Reviewing the Best Movies Ever Made: Citizen Kane, The Godfather, Schindler’s List
When I set out to review the best movies ever made in this series (which you can read more about in this post here), I found that five movies appeared on more than one of the “Best Movies Ever” lists I was using.
In this first post, I’ll take a look at three of those films, Citizen Kane, The Godfather, and Schindler’s List. While they each have their own merits, I believe only two of the films will be appreciated by most audiences today, and I’d only classify one of these movies as a true masterpiece.
Citizen Kane (1941)
AFI No. 1, Sight & Sound No. 3
RKO Radio Pictures, 119 minutes
One of the most popular answers people who consider themselves knowledgeable about movies give when asked to name the best movie ever created is Citizen Kane. These Citizen Kane fans will often point to the direction of Orson Welles (who also both wrote and starred in the film), along with the movie’s cinematography, music, and the way the movie is structured as its key strengths. For, when considering that the movie was made in the early 1940s, there were a lot of innovative techniques the film used.
But does the fact that a movie was innovative and that it had an impact on future films by default make it a good movie? The first non-serialized movie ever made in America was D.W. Griffith’s epic, The Birth of a Nation, in 1919. Before The Birth of a Nation, movie theaters showed serial films, which consisted of chapters (or “serials”), and audiences would have to watch short parts of a story before coming back in following weeks to get more of the plot.
The Birth of a Nation turned this idea of what movies were on its head, presenting viewers with a complete epic drama over two hours in length. Griffith (who wrote, directed, and produced the movie) also pioneered things like camera close-ups, fade-outs, and building to a climax in a film’s story. Despite all of its innovations and the monumental impact it had on movies that would follow, you won’t find many people who will name The Birth of a Nation as the best movie ever. And that’s because the story is super racist and the heroes of the film are the Ku Klux Klan. The story of any film should be supremely important when proclaiming a movie as one of the best ever made.
Citizen Kane is in no way nearly as problematic story-wise as The Birth of a Nation. However, its story is so boring and lacking that for it to be named as a top motion picture despite this is unfair to films that actually have a quality plot.
I think that for a film to be deserving of a spot on any list of the best movies, it has to do all aspects of what go into making a movie extremely well, and some elements of the film need to be truly great. The story of Citizen Kane, in which reporters investigate why the last word of a (boring) egomaniac millionaire named Charles Foster Kane was “Rosebud,” is about as exciting as watching paint dry.
When viewed in 2023, this lackluster tale with unlikeable characters makes for a grueling, slog of a watch. My least favorite type of movies are ones in which characters don’t act in a way that’s consistent, or when things in the movie don’t make sense when considering the established rules of the movie’s universe. That’s not the case with Citizen Kane though, it’s just insufferably boring. (Did I mention this movie is boring?)
It's totally possible to appreciate that a film had an impact on others that followed, but also acknowledge that since it has an awful (boring, boring) plot it’s not a great movie. I would only recommend Citizen Kane to those attempting to watch highly regarded movies (like myself), and perhaps those who have an unusual appreciation for slow-moving stories.
Grade: 4/10
The Godfather (1972)
AFI No. 2, IMDb No. 2
Paramount Pictures, 175 minutes
After watching The Godfather, it’s easy to see why it’s viewed as the father (or “godfather” if you will) of the modern gangster movie. With its hefty (but merited) runtime, and given that the plot includes multiple developed storylines, it almost feels more similar to a miniseries than it does to a movie. It definitely had a massive impact on quality TV shows, like Boardwalk Empire and The Sopranos, just as much as it did future crime motion pictures.
This epic crime drama takes place over a decade and follows the fictional Corleone crime family. Everything in the film is really on point, from the crisp, excellent writing (The Godfather took home Best Adapted Screenplay at the Academy Awards – deservedly so), to the fantastic acting by basically the whole cast. The standout performance though, if I had to pick one, is Marlon Brando as family don, Vito Corleone. You can understand why Brando was regarded as one of the best actors of his era.
If I had one complaint about the movie, it’s that the development of the film’s protagonist, Michael Corleone, could have been shown better on-screen. It’s rare that I’d advocate for more content given that the movie is already nearly three hours in length, but that’s why I think if The Godfather were made today it would work better as a mini-series. There’s more that I would’ve liked to have seen, and it’s particularly concerning Michael’s character since he’s really supposed to be the most important person in the film.
In The Godfather, there are a few time jumps, and it’s after one of these time skips in the latter half of the film where Michael’s character has more drastically changed. Viewers can understand why this has happened given certain events, but I think seeing some of Michael’s struggle would’ve made for a deeper story, instead of skipping ahead and simply seeing him as a changed man.
Overall though, this is still me being somewhat nitpicky as this is an all-around fantastic film that holds up great even by 2023 standards. If The Godfather were released today it would still receive a boatload of awards and be highly regarded. For me, it’s not the best gangster movie ever made, as Goodfellas still holds that honor, but it’s up there on my personal list of quality crime films.
Grade: 9/10
Schindler’s List (1993)
AFI No. 8, IMDb No. 6
Universal Pictures, 195 minutes
It would be untrue to say Steven Spielberg’s Academy Award-winning, epic historical drama, Schindler’s List is anything other than a complete masterpiece. This true story follows Oskar Schindler, a German industrialist, who wants to use the Second World War as a means to become rich. However, as Schindler realizes the horrors of the Holocaust, his motivation changes, and we see him transition from an opportunistic businessman into a savior of the Jews he employs in his factory.
It's hard to find any fault in this fantastic film. Looks-wise, the movie, which is nearly entirely in black and white, could have been made this past year. Schindler’s List is perfectly polished and there’s nothing in it that dates it to having been made in the early 1990s. I imagine the film to be just as powerful in 2023 (perhaps even more so given America’s divisive political climate) as it was when it was first released.
Spielberg chose to cast Liam Neeson, who at the time wasn’t an A-list actor, in the title role, and Neeson is excellent here. Neeson’s large physical presence fills the screen, but he also plays Schindler with an undeniable charm and intelligence, explaining how he was able to manipulate high-ranking Nazis into allowing him to help his Jewish workers.
Ben Kingsley, as Schindler’s Jewish accountant, and Ralph Fiennes, as a sadistic and brutal Nazi in charge of a concentration camp, are equally great in their roles. Fiennes definitely delivers one of the best depictions of a completely evil villain in cinema history.
While Schindler’s List is undoubtably an amazing film, it is far from an easy watch. Of course, it’s very easy to appreciate the movie and the story that it’s telling, but this is a tough film to stomach from an emotional standpoint.
Schindler’s List is one of the most powerful films ever made, and it’ll illicit a visceral reaction from moviegoers. While it may be difficult to get through, this is a supremely worthwhile film, both from a historical context and as an excellent piece of art, that I can’t recommend enough.
Grade: 10/10