Orson Welles was a mind-imploding 25 years young when he co-wrote (controversial; more on that later), directed and starred in his 1941 magnum opus.

That fact is in itself as depressing as it is inspiring - and not purely for green-eyed reasons.

No, it's faintly depressing because Kane would of course be held up retrospectively as Welles' greatest career achievement - in this regard, a more clear-cut example of someone blowing their creative load prematurely is pretty damn hard to dredge up.

And yet, ironically, the film's initial failure to generate a decent profit meant it effectively derailed his still-nascent Hollywood career.

Come to think of it, Welles' debut feature experience proved to be very much a case of 'damned if you do, damned if you don't'...

Next: Westward ho!