Citizen Kane

In reading Laura Mulvey's "Citzen Kane," I thought the most interesting approach was to compare how things occurred surrounding the production of Citizen Kane, versus what would probably have occurred if it were to be filmed now. Mulvey states that prior to this film, Orson Welles had had a series of production blunders, including his filming of Heart of Darkness (which never made it past pre-production). Despite this trend, studio owners decided to stick with Welles, and give him and William Randolph complete say over how the film was done. As a result, both filmmakers were able to complete a masterpiece film which creates a labyrinth like structure, in which the viewer is constantly trying to decipher. They also broke conventions in creating a film that mixed "technology, style, and the aesthetics of cinema." If this movie were to be made today, however, the studios probably would have abandoned Welles long ago, and instead focused on a filmmaker who would be able to gain a profit. This juxtaposition, I feel, fully demonstrates the stranglehold the studio system has over creativity in Hollywood. While I do feel that Hollywood does still put out some fantastic films, I think the overall output of quality films has significantly decreased, as studios attempt to value profit over creativity.