The Battle Over Citizen Kane

Battle Over Citizen Kane, The (The American Experience) (1996)

*** (out of 4)

Season eight of The American Experience featured this documentary about the making of Orson Welles Citizen Kane, which would cause the director to do battle with William Randolph Hearst, the man Kane is based on. There's one huge problem with this film and that's that the film takes way too much time to dig into the actual making of the movie. We spend about an hour getting to know both Welles and Hearst, which is fine but I think too much time is spent here. We learn how Hearst ended up making his fortune (as well as losing) and how Welles became an overnight sensation with The War of the Words radio show. The most interesting aspects happen when we get to the making of the film and how Welles was running out of time to get a movie on the screen as many felt he'd never film anything. When the actual battle starts between the two men it's rather shocking and perhaps sad that neither Welles or Hearst had the decency to try and meet with one another to settle this thing instead of letting it take both of them over. The even sadder thing is that the movie Citizen Kane ended up being a bio of Welles as he ended up just like the character. I've often wondered if Welles got lost in the Kane character or perhaps he was the Kane character and this documentary makes it seem like he was the Kane character.

Here is a special kind of documentary. It's surprising that it got nominated for an Oscar for best documentary, as it is from what I've seen in the DVD as being a made-for-TV affair (provided by annual financial support from "Viewers like you"). But on those standards it's one of the best from the 90's. Here is a study, not too long and not too short, about not only the history behind the feud that ensued between William Randolph Hearst and Orson Welles, but really about the two men themselves and how the best thing to come out of it all was the film. As it stands with history in present times, the real facts are interesting enough, yet is more for a selective audience who'll take the time to read books on the subject(s) or watch the documentaries. And if a fictional narrative on celluloid comes out, that may (or may not) become a basis for how that history is seen in the following generations who've never heard of the real stories. Citizen Kane is not a down-to-the-line biographical take on Hearst's jump to fame and his descent into his 'kingdom' of sorts, and it shouldn't have been (although, and this documentary confirms it, certain explicit details were taken from Hearst's life, which even Welles in interviews considers "dirty tricks").

So like all good PBS-style documentaries, the filmmakers aren't content with merely showing the making of Kane and the battle over it (there's the dramatization- RKO 281- for that). It goes into the details of the two subjects lives, and an almost compare/contrast format of their claims to fame and power, however gargantuan &/or precious it was. Hearst grew up in what one of the interviewees calls a "19th century mind-set", where what he had was all his, no matter how he got it. It's of true fascination for someone from the end of the 20th century into the 21st century to see the brilliance behind the hubris; Hearst did in fact create the first sort of magazine that today is considered like an Enquirer or a Star magazine, only juicier and fresher to a sensitized audience. He creates an empire, tries to run for Government and fails, and then focuses all of his attentions on Marion Davies, a comic actress whom he nearly moved buildings for.

His story is inter-cut wonderfully with Orson Welles's rise to fame. Anyone who knows just a little about Welles knows the hallmark War of the Worlds broadcast which, coincidentally like Hearst, capitalized on the public's pre-World War judgments. But un-like Hearst, who was painted as courteous, but also domineering and God-like (and Welles could be both of those things), Welles's control could get fierce, and difficult, but always for the results on stage or on the radio. Welles came almost 'out of nowhere', and says himself that he rarely heard a discouraging word. That is, until he reached New York, where he became one of the first celebrities to get a hotbed of controversy laid on his daring in entertainment and off. He revolutionized the theater (Macbeth and King Lear are mentioned, but wisely also the reverse power of the flops for Welles), and then radio, and got the most delicious film contract since Charlie Chaplin. When he hooked up with writer and Hearst's San Simian frequenter Herman Manciewicz, the ball got rolling on his first Hollywood picture.

For some, this is where the real interest may kick in (likely more for film buffs than regular history aficionados), as Hearst threatened everything but a gun to the studio's executives to squash the film that alluded to so much about his personal life (one doesn't even need to mention 'Rosebud'). Although this part of the film seems to go by a little faster than the bulk of the film, it's of not flaw. Because of the time spent analyzing these two unique mavericks in their fields, one can see almost why this had to happen. It was just as personal and important for Hearst to create his empire as it was for Welles to make his film. There were, of course, many things that were Welles, not Hearst, in the picture, and that adds to its appeal. The film is also excellent as it doesn't shy from pointing out as much as what went wrong as went right; Welles's career would never be the same after that film, and Hearst was already on his way down after the battle was over (one person remarked to Welles after the movie opened up "quit now, quite while you're ahead). It should prove a great viewing for 'Kane' and Welles fans, and those who have not much an interest in him may still have that PBS doc bug going for the Hearst parts of the story.

Documentary about the battle between Orson Welles and William Randolph Hearst over Welles' "Citizen Kane" (1941). Features interviews with Welles' and Hearst's co-workers also as a relatively complete bio of Hearst.

This documentary covers two things. One is the creation of "Citizen Kane" and the troubles that Orson Welles went through to get people to see it. This is covered fairly well, and for a fictional version of the story people can watch "RKO 281" which is based on this documentary.

The other part is just as interesting, and maybe even more so: the biography of William Randolph Heart. While a towering figure in his day and at the time "Citizen Kane" came out, he has left the public consciousness. Do half of the people in America even know who he is? Probably not. And yet he had a profound effect on journalism and culture. He should be celebrated.

"The Battle Over Citizen Kane" is an informative companion piece to the Welles classic film. For those under-familiar or unfamiliar with the subject, this documentary offers an enlightening introduction. To those already knowledgeable in this subject, "Battle" may be of less interest.

There are sharp parallels made between Welles and Hearst, and there is fine archival footage of the two early careers. Both were giants in their respective areas, with notable crossovers between journalism and theater, thanks to stylistic flamboyancies of each.

This documentary depicts the influence of power and wealth upon the human personality, and how it can become an obsession for greater acquisition--be it in the form of physical object or artistic success.

Both personalities seemed to enjoy courageous controversy and daring defiance--even thriving on it. Both lives were played out like nineteenth century Romantics, vacillating between poles of extreme and excess.

Yet, in the end, it is Welles who emerges the victor. His legacy is forever enshrined in the halls of greatness, long after Heart's name has become faint or forgotten. In his '82 BBC interview, Welles appeared sympathetic to a suggestion made to him in '38 that he should retire from filmmaking.

I personally don't buy that idea. Regardless of the obvious career "decline" after "Kane," Welles crafted many wonderful, memorable performances as actor, and unique, unforgettable films as director. He was and remains a force to be reckoned with, in the media of radio, stage, and motion pictures.

Nor do I fully appreciate such labels as "greatest of all time" slapped upon "Kane." Such titles inadvertently tend to invite comparative--even reactionary--responses, rather than allowing the viewer to freely discover and uncover remarkable layers of quality in the work.

I'm sure they'll eventually be better documentaries on this subject; for now, though, "The Battle Over Citizen Kane" fulfills its objective competently.

There have been said so many things about Citizen Kane and how it was made .. but this is not just about that. It is about the two figures this movie is sort of about. So we don't just get the backstory on Welles but also on Hearst. This is an episode of a show and as far as I know the only one I've watched of that show. And only because it was on the box set of Citizen Kane I have aquired (which I can highly recommend by the way).

If you are a fan of the movie and many are! While it is old and in black and white, it has not aged at all. It really holds up so good, you can watch it multiple times and discover new things every time. About the characters, about the dialog, about costumes and set design ... now those things are not so much topic of this documentary. There are other behind the scenes documentaries for that. And it's good it concentrates on the two as it does. And while I was aware of the radio show that riled up Americans (about an alien invasion - talk about pranks), there were still things to discover or at least hear from Welles and others who were affected.

Overall a very fine documentary, which may come off as dry for some, but has a lot of gems in it too.