Warner Bros. has released the official press release for their 70th Anniversary edition of Citizen Kane, due out on September 13, 2011. It will come in three editions: a DVD 3-disc set, priced at $49.99; a Blu ray 3-disc set priced at $64.99, and the Amazon exclusive edition which will include a fourth disc featuring Orson Welles’s stunning second film The Magnificent Ambersons, priced at $79.99. None of the extra discs on any set will be in the Blu ray format. Amazon is currently listing their exclusive 4-disc set for $49.99 and both the 3-disc DVD and Blu ray sets are only $5.00 cheaper at $44.99, making the Amazon exclusive a must for Welles fans who have long wondered why Warner Bros. has failed to release The Magnificent Ambersons on DVD or Blu ray.
Here is the Warner Bros. press release:
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Orson Welles’ Tour de Force Citizen Kane Celebrates 70th Anniversary with Blu-ray Debut of Remastered Ultimate Collector’s Edition
Burbank, Calif., June 13, 2011 — Citizen Kane, Orson Welles’ tour de force which the American Film Institute (AFI) chose as the #1 film of all time, celebrates its 70th Anniversary with an all new 1080p hi-definition restoration from original nitrate elements in stunning 4K resolution and revitalized digital audio. Warner Home Video will bring the iconic masterwork to a new generation with their new Blu-ray™ 70th Anniversary Ultimate Collector’s Edition, complete with more than three hours of bonus content and an array of rare and collectible premiums including a 48-page collector’s book filled with photos and behind-the-scene details, a 20-page reproduction of the original 1941 souvenir program, lobby cards, and reproductions of rare production memos and correspondence (Blu-ray Disc $64.99 SRP; DVD $49.92 SRP).
This classic story of power and the press starring, produced, directed and co-written by then 25-year-old Orson Welles, the film captured nine Academy Award®* nominations, including Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Director, and won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.
These newest 70th Anniversary editions will present the film in the highest quality yet. “The work to recreate the original look of the film and to clean up the effects of aging was a painstaking, frame-by-frame process. The source for most of the picture was a 4K scan from a 1941 composite fine grain positive master” says Warner Bros. Motion Picture Imaging (MPI) colorist Janet Wilson.
The new edition includes feature-length stories-behind-the-story that include the two- hour Academy Award-nominated documentary Battle over Citizen Kane and RKO 281, the Golden Globe® and Emmy ® winning HBO docudrama that chronicles the clash between William Randolph Hearst and Hollywood. Memorabilia in the premium packaging includes the 1941 movie premiere newsreel, gallery of storyboards, studio correspondence, call sheets, rare photos and more.
Citizen Kane 70th Anniversary Edition is new to digital and will be releasing with iTunes Extras and will be available On Demand from cable and satellite providers and for digital download from online retailers including iTunes™, VUDU and Amazon Instant Video.
THE EXTRAS! READ ALL ABOUT THEM!
Disc 1
· Commentary by Peter Bogdanovich
· Commentary by Roger Ebert
· Opening: World Premier of Citizen Kane Vintage Featurettes
· Interview with Ruth Warrick
· Interview with Robert Wise
· Storyboards
· Call Sheets
· Still Photography with Commentary by Roger Ebert
· Deleted Scenes
· Ad Campaign
· Press Book
· Opening Night
· Theatrical Trailer
Disc 2: The Battle over Citizen Kane (PBS Documentary)
Disc 3: RKO 281 (HBO Feature film)
Amazon only exclusive:
Disc 4: The Magnificent Ambersons
About Orson Welles and CITIZEN KANE
CITIZEN KANE, according to director Martin Scorsese, made Orson Welles “responsible for inspiring more people to be film directors than anyone else in the history of cinema.” Starring, produced, directed and co-written by Welles, CITIZEN KANE opened May 8, 1941 at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood and was nominated for nine Academy Awards®, winning the Oscar® for Best Screenplay.
The picture starred actors from Welles Mercury Theater, who at the time, were entirely new to motion pictures. Joseph Cotten played Jedediah Leland, the best friend of Charles Foster Kane, while William Alland was the investigative reporter who delves into the life of Kane, in a quest for the meaning of Kane’s dying word, “Rosebud.” Welles himself played the title role, from a boyish, ambitious young man to the old, bloated and embittered recluse he became. Other actors Welles cast included Everett Sloane, Agnes Moorehead, Ruth Warrick and Paul Stewart. Alan Ladd and Arthur O’Connell appeared in uncredited bit parts as reporters.
The legendary Gregg Toland was the film’s cinematographer, and Robert Wise, later a two-time Academy Award®-winning director, was the editor on the picture. One of the screen greatest composers, Bernard Herrmann created his first movie score for CITIZEN KANE, and was nominated for the Academy Award, but that same year Herrmann beat himself for the Oscar — for his second film score, ALL THAT MONEY CAN BUY. After remaining out of circulation for many years, the film was re-issued by RKO in 1956, and in 1962 CITIZEN KANE was selected by a panel of film critics as the greatest film of all time. During the ensuing years, in poll after poll, CITIZEN KANE has consistently ranked as the highest embodiment of film art. Says critic Roger Ebert, “Seventy years later, this towering achievement is as fresh, as provoking, as entertaining, as funny, as sad, as brilliant, as it ever was. Many agree it is the greatest film of all time.” Critic and film historian Arthur Knight observed, “Less by imitation than by inspiration, the Orson Welles film has altered the look not only of American films, but of films the world over.”