Citizen Kane (1941): Who better personified the drive for bigger and better and more stuff than Charles Foster Kane? Just take a look at Xanadu, the palatial estate crammed with all the crap the millionaire newspaper tycoon amassed. He rose from poverty and began his career as an idealist, but Kane's desire for more newspapers, power and influence became all-consuming, until he died alone and shrouded in mystery. It's the archetypal rise-and-fall... more 

Citizen Kane (1941): Who better personified the drive for bigger and better and more stuff than Charles Foster Kane? Just take a look at Xanadu, the palatial estate crammed with all the crap the millionaire newspaper tycoon amassed. He rose from poverty and began his career as an idealist, but Kane's desire for more newspapers, power and influence became all-consuming, until he died alone and shrouded in mystery. It's the archetypal rise-and-fall story, and the larger-than-life persona of director, co-writer and star Orson Welles, both on screen and in real life, added to the intrigue. Plus, you know, it's largely considered the greatest film ever made. No biggie. less