Citizen Kane (Revised)

As the credits roll and the lights are turned up, we are left with a crucial question, nonetheless center concerning the interpretation of the film Citizen Kane. Citizen Kane is widely regarded by many to be the greatest movie ever made, but who actually is this man? Citizen Kane is about Orson Welles. In making a movie about William Randolph Hearst, Welles incorporated the very essence of his himself into the character of Charles Foster Kane. Though he was portraying another man, he was very much telling us a story of himself. We see many clues he left behind for us which concerned him more than the man whom the movie was based on. For instance, in the opening sequence, a young Kane was given away by his parents; stands in similarity to the tough childhood of Orson Welles, where he desired the love of his parents. For in telling one man's story, he was actually telling his own.

From the very start, we see the image of a man's lips, uttering his dying words. As those words came off his lips, a snow globe rolls down from his hand. Then we hear silence. In this short montage of the last moments of Charles Foster Kane's life, albeit not knowing it at the moment, we had already learnt the true identity of this man. The cracking of the snow globe in a way resembles how Kane's life has fallen into shambles. And in the same way Kane could not control his death, he was rendered powerless in life as well, losing his grip the things that mattered to him the most.

In the establishing sequence, we are greeted with a "No Trespassing" sign, that we are about to enter the life of a man, cut off from the world. He never explains his actions to anyone, nor does he need to. This is especially evident in the scene where Emily confronts him about his affair with Susan Alexander, Kane gave up his wife and son, and chose to stay in the election. Contrary to what the audience would have expected, Kane shocks us when he chose his ambition and mistress over his wife and son. When we think about it, we never really see Kane for who he really is, we never actually know what motivates him to make the decisions he makes. In a way, even as we think we know who Citizen Kane is, we are never really able to trespass into the deeper workings of his being. In choosing Susan Alexander over Emily, Kane was actually choosing more than simply just a woman. In this scene, for the first time, we actually see Kane not being in control of the situation. In choosing Susan, it was a vain attempt to prove that ultimately, it is he who makes his decisions and not his situation, and no matter how outrageous his choice, it will be him who will ultimately bear the consequences. Kane had always done everything right up till that point, but when he chose to seize control, it was the beginning of his downfall.

Another key character crucial in explaining Citizen Kane is Jedediah Leland. Before we even got to know him, his hebrew sounding name had already impressed upon us that Jedediah was someone who upheld honor and morality. In a way, the story of Kane is also the story of Jedediah Leland. Jedediah acts as the moral conscience which holds up the story of Charles Foster Kane. Every action Kane makes eventually comes back to Jedediah Leland.  As Leland's life unfold, from his humble beginnings to the peak of his career, and finally ending up as an unsightly drunkard, in a way, it is the personification of Kane's moral conscience. As we are introduced to Leland, we see how Kane and himself drafted the declaration and principles, setting in place codes of honor. This stands in stark contrast to the scene where a drunk Jedediah Leland lies asleep on the typewriter over an unfinished review of Susan Alexander's horrid performance, which was also the point in the film at which Kane's moral standards were at its most corrupt. In part, Jedediah Leland was THE reason behind many if not all of Kane's decisions. Or more accurately, Kane wanted to prove something to himself, his own moral conscience, that what he did was infallible, and that no matter how wrong his decisions, that he was always right. 

From the words of Jedediah Leland, we truly begin to catch a glimpse of Kane's true character. "He married for love -- that's why he did everything. That's why he went into politics. It seems we weren't enough. He wanted all the voters to love him, too. All he really wanted out of life was love.  You see, he just didn't have any to give." From Leland's narration, we begin to learn a bit more about the real Kane, what motivated him to do what he did. Kane wanted to be in control, in control of people's love and adoration, in control of the people around him, and above all, in control of his friendship with Jedediah Leland, his own moral conscience. Yet in cruel irony, these were the very things he couldn't control. In the scene where Leland sent him the copy of the declaration of principles he himself had drafted, it was the culmination of his own hypocriticism, like a stab in the back by his own conscience. Also, that declaration of principles was also his last chance at redemption, however, pride won over, and he ended his life in shambles. 

For in Citizen Kane, Orson Welles has erected a lasting monument to himself, just as how Charles Foster Kane had Xanadu. Through this, Orson Welles shows us a part of his true character, the good, bad and even the ugly. And little did he know, the life of Charles Foster Kane foreshadowed his own. For in telling one man's story, he was actually telling his own. This repeating theme of power and control is reflective of Orson Welles' own life, where he yearned to be in control of his own destiny, to have the power to shape his future. The story of Citizen Kane is actually the story of Orson Welles, hidden behind the cover of William Randolph Hearst, just as Citizen Kane hid behind the "No Trespassing" sign. It is story of what makes Orson Welles Orson Welles, the things that motivated him to do what he did. It is the last piece of the puzzle, the key to his life.