Citizen Kane

1) Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening. When watching 'Citizen Cane' you have to pay attention to small details, such as Rose Bud. Rosebud is the emblem of the security, hope and innocence of childhood, which a man can spend his life seeking to regain. True, it explains nothing, but it is remarkably satisfactory as a demonstration that nothing can be explained. The movie is filled with a hist of visual moments: the towers of Xanadu; candidate Kane addressing a political rally; the doorway of his mistress dissolving into a front-page photo in a rival newspaper; the camera swooping down through a skylight toward the pathetic Susan in a nightclub; the many Kanes reflected through parallel mirrors; the boy playing in the snow in the background as his parents determine his future; the great shot as the camera rises straight up from Susan's opera debut to a stagehand holding his nose, and the subsequent shot of Kane, his face hidden in shadow, defiantly applauding in the silent hall. 2) Find a related article and summarize the content. (on the film, director, studio, actor/actress, artistic content, etc.) You can use the library or the internet. Cite the article or copy the url to your journal entry. Summarize in your own words the related article but do not plagiarize any content. Along with the personal story is the history of a period. “Citizen Kane” covers the rise of the penny press (here Joseph Pulitzer is the model), the Hearst-supported Spanish-American War, the birth of radio, the power of political machines, the rise of fascism, the growth of celebrity journalism. A newsreel subtitle reads: “1895 to 1941. All of these years he covered, many of these he was.” The screenplay by Mankiewicz and Welles (which got an Oscar, the only one Welles ever won) is densely constructed and covers an amazing amount of ground, including a sequence showing Kane inventing the popular press; a record of his marriage, from early bliss to the famous montage of increasingly chilly breakfasts; the story of his courtship of Susan Alexander and her disastrous opera career, and his decline into the remote master of Xanadu (“I think if you look carefully in the west wing, Susan, you'll find about a dozen vacationists still in residence”). 3) Apply the article to the film screened in class. How did the article support or change the way you thought about the film, director, content, etc.? 4) Write a critical analysis of the film, including your personal opinion, formed as a result of the screening, class discussions, text material and the article. I am less interested in whether you liked or disliked a film, (although that can be part of this) than I am in your understanding of its place in film history or the contributions of the director. Grades: Journal assignments are given individual points. Each journal assignment is worth 10 points. 9-10 points reflect excellent content, excellent article source, excellent thorough summary, excellent thoughtful analysis and creative, interesting content. 7-8 Points reflect good work in all areas above 5-6 Points reflect that you adequately met all the requirements 1-4 Missing or poorly presented content 0 No journal posted or posted beyond due date Pages: You can create separate pages on your blog or simply do them as continuous posting. Note: You do not have to resubmit your blog after you initially create one. If you post your journal content, I will see it. Just make sure it is posted on time. Plagiarism Statement: Attach this to the end of every journal assignment. CHECKLIST FOR PLAGIARISM 1) ( X ) I have not handed in this assignment for any other class. 2) ( X ) If I reused any information from other papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the paper. 3) ( X ) If I used any passages word for word, I put quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation within the text. 4) ( X ) I have not padded the bibliography. I have used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper. 5) ( X ) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read. 6) ( X ) I have used direct quotations only in cases where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the source within the paper and in the bibliography. 7) ( X ) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks interpretation or originality. 8) ( X ) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper. Name: _______Carla Baylor___________ Date: _____5/7/13_______