Thursday, 21 June 2007, 11:01 GMT 12:01 UK
E-mail this to a friend Printable version
Citizen Kane 'greatest US film'
Orson Welles (centre) made Citizen Kane at the age of 25
Orson Welles' classic 1941 film Citizen Kane has been named the greatest
US movie of all time by the American Film Institute (AFI).
The Oscar winner, which also topped the AFI's first list in 1998, beat
The Godfather into second place.
Alfred Hitchcock's 1958 thriller Vertigo clambered into the top 10, after
coming 61st a decade ago.
Newer films fared less well, with 2001's Lord of the Rings film gracing
the list at number 50.
Saving Private Ryan at 71, 1997's Titanic's at 83, and psychological
thriller The Sixth Sense in 89th place were the only other recent films to make
the Top 100.
Film restorations
Older US movies which failed to appear on the last list but accrued
enough votes this time include period classic Spartacus at 81, and Intolerance
- a silent picture released in 1916 - which landed at 49.
'GREATEST US MOVIES'
1 Citizen Kane (1941)
2 The Godfather (1972)
3 Casablanca (1942)
4 Raging Bull (1980)
5 Singin' In The Rain (1952)
6 Gone With The Wind (1939)
7 Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
8 Schindler's List (1993)
9 Vertigo (1958)
10 Wizard of Oz (1939 - pictured)
Source: American Film Institute
Older films may have done better in the latest chart due to good quality
restorations being more readily available on DVD.
Movies which fell out of favour on the new list include Dr Zhivago and
Close Encounters of the Third Kind.
The film's director Steven Spielberg amassed the most work in the
countdown with five releases.
James Stewart and Robert De Niro lead the tally for actors, also with
five films each.
The AFI Top 100 was drawn from 1,500 ballots sent to film-makers, actors,
writers and other Hollywood players, who chose from a list of 400 nominated
films.
Citizen Kane, which was made by Welles when he was just 25, was heralded
as the film "which changed the fabric of cinema" by Bob Gazzale, who produced a
US television show based on the list.
"That ideal still holds today of this jewel everybody reaches for," he
added.
AFI officials have said they will produce a Top 100 greatest US movies
list every decade as a barometer of changing tastes in cinema.
<<o.gif>>
<<dot_629.gif>>
<<email.gif>>
<<print.gif>>
<<_42407260_welles_ap203b.jpg>>
<<_42407286_wizardofoz_ap203.jpg>>
