Citizen Kane is what cinema needed to be taken seriously. An interesting character with perfections and faults, a background mystery, a well-written story, and visual effects that were years ahead of their time. At the beginning of the movie, Kane is shown on his death bed, whispering the word "Rosebud." An investigation ensues where a reporter is tasked with finding the meaning of the name. As an audience, we are given the answer that it is his sled from his childhood, leading us to the knowledge that Kane's last thought was of his family home before he was adopted and taken away to the city to learn to become a businessman. We are shown the harshness and cruelty, the intelligence and friendliness of his character throughout the movie as Kane grows to be a man that will do, say, and buy anything to make (read: force) the people around him love him, but when they can no longer tolerate the constant gifts in exchange for love things fall apart and we are meant to feel either sympathy or pity for him. The use of shadows in a black and white film is for artistic effect and not due to the fact that it was shot in black and white. The shadows are not there as eye pieces, but to point your focus towards the characters, towards their conversations. Citizen Kane could never be remade.