Casablanca (1942)

[Joerg Polzfusz]

Hi!

On Melvin‘s request, I‘ve turned this into a separate thread. (after changing some words and reformulating some thoughts ).

Yesterday evening, I watched „Casablanca“ (1942) on S8 in a friend’s home cinema - for maybe the tenth time. And I simply love the movie as it has so many details and side-stories. After the screening, I had a little discussion with a friend who summarized it as „lovestory of Rick and Ilsa“. But isn’t the main topic the lovestory of Ilsa and Victor? Or is it the friendship between Rick and Sam or Rick and Louis? Or is it about helpless refugees being stuck somewhere? Or is it about Rick‘s personal evolution and his way back to fighting the evil? Or is it about doing the right thing: fighting the nazis despite all the involved sacrifices (with everything else in the movie only being deception)?

What do you think?

(IMHO Casablanca is simply great because there’s no real answer to my question. And hence you can simply watch the movie all over again and again - when you are open to watch the film this time from a completely different point of view.)

[Mike Newell]

The script for Casablanca was being made up on a daily basis. The lead actors hadn’t a clue how it would end so thats why it’s so ambiguous

[Ed Gordon]

Serendipity. That is, nobody knows why it is so good. If anyone knew why it works so well, they would make it again, and again, and ...

[Melvin England]

Joerg - It's a whole lot of things to a whole lot of people. I completely agree with your comments here and also on the previous thread elsewhere. It is certainly my all time favourite. I have it on 16mm and 1.5 copies on super 8 (long story).

So, why is it my favourite? Well, all those things mentioned, plus marvellous script, one liners..... Bogie.... at his very very best..... and Bergman simply sizzles! It sends shivers down my spine every time I hear "Play it Sam...... Play 'As Time Goes By' " " I can't remember it Miss Ilsa, I'm a little rusty on it." " I'll hum it for you..."

As mentioned, it was put together as they went along. It is just so mind boggling that a film made this way, destined to hit the rocks, turned out to be such a gem.

Repeatability value 10/10

[Osi Osgood]

It doesn't "feel" like a story, it feels like your right there. You could visit this place. You can imagine all these people's lives before the war. Best of all, you'd want to be Bogie, hard as iron, yet lying to himself. He cares, dammit! Some people just beginning they're lives, some ending them (Rick, Hide Me! You despise me, don't you ?). It's one of those magical times in history. The least likely people end up being hero's, and who we once thought to be hero's, are zero's.

[Alan Paterson]

Every so often, a new film script is circulated around Hollywood agents. It's a thinly disguised copy of 'Casablanca' with the character names and locations changed. While the more experienced agents know to look out for it, some younger, bright eyed kiddywinks get caught out by it. Some copies of the script get returned with notes such as 'not enough car chases' appended to it.