(1941) dircted by Orson Welles and Josef Von Sternberg's The Scarlet

Empress. (1934) Specifically it will concentrate on how the two directors

use set design, framing and lighting to comment upon the psychology of their principle characters.

Welles' Citizen Kane tells the story of an aging press tycoon and

would-be politician Charles Foster Kane. A man whose arrogance alienates

him from everyone who loves him, leaving him to die alone inside the vast Gothic castle of a home that he builds for himself in Florida. The film is highly regarded for its filming techniques, including aspects of set design, framing and lighting. Von Sternberg's The Scarlet Empress tells thestory of the rise to power of Catherine the Great of Russia who overthrows her imbecile husband Peter to lead the nation. This film is also renowned for its cinemetography, lighting and set design (rather than its historical accuracy). What follows shall be a comparison of two specific sequences, one from each film. I shall describe each then explain how the elements mentioned earlier are similar in each and how they relate to their characters symbollically and their respective films as a whole. Th

e story of Charles Foster Kane unravels in a series of flashbacks told to a reporter by the people who knew him. In the film's fourth flashback, Kane's second wife, Susan, recounts her life with Kane to the reporter, Thompson. The viewer has learned earlier in the film that Kane has failed as a publisher, politician and as a husband to his first wife Emily. Kane puts all his hopes and aspirations into promoting Susan's opera carreer. The untalented Susan fails miserably and attempts suicide. The following sequence occurs after Kane tells Susan she can quit singing:

Both Orson Welles and Josef Von Sternberg used set design framing and lighting to great effect in the two aforementioned films. I realize that in the space provided I have only described breifly instances of this in each film, but the scenes I have chosen are central to each fim and give good example of how their individual techniques comment on the psychology of their principle characters.

"What time is it in New York?" she asks impatiently.

The grand palacial interior of Xanadu resembles greatly the interior of the Empress' palace in The Scarlet Empress. Sophia Frederica is summoned from Prussia to the Kremelin by the Russian Empress Catherine. She is to be the bride of the Empress' nephew and heir Peter. The Empress' envoy brings her to Russia by horse-carriage and sled-carriage. This sequence begins at the long journey's end with the horsemen leading the sled-carriage into the palace through a series of huge thirty-foot doors opened by guards. Bells are chiming and the scene fades to a close-up of a huge ornate church bell. The chiming fades replaced by regal trumpets as the scene cuts to a medium distance shot of the Empress sitting on her throne. It's a striking shot, as the throne itself is massive. It is in fact a giant sculpture of a two-headed eagle. It is obviously symbollic of the Empress' great power. Its immense size demands the attention of the room and the viewer of the film. The camera (likely on a crane) pulls back to reveal more of the huge room. The throne is atop a grand staircase, similar to the one in Welles's Xanadu. There are smaller yet equally ornate chairs on either side of the throne for her advisors and many large gruesome looking statues and stone ceiling fixtures throughout the room. Not unlike Xanadu, the place has a very cold and dreary atmosphere. It reflects the psyche of the Empress who is herself cold and lacking compassion. She is a powerful woman, both frank and ruthl

Some common words found in the essay are:
Kane Susan, Emily Kane, Welles's Xanadu, Peter Empress', Foster Kane, Von Sternberg, Marlene Deitrich, Duke Catherine, Catherine Russia, Hmm Kane, set design, design framing lighting, design framing, von sternberg, deep focus, focus shot, scene cuts, framing lighting, scarlet empress, set design framing, deep focus shot, psychology principle characters, welles josef von, shot empress, saintly light,
Approximate Word count = 1685
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)