Citizen Kane (1941)
Mystery, Drama • 1h 59m
Overview
Newspaper magnate Charles Foster Kane is taken from his mother as a boy and made the ward of a rich industrialist. As a result, every well-meaning, tyrannical or self-destructive move he makes for the rest of his life appears in some way to be a reaction to that deeply wounding event.
Director: Orson Welles
Cast: Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Dorothy Comingore, Ray Collins, George Coulouris, Agnes Moorehead, Paul Stewart, Ruth Warrick, Erskine Sanford, William Alland, Everett Sloane, Fortunio Bonanova, Gus Schilling, Philip Van Zandt, Georgia Backus, Harry Shannon, Sonny Bupp, Buddy Swan, Gregg Toland, Don Ackerman, Gino Corrado, Maurice Costello, Demetrius Alexis, Gene Coogan, Art Dupuis, Rudy Germane, Mike Lally, Walter Lawrence, John Northpole, Victor Romito, Bob Terry, William Alston, Jack Gargan, Bert Moorhouse, Carmen Laroux, Sam Ash, Buddy Messinger, Terrance Ray, Sally Corner, Walter Bacon, Herbert Corthell, Harry A. Bailey, Danny Borzage, Tom Coleman, Carl Deloro, Jack Egan, Robert Haines, Ludwig Lowry, John McCormack, Hercules Mendez, Paddy O'Flynn, Sam Rice, Don Roberts, Larry Wheat, Morgan Brown, Harry Burkhardt, Edmund Cobb, Eddie Coke, Louis Natheaux, Arthur O'Connell, Guy Repp, Tom Steele, Richard Wilson, Louise Currie, Walter Sande, Jan Wiley, Milton Kibbee, Buck Mack, Alan Ladd, Thomas A. Curran, Jack Curtis, George Noisom, Gerald Pierce, Dona Dax, George DeNormand, Bud Geary, Bert LeBaron, Clyde McAtee, Cyril Ring, Roland Winters, Lew Harvey, Herman J. Mankiewicz, Eddie Dew, Perc Launders, John Dilson, Walter James, Robert Dudley, Suzanne Dulier, Al Eben, Johnny Eckert, Carl Ekberg, Edith Evanson, Carl Faulkner, Juanita Fields, Edna Mae Jones, Leda Nicova, Jolane Reynolds, Suzanne Ridgway, Olin Francis, Louise Franklin, Renee Godfrey, Peter Gowland, Jimmy Grant, Jesse Graves, Ernest Grooney, Jack Gwynne, Teddy Mangean, Henry Hebert, Bryan 'Slim' Hightower, Mitchell Ingraham, Philip Morris, Francis Sayles, George W. Jimenez, Ellen Lowe, James T. Mack, Mickey Martin, Bruce Sidney, Major McBride, Frank McLure, Charles Meakin, Edward Peil Jr., Irving Mitchell, Frances E. Neal, Lillian Nicholson, Joseph North, William H. O'Brien, Field Norton, Dick Scott, Frank O'Connor, Russ Powell, Bert Stevens, Thomas Pogue, Lillian O'Malley, Jack Raymond, Gohr Van Vleck, Myrtle Rishell, Benny Rubin, Shimen Ruskin, George Sherwood, Edward Ryan, Landers Stevens, Harry J. Vejar, Tudor Williams, Arthur Yeoman, Tim Davis, Arthur Kay, John Alban, Finn Zirzow, Sam Harris, Dorothy Cleveland
Director: Robert Wise
Disney 4K Blu-ray, see caps https://slow.pics/c/hE3HUCdj
Disney 4K Atmos is great, a reference quality track. It's a very slight remix (music seems to be from a better source), but it's completely seamless and faithful to the original, better fidelity than anything since the 1994 30th Anniversary Edition LaserDisc.
All DVDs (and 2010 Blu-ray) sound far worse than the 4K Blu-ray/LaserDisc and have various missing sound cues.
Director: Robert Wise
Disney 4K Blu-ray, see caps https://slow.pics/c/hE3HUCdj
Disney 4K Atmos is great, a reference quality track. It's a very slight remix (music seems to be from a better source), but it's completely seamless and faithful to the original, better fidelity than anything since the 1994 30th Anniversary Edition LaserDisc.
All DVDs (and 2010 Blu-ray) sound far worse than the 4K Blu-ray/LaserDisc and have various missing sound cues.
Director: André de Toth
2D version: Warner Archive Blu-ray
3D version: Warner Archive 3D Blu-ray
2D version: Warner Archive Blu-ray
3D version: Warner Archive 3D Blu-ray
Director: André de Toth
2D version: Warner Archive Blu-ray
3D version: Warner Archive 3D Blu-ray
2D version: Warner Archive Blu-ray
3D version: Warner Archive 3D Blu-ray
Director: Sidney Lumet
2026 Criterion 4K Blu-ray
2011 Criterion Blu-ray is the best. Kino Lorber 4K Blu-ray has heavily filtered audio
Director: Sidney Lumet
2026 Criterion 4K Blu-ray
2011 Criterion Blu-ray is the best. Kino Lorber 4K Blu-ray has heavily filtered audio
Director: John McTiernan
Director: John McTiernan
Director: John Ford
Director: John Ford
1991 Warner Bros LaserDisc (for original mono track)
1996 Warner Bros 25th Anniversary LaserDisc has isolated music and effects track (incorrectly labeled "music minus vocals") not present on any other release
1991 Warner Bros LaserDisc (for original mono track)
1996 Warner Bros 25th Anniversary LaserDisc has isolated music and effects track (incorrectly labeled "music minus vocals") not present on any other release
Director: Alfred E. Green
Director: Alfred E. Green
Director: John Waters
Director: John Waters
Director: Nicholas Ray
Director: Nicholas Ray
Director: Orson Welles
Director: Orson Welles
Director: Orson Welles
Director: Orson Welles
Directors: Orson Welles & William Vance
Kino Lorber Silent Avant-Garde Blu-ray
Kino Lorber Silent Avant-Garde Blu-ray
Directors: Orson Welles & William Vance
Kino Lorber Silent Avant-Garde Blu-ray
Kino Lorber Silent Avant-Garde Blu-ray
Director: Orson Welles
MoC 4K Blu-ray and Kino Lorber 4K Blu-ray are similar
Director: Orson Welles
MoC 4K Blu-ray and Kino Lorber 4K Blu-ray are similar
Director: Orson Welles
Director: Orson Welles
Director: Orson Welles
Director: Orson Welles
Director: Jean Renoir
The Criterion 4K Blu-ray has marginally better detail and grain structure than ESC 4K Blu-ray
The ESC France 4K Blu-ray is an SDR grade erroneously presented in HDR, but if your player can force the HDR into SDR it looks very good.
Director: Jean Renoir
The Criterion 4K Blu-ray has marginally better detail and grain structure than ESC 4K Blu-ray
The ESC France 4K Blu-ray is an SDR grade erroneously presented in HDR, but if your player can force the HDR into SDR it looks very good.
Director: John Waters
Director: John Waters
2025 Sony 4K Blu-ray
2025 Sony 4K Blu-ray
2025 Sony 4K Blu-ray
2025 Sony 4K Blu-ray
Director: David Lynch
Criterion 4K Blu-ray or Germany Plaion 4K Blu-ray - subtle difference in encoding to the Criterion in encoding, trading blows in different shots, with Plaion taking a slight edge with less highlight blocking
1993 MGM LaserDisc/2000 Region 1 MGM DVD
Criterion's 2.0 sounds muffled due to noise reduction and EQ.
Plaion's 2.0 lacks bass and has a very bright EQ, more resembling the 5.1 remix. Plaion’s 2.0 doesn't have any filtering unlike the Criterion, see https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.php?p=23831289&postcount=110
Director: David Lynch
Criterion 4K Blu-ray or Germany Plaion 4K Blu-ray - subtle difference in encoding to the Criterion in encoding, trading blows in different shots, with Plaion taking a slight edge with less highlight blocking
1993 MGM LaserDisc/2000 Region 1 MGM DVD
Criterion's 2.0 sounds muffled due to noise reduction and EQ.
Plaion's 2.0 lacks bass and has a very bright EQ, more resembling the 5.1 remix. Plaion’s 2.0 doesn't have any filtering unlike the Criterion, see https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.php?p=23831289&postcount=110
Director: David Lynch
Criterion 4K Blu-ray is closer to the original DVDs than the 2015 Criterion release, not sure about whether the StudioCanal 4K is like the Criterion 4K/original DVD
Criterion 4K Blu-ray has FEL Dolby Vision, StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray has MEL
Director: David Lynch
Criterion 4K Blu-ray is closer to the original DVDs than the 2015 Criterion release, not sure about whether the StudioCanal 4K is like the Criterion 4K/original DVD
Criterion 4K Blu-ray has FEL Dolby Vision, StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray has MEL
Director: Ridley Scott
Capelight 4K Blu-ray has better encode than Criterion 4K Blu-ray
Director: Ridley Scott
Capelight 4K Blu-ray has better encode than Criterion 4K Blu-ray
Director: Jean Vigo
Director: Jean Vigo
Director: Chen Kaige
Director: Chen Kaige
Director: Charlie Chaplin
1936 version: Image Entertainment DVD
1954 version: Criterion Blu-ray
Cut info: https://www.nitrateville.com/viewtopic.php?t=31209
1936 version: Image Entertainment DVD
Director: Charlie Chaplin
1936 version: Image Entertainment DVD
1954 version: Criterion Blu-ray
Cut info: https://www.nitrateville.com/viewtopic.php?t=31209
1936 version: Image Entertainment DVD
Edit History
10/21/2025
Best Video Release
From
Warner Europe UHD slightly better encoding than Criterion
To
WB Europe 4K Blu-ray slightly better encoding than Criterion (caveat: missing Criterion extras)
From
Warner Europe UHD slightly better encoding than Criterion
To
WB Europe 4K Blu-ray slightly better encoding than Criterion (caveat: missing Criterion extras)
10/5/2025
Blu-ray.com
Added
https://www.blu-ray.com/Citizen-Kane/20566/
Added
https://www.blu-ray.com/Citizen-Kane/20566/
blah-ray
Added
https://blah-ray.blogspot.com/2021/12/citizen-kane-1941.html
Added
https://blah-ray.blogspot.com/2021/12/citizen-kane-1941.html
12/15/2024
12/15/2024
12/13/2024
Best Audio Release
From
1992 Turner VHS Hi-Fi
From
1992 Turner VHS Hi-Fi
