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Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

HazeyTwilight — Wed, 29 Jul 2015 11:01:59 GMT

Author: HazeyTwilight

Posted: 07/29/2015 15:01

After having seen both films this week, my verdict is that I prefer Citizen Kane. Casablanca honestly does nothing for me. It's not a bad film, but I don't think it's a great one either. Maybe I'm just a cold and cynical bastard for thinking that, but Casablanca is overrated in my eyes. Citizen Kane, on the other hand, is just an exquisite film. Really deserves all the praise and attention it gets. And it's an absolute marvel to look at, so if I am ever interested enough in going to film school I'd be prepared.

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

Anonymous — Thu, 23 Jul 2015 18:09:30 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 07/23/2015 22:09

It's been three months since I first read this thread, and ever since then I've been battling in my own mind a to which one I'd vote for. Casablanca is ranked higher on my IMDb list, but that's mostly due to laziness on my part (not adjusting my ranking for Citizen Kane after watching it enough to truly appreciate it).

Finally though Casablanca has won out. As truly incredible as Citizen Kane is, Casablanca is just a better story in my opinion. Though very, VERY slightly.

(Also, +1 to badseed's pre-Brando Mount Rushmore. Stewart, Fonda, Chaplin, and Tracy. Couldn't agree more)

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

Facetious — Tue, 30 Jun 2015 04:46:57 GMT

Author: Facetious

Posted: 06/30/2015 08:46

badseed wrote:

Oh, Stewart's golden. I've always loved his style, particularly in the Capra and Anthony Mann films and most particularly in Hitchcock's Vertigo. Definitely in my Mount Rushmore of pre-Brando actors, probably with Henry Fonda, Spencer Tracy and Charlie Chaplin. Thinking about it I'd have to fit Kirk Douglas on there, James Cagney too... Damn there were a lot of fine actors back then and a lot of people are completely blind to it due to the contrast to modern acting.

I've seen Touch of Evil once, and it's been at least 6 or 8 years. I need to give it another watch soon.

Vertigo is a masterpiece! The ending is amazing. Chaplin in City Lights is another fave.

Definitely watch it again.

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

badseed — Sun, 28 Jun 2015 07:22:39 GMT

Author: badseed

Posted: 06/28/2015 11:22

Oh, Stewart's golden. I've always loved his style, particularly in the Capra and Anthony Mann films and most particularly in Hitchcock's Vertigo. Definitely in my Mount Rushmore of pre-Brando actors, probably with Henry Fonda, Spencer Tracy and Charlie Chaplin. Thinking about it I'd have to fit Kirk Douglas on there, James Cagney too... Damn there were a lot of fine actors back then and a lot of people are completely blind to it due to the contrast to modern acting.

I've seen Touch of Evil once, and it's been at least 6 or 8 years. I need to give it another watch soon.

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

Facetious — Sun, 28 Jun 2015 06:33:27 GMT

Author: Facetious

Posted: 06/28/2015 10:33

badseed wrote:

Facetious wrote:

badseed wrote:

For the record, here's how I'd rank them in the 1940s:

1. The Third Man
2. Bicycle Thieves
3. Citizen Kane
4. Black Narcissus
5. Sullivan's Travels
6. Brief Encounter
7. Children of Paradise
8. The Red Shoes
9. Beauty and the Beast
10. Casablanca

Nice to see Beauty and the Beast get recognition, haven't seen the others though (besides CK and Casablanca of course). My favourite film of the 1940s is It's A Wonderful Life by far, and two other faves not mentioned here are Rope and The Lady from Shanghai.

I'm surprised you've seen BATB and none of the others. You know I'm talking of the French drama directed by Jean Cocteau, not the Disney movie from '91, right? Aside from Kane and Casablanca these are all available as part of the Criterion Collection; a good portion of them can be watched on Hulu Plus for those who have it...

It's a Wonderful Life is probably the next closest thing to possibly be considered the "big three" from the decade along with the two topic films. Very good; I love Capra and Stewart; it's still the best Christmas movie of all time for my money. But my recently acquired taste for high quality art films and music has seen it fall far from my favorites.

If you like thrillers like the other films you mentioned, then my #1 should be a favorite of yours. The Third Man is the greatest film noir of all time; Carol Reed directs it with such finesse you'd think Orson Welles directed it, there's a wicked zither score, and while Welles steals every scene he's in, Joseph Cotten is as fantastic as he ever was in the starring role. LOVE this movie.

Yes, I was talking about the Jean Cocteau film. Hulu Plus isn't available in my country, so I mostly rely on torrents. All the films you mentioned were on my to-watch list already, I just haven't gotten around to watching them yet.

Surprised to hear that your acquired taste in "high quality art" films has affected your opinion of It's a Wonderful Life, I'd have thought you'd be better able to appreciate the nuances in Jame Stewart's performance. Then again, maybe it's just a matter of differing criteria.

Speaking of thrillers, Touch of Evil (not from the 1940s) is my favourite Welles film, and probably in my top 5 films: a marvellous demonstration of Welles' talent in heightening the tension through a killer visual sense. I'd be pretty impressed if Carol Reed's direction is anywhere that good.

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

badseed — Sun, 28 Jun 2015 01:13:43 GMT

Author: badseed

Posted: 06/28/2015 05:13

Facetious wrote:

badseed wrote:

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

Facetious — Fri, 26 Jun 2015 12:47:54 GMT

Author: Facetious

Posted: 06/26/2015 16:47

badseed wrote:

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

Facetious — Fri, 26 Jun 2015 12:42:33 GMT

Author: Facetious

Posted: 06/26/2015 16:42

Apparently I voted a long time ago (in favour of Citizen Kane, which I would still do actually). The comparison is a bit silly because they are two entirely different films, but I'd just say Casablanca is the more emotionally moving film (especially the ending), and Citizen Kane is the more consistently interesting film of the two.

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

badseed — Thu, 25 Jun 2015 02:53:22 GMT

Author: badseed

Posted: 06/25/2015 06:53

I'm gonna shoot for this without reading the comments or seeing the vote count first...

Aside from being the two most well-known films of the 40s, they have practically nothing in common. With that said, let's compare...

Citizen Kane was a technical marvel at its time. Sure, you had Renoir and Bunuel and what not, but it was really the first English language film to be successful at experimentation. Wideshots, closeups, all sorts of fancy camera tricks. I tend to watch films from a historical standpoint and for that it was definitely the best shot for shot American film to have been made up to that point, and still arguably is. Don't take its legacy as a technical masterpiece as its only bread and butter, though. The supporting cast is quite fine, while Welles' performance arguably set the stage for the method actors that came to prominence in the following decade.

Casablanca, compared to Citizen Kane, isn't spectacularly noteworthy from an art point of view. It was a studio picture by a studio director with a stock cast. However, upon its release, it was the finest studio picture ever made by one of the finest studio directors at the time, and the entire cast brings the film to life. Although there's nothing Casablanca does perfectly, it does a little bit of everything well enough to stand out and remains a timeless classic in my opinion.

Both films are favorites among popular publications, particularly American. And truthfully they deserve it. While one remains a landmark in technical achievement, the other remains one of the most entertaining stories ever told. Casablanca was once my favorite film of all time, but now I gotta give the edge to Kane. I watched Casablanca once or twice a year as a teenager but as an adult I pull out Welles' film more often.

For the record, here's how I'd rank them in the 1940s:

1. The Third Man
2. Bicycle Thieves
3. Citizen Kane
4. Black Narcissus
5. Sullivan's Travels
6. Brief Encounter
7. Children of Paradise
8. The Red Shoes
9. Beauty and the Beast
10. Casablanca

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

SuedeSwede — Mon, 22 Jun 2015 14:41:50 GMT

Author: SuedeSwede

Posted: 06/22/2015 18:41

I really like Citizen Kane, but Casablanca is a fave.

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

alelsupreme — Mon, 22 Jun 2015 12:39:12 GMT

Author: alelsupreme

Posted: 06/22/2015 16:39

Yeah I can definitely admire Citizen Kane, and while I don't particularly enjoy it I can recognize its influence + importance - it was a hell of movie for its time.
Casablanca, however, I find far more emotionally resonant - it's more charming and witty than I expected from a movie from its time.

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

Hayden — Mon, 22 Jun 2015 11:32:53 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 06/22/2015 15:32

WindowAbove wrote:

Casablanca is a lot more enjoyable for me.

Likewise. It gets my vote.

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

WindowAbove — Mon, 22 Jun 2015 10:33:09 GMT

Author: WindowAbove

Posted: 06/22/2015 14:33

Casablanca is a lot more enjoyable for me.

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

Anonymous — Mon, 22 Jun 2015 01:50:08 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 06/22/2015 05:50

Citizen Kane was more innovative and daring, especially for it's day, but Casablanca just hits you right in the heart, which is never easy to do.

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

Applerill — Sun, 21 Jun 2015 22:46:17 GMT

Author: Applerill

Posted: 06/22/2015 02:46

To Be Or Not To Be: That is the answer.

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

HoldenM — Sun, 21 Jun 2015 22:29:13 GMT

Author: HoldenM

Posted: 06/22/2015 02:29

I would be remiss to ignore Citizen Kane's influence, and would be wrong to act as though it doesn't hold up today. Yet, when it comes to what movie I'd rather watch, Casablanca wins, no question.

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

Liedzeit — Fri, 19 Jun 2015 03:41:01 GMT

Author: Liedzeit

Posted: 06/19/2015 07:41

In my Top 100
Citizen Kane is on 12
Casablanca 80

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

OK Microwave — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 04:28:16 GMT

Author: OK Microwave

Posted: 04/22/2012 08:28

I voted Citizen Kane, but neither would make my top 100.

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

Facetious — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 03:13:13 GMT

Author: Facetious

Posted: 04/22/2012 07:13

cartoken wrote:

old cinema sucks so much ! :?

It doesn't really. In my top 10 Films of all time list, the latest film was released in the '70s. I've got nothing against new movies, some of them are actually pretty great (e. g. The Lord of the Rings, Pixar's animated movies, etc.) but some of the older movies were more imaginative (Hausu, Tom Tom the Piper's Son [the Ken Jacobs film released in 1969], Neco z Alenky, Un chien andalou), or had a style that I like more (2001, Dr. Strangelove, 12 Angry Men).

Anyway, I like Citizen Kane more than Casablanca.

Re: Citizen Kane vs Casablanca

Hermes_requite — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 19:31:44 GMT

Author: Hermes_requite

Posted: 04/21/2012 23:31

Citizen Kane �'�