Gregg Toland - Contributions On Citizen Kane

Contributions On Citizen Kane

Some film historians believe Citizen Kane's visual brilliance was due primarily to the contributions of Toland, not director Orson Welles. However, many Welles scholars maintain that the visual style of Kane is similar to many of Welles's other films, and hence should be considered the director's work. Nevertheless, the Welles movies that most resemble Citizen Kane (The Magnificent Ambersons, The Stranger, and Touch of Evil) were shot by Toland collaborators Russell Metty (at RKO) and Stanley Cortez.

At the time Kane was produced and released, Welles and Toland (among others) insisted that Welles gave lighting instructions that fall normally under the director of photography's responsibility. Years later, though, Welles acknowledged that "Toland was advising him on camera placement and lighting effects secretly so the young director would not be embarrassed in front of the highly experienced crew".