CASABLANCA
A film review by Chad Polenz
Copyright 1997 Chad Polenz
**** (out of 4 = excellent) 1942, not rated, 102 minutes [1 hour, 42 minutes] [drama] starring: Humphrey Bogart (Rick Blaine), Ingrid Bergman (Ilsa Lund), Paul Henreid (Victor Laszlo), Claude Rains (Captain Louis Renault), written by Julius and Phillip Epstein, Howard Koch, produced by Hal B. Wallis, directed by Michael Curtiz, based on the play "Everybody Goes To Rick's" by Murray Burnett, Joan Alison.
If ever there was a story about "love and war," "Casablanca" is it. It's a story of love, power, destiny, and doing what's right. The film's theme serves to disprove the attitudes of the characters within it - that the problems of a few people do "amount to a hill of beans in the whole scheme of things."
As the film opens we learn during World War II many refugees made their way to Casablanca in French Morocco to escape the Nazis and for a passage to Lisbon, where they could in turn flee to the United States. There is no further explanation of WWII but none is needed. Everyone knows the power the Nazis had and the darkness of man they represent.
Humphrey Bogart stars as Rick Blaine, a dapper American who owns a club, The Cafe Americain, where all the important people in Casablanca go to socialize. At the same time we start to meet other key players such as French Police Captain (and part-time friend of Rick) Louis Renault (Rains). Renault says he is going to arrest someone who murdered two German couriers for passport clearance papers in front of his superiors - the German Gestapo.
The importance of the papers is really what the entire film revolves around. But this is not an adventure or war story, it is actually a story of love and self sacrifice. This is proved true with the introduction of two more characters, Victor Laszlo (Henreid) and Ilsa Lund (Bergman). Hints about these characters had been dropped through some of the characters' dialogue, but mostly in passing. This is the greatest element to the film - the use of intelligent subtlety.
Rick and Ilsa had a romantic encounter in Paris some years prior, but Rick had to escape the Nazis and assumed Ilsa was coming with him... There aren't many details of their affair, but none are necessary. The characters radiate such an awesome presence, just their glances and actions tell us all we need to know.
It's obvious Rick and Ilsa love each other, but she reveals something very shocking and puts Rick into a very awkward position. Basically, Rick holds the key to Ilsa's freedom, and he knows that giving it to her is the right thing to do, but it may cost either or both of them their happiness. What is the right thing to do?
"Casablanca" is so full of human spirit it seems like Shakespeare himself might have wrote this great story. This film is quite conservative, it wastes no shots, actions, nor dialogue in telling its story. Everything works to tell the story, define the mood, and make for theme. Excellent filmmaking indeed.
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