Review of Casablanca (1943) by Luca D — 09 Aug 2014

Considered one of the greatest films of all-time this well-loved classic deserves to be here. It is the hallmark of Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman's careers. It has one of the greatest scripts of all time and it has achieved legendary status over the years. Many consider it purely the best film ever made and in all honesty, I would never try to refute that.

The film opens quickly and we are immersed in a world that is at the height of the Nazi terror and many people are fleeing Europe by way of Casablanca. It is a treacherous place full of pickpockets, corrupt authorities, refugees, and some tourists as well. Two German couriers have been murdered and some invaluable letters of transit have been stolen and that's when we are first introduced to Rick's Café Americain and its cynical proprietor Rick Blaine. A shady fellow named Uguarte comes to him with the letters and asks Blaine to keep them for him. However, later that night Uguarte is taken into custody and things get even more complicated. Wanted resistance leader Victor Laszlo is now in Casablanca, however a Major Strasser has arrived from Germany to take him in. To top it off Laszlo's wife Ilsa was Blaine's old flame in Paris and it didn't end well. Laszlo desperately needs the letters of transit to escape and he inquires about them. Soon he is led to Blaine but as he often admits Rick sticks his neck out for nobody. Laszlo shows his defiance against his enemies by leading the people in a round of "La Marseillaise" and as a result Rick's is shut down. All the memories of Paris begin flooding back and then Ilsa confronts Rick in order to get the letters. This is possibly the most critical point in the film because this tense altercation ultimately renews the relationship between Rick and Ilsa. Rick asks her to trust him and he begins to take things into his own hands. The results of his actions created one of the great romantic and cinematic moments in the history of film. The whole film leading up to this point hints at it, but Rick truly is a sentimentalist at heart. He can live with the notion that they will always have Paris and that leads him to commit a selfless act of love.

You do not need explosions and violence, only great characters and a story with both drama and humor. Up until the final moments of the movie you are captivated the entire time. Then fittingly you are left with the two men walking off into the night with the words, "Louis I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship." In fact with this film my thoughts always go back to the script. Lines like "Here's looking at you kid," "We'll always have Paris," and "Round up the usual suspects" are so rampant that you cannot possibly remember them all and I doubt there will ever be another film that is so immersed in American culture. In fact many of my favorite lines in the film are those that get overshadowed by the more famous lines.That is the sign of an amazing film that never grows old. Even those who have not seen this classic film like to think they have because the influence of Casablanca reaches everywhere.