Response to Citizen and Friday

Citizen Kane

Although Citizen Kane was made so many years ago, it's still applicable to today's culture. Some of the overarching themes dealt with money, success, and happiness; the struggle to find a balance between them. One of the lines that struck me was when Kane says, "If I hadn't been rich, I'd have been a great man." - which I feel perhaps might be the truth. Kane was able to run a successful newspaper, but in the end his success and wealth overtook his life and ruined many important relationships.

His Girl Friday

I found this movie to be the more enjoyable of the two, it was more light-hearted even in the midst of some dark circumstances (murder/divorce). At some points it was difficult for me to follow the plot because of the rapid dialogue between the characters. I found Hildy's character as a newswoman quite interesting. Throughout much of the movie Hildy was 'one of the guys' 'one of the newspaper men'. She had a strong personality and earned her rank as a reporter within the patriarchal world of journalism. However, I was suprised at the end when Hildy completely breaks down for love and cries at the thought of leaving the newspaper and her first husband. I thought her role throughout the movie and then momentarily at the end made for an interesting contrast.