Even 80 years after its release, Citizen Kane has retained its modernity and skill in storytelling because of Orson Welles’ forward-thinking and artful use of the various elements within mise en scène. I especially enjoyed seeing the German expressionism in the set design. The scene that stuck out to me most came in the latter half of the film, and I wanted to address some of the staging, lighting, and costuming techniques. See Figure 1 where the shot of Susan and Kane is pasted, and Figure 2 where the zones of action are separated by a red line.

Figure 1

Figure 2

There are two distinct zones of action in Figure 1, as shown in Figure 2. This represents the gap between Susan and Kane in their nature and ideals. The statues to the right of the fireplace are mirroring Kane in size and stature, which points to the similarities between Kane and a statue. Kane’s persona is so carefully crafted to his liking that it is as if he is a sculptor shaping himself up. Meanwhile, Susan is entirely disengaged. She sits near the center of the frame assembling a jigsaw puzzle as her and Kane’s relationship strains closer to its breaking point.

The costuming was also striking. In the scene, Susan is lamenting how she and Kane never seem to do anything or go anywhere, rather, all Kane wants is to sit in Xanadu amongst his materials and riches. Kane and Susan are both undeniably dressed for an outing, with Kane in a tuxedo and Susan in an evening dress. But as the scene progresses, we find that they never actually end up going anywhere, which is wholly indicative of the life they lead.

I wanted to briefly point out the lighting in this shot. The lighting is high key and high exposure, which creates sharp shadows and dramatizes the zones of lighting in the frame. The lighting brings heavy contrast to Susan and Kane’s costuming, and it especially allows Kane to stand out in the shot as a subject. The key light is extremely bright and harsh, with minimal fill light usage and the fireplace acting as the backlight to bring attention to Kane. 

The staging of Susan and Kane are the final element of mise en scène that I wanted to point out. Kane stands pencil-straight and professional behind Susan, and this businesslike stance represents the persona that he adheres to. He’s also looking in front of him, away from Susan, signifying his detachment from her and his unwillingness to take her issues seriously. Susan, on the other hand, sits slouched in her chair, leaning onto the table with boredom and irritation written all over her face. She is dissatisfied by this life of grandeur that Kane has provided for her, as she is nothing but arm candy for Kane to parade around as part of his character. She is bored of the life that she leads with Kane, though she initially jumped at the chance to have what she has now.

Orson Welles used timeless techniques to make the emotional and ideological gap between Susan and Kane clearer and clearer. His masterful use of lighting, staging, and costuming brought even more depth to the already incredibly complex relationship between Susan and Kane.

– Ria