A Film Not for Everyone "Citizen Kane". This is a title that pretty much anyone interested in the history of cinema has heard. Sooner or later, it always comes up in conversations about film. That’s just how it is. At one time, it was considered almost the greatest film of the 20th century. At least, I’ve heard that claim more than once. For a long time, I never got around to watching it. But while going through Oscar-winning films, I finally did. My impressions turned out to be mixed. I understand that high expectations played a role—everything I had heard and read beforehand about the film by Orson Welles. He didn’t just direct the movie; he also played the lead role and served as a producer. It’s an ambitious work by Welles, one that undoubtedly left a mark on cinema, but for me personally, it didn’t stand out in any extraordinary way. The story itself is decent. The narrative techniques and the way the material is presented truly feel revolutionary for their time. And only afterward did I realize that many things I’ve seen in other films were clearly borrowed from this one. But when you’ve already seen similar ideas executed in more modern movies, these techniques don’t land the way they probably once did. That’s a bit unfortunate. Still, the cinematography deserves praise: carefully composed shots, excellent use of lighting—some scenes still feel like they could be turned into paintings and preserved forever. The story is unusual, sometimes engaging, but for the most part, it feels rather dull. The use of flashbacks prevents you from fully connecting with the main protagonist, and much of the film feels somewhat flat. At the same time, the movie raises interesting questions, portraying a man searching for himself and seemingly never finding what he’s looking for. It makes you wonder—can any of us ever truly succeed in that? The film was nominated for nine Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor—all tied to Welles. There were other nominations as well, but it won only once—for Best Original Screenplay. The film also held top positions in various major rankings for many years, even decades. It’s undeniably an important film in the history of cinema. What stands out to me now, years after watching it, is the idea that a person’s life—in this film and often in reality—is written by others, based on fragments of a biography. It’s impossible to get a complete picture. Sometimes it’s just a collection of facts: a person was born, studied, grew up, achieved certain things, and failed at others. But what is the final result of their life? For some, it’s one thing; for others, it’s something entirely different. You can’t truly judge or draw conclusions about someone’s life until you’ve lived it yourself. Any other interpretation feels incomplete. That idea, along with the film’s final scene, leaves a bitter aftertaste. "Citizen Kane" is, to me, an average film that ultimately passed me by. It’s definitely worth watching for fans of classic Hollywood, but I wouldn’t expect anything particularly mind-blowing. 6 out of 10