Cinematography In Citizen Kane

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After viewing Citizen Kane, it is clear that Orson Wells directs the movie through the Cinematography style of image of representation. He depicts a certain individual, Charles Kane, with a certain knowledge and understanding of him and what he represents. He does so with a certain style called deep focus. Deep focus refers to having everything in the frame, even the background, in focus at the same time, as opposed to having only the people and things in the foreground in focus. A perfect example of this is when Kane is playing in the snow at the beginning, and his parents are inside talking to a man. As his parents are talking, you can clearly see Charlie through the window in the distance. Wells combines the lighting, composition, and correct lens to get the effect he is looking for. A high angle shot or overhead shot was used throughout the movie in many different scenes. For example, when his wife was singing on stage or the closing scene when Kane is dead and they are deciding what to do with all of his possessions, the camera angle is at a crane shot looking down. This angle seems to depict the scene as almost powerless or at a time of struggle. Another example of the use of camera angles is at the beginning; the camera starts on the No Trespassing sign and cranes up at the house. Then, at the end Wells uses the same No Trespassing sign and cranes down to it. Wells also uses low angle shots of Kane throughout the movie to give him a sense of power. An example of this in the movie is when he is doing he campaign speech or the many conversations he has with Susan. The use of camera angles helps the audience depict the character in a certain way and gives you a sense of what they mean in the movie. However, with all this representation, it is still somewhat unclear about the character of Kane. Even through the eyes of five different people, it is still hard

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