Use Of Lighting In Citizen Kane
Lighting and Darkness of Citizen Kane Directed by Orson Welles and released in 1941 by RKO, "Citizen Kane", is considered by mane film critics to be one of the greatest examples of film ever made. Many critics believe the acting is one of the major reasons for the film's greatness. Due to Orson Welles background in radio and live theater, others believe the music and sound effects are what truly make this film great. Orson Welles and Greg Toland, the cinematographer, both were considered to be revolutionaries in their time. Always trying to stretch their respective fields and experiment whenever possible, both kept pushing the envelope in order to see just how far they could go. With Welles and Toland now paired together, the possibilities
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The first part of the story is dominated by high levels of lighting and crisp images revealing few dark shadows. As a result, "Kane is seen as a self-starter, an idealist, a reformer, a figure of dynamic energy, a traditional type the hope of the future embodied in a genuine American titan, the entrepreneur tycoon" (Carringer, 84). Bathed in light, Kane is perceived as a man of his word and one who is capable of being trusted to stand by his ideals. Kane almost angelic in nature vows to fight for the common man and not bow down to the greedy tycoons with whom he is now in direct competition. The lighting effects help to portray him as the idealist that he is and one fully capable of, and unafraid, to obtain the lofty goals he has set for …show more content…
Emily, Kane's first wife, is always portrayed "in the brightest of lights, while Susan, the mistress-turned-wife, starts out mostly in darkness, and evolves into the lights at the end of the movie" (Turner). Emily is thus portrayed as an innocent woman and a woman who will stand by her ideals. The evolution of lighting on Susan is more complicated than that of Emily. The first few times she appears, she is mostly shown to be at least partially in shadow. Later, as she begins to break away from Kane's grasp and exert her independence from his will, this is shows as a gradual move away from the shadows and into the bright lights. In addition to single characters being portrayed through the use of lights and darks, the are a few individual scenes that stand out because of the unique
The first part of the story is dominated by high levels of lighting and crisp images revealing few dark shadows. As a result, "Kane is seen as a self-starter, an idealist, a reformer, a figure of dynamic energy, a traditional type the hope of the future embodied in a genuine American titan, the entrepreneur tycoon" (Carringer, 84). Bathed in light, Kane is perceived as a man of his word and one who is capable of being trusted to stand by his ideals. Kane almost angelic in nature vows to fight for the common man and not bow down to the greedy tycoons with whom he is now in direct competition. The lighting effects help to portray him as the idealist that he is and one fully capable of, and unafraid, to obtain the lofty goals he has set for …show more content…
Emily, Kane's first wife, is always portrayed "in the brightest of lights, while Susan, the mistress-turned-wife, starts out mostly in darkness, and evolves into the lights at the end of the movie" (Turner). Emily is thus portrayed as an innocent woman and a woman who will stand by her ideals. The evolution of lighting on Susan is more complicated than that of Emily. The first few times she appears, she is mostly shown to be at least partially in shadow. Later, as she begins to break away from Kane's grasp and exert her independence from his will, this is shows as a gradual move away from the shadows and into the bright lights. In addition to single characters being portrayed through the use of lights and darks, the are a few individual scenes that stand out because of the unique