depth of field - meaning that objects in the foreground are in the same sharp focus as objects in the background. Toland used a lot of innovative techniques to get these shots, and the movie is jam-packed with them.

There are so many other things that make this a great and unusual movie: the actors (many of them from the Mercury Theatre cast), the music, the writing, the editing, the sets and so on. It's a good idea to try and get the DVD release with audio commentary by Roger Ebert - he'll tell you even more about what makes this film special.

Answer 2

Very. Many people say it could almost be a modern film today. It's known for its innovative narrative structure, music, and amazing cinematography.