Casablanca (Snap Case)
by Michael Curtiz
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Claude Rains, Conrad Veidt, Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul HenreidDirector: Michael Curtiz
Brand: Casablanca
Producer: Hal B. Wallis
Writer: Casey Robinson
Writer: Howard Koch
Writer: Joan Alison
Writer: Julius J. Epstein
Writer: Murray Burnett
Writer: Philip G. Epstein
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; French (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Format: Black & White, Digital Sound, NTSC, Subtitled
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 102 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2000-02-15
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Warner Home Video
Movie Reviews of Casablanca (Snap Case)
Movie Review: Very Watchable Movie
Summary: 5 Stars
Casablanca is perhaps the most classic classic movie of all time. Even after more than 60 years it still entertains well.
The dialog is excellent ... just a lot of wonderful lines. My favorites are:
Ugarte: You despise me don't you?
Rick: If I ever gave you a thought, I probably would.
Rick: I don't buy or sell human beings.
Ferrari: That's a pity. It is Casablanca's leading commodity.
Renault: (to Rick) I've often speculated on why you can't return to America ... I like to think you killed a man ... it's the romantic in me.
Renault: What in heaven's name brought you to Casablanca?
Rick: My health ... I came to Casablanca for the waters.
Renault: The waters? What waters? We're in a desert.
Rick: I was misinformed.
Strasser: Can you see us (invading) New York?
Rick: Well, there are certain sections of New York, Major, that I wouldn't advise you to try to invade.
Ferrari: As the leader of all illegal activities in Casablanca ... I'm an influencial and respected man.
Rick: You can tell me now ... I'm reasonably sober.
Rick: (to Ilsa) I wouldn't bring up Paris now if I were you ... it's bad salesmanship.
Ilsa: (Threatens to shoot Rick)
Rick: Go ahead and shoot. You'll be doing me a favor.
Ilsa: You have to do the thinking for both of us; for all of us.
Rick: All right ... I will.
Renault: Ricky, I'm going to miss you. Apparently you are the only one in Casablanca who has even less scruples than I do.
Rick: Louie ... I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
But the acting here is top-notch. Normally, a movie back then had top-shelf talent for 3, maybe 4 of the leading roles. In Casablanca, quality actors are used 9 or 10 roles deep into the cast.
The background music (provided by Max Steiner) is excellent. Often, after a movie has been around for many years, the music will seem stale or out of place ... but here it is as fresh and well-blended with the action as the day the movie was released. There is, however, the nasty item on Mr. Steiner ... that, when he began his work to provide the background music (after the filming had been completed) he actually wanted to replace the song "As Time Goes By" in the film with a song he himself wrote ... to gain the royalties for he himself ... but, as Ingrid Bergman had already cut her hair (for her next film "For Whom the Bell Tolls") it was impossible to reshoot all the scenes in which "As Time Goes By" is played by Dooley Wilson ... and so he (Steiner) had to ... acquiesce.
The spotlight is pretty bright on Bogie and Ingrid though ... especially after 60 years of close scrutiny. Bogie does some excellent work here, and he carries the lead very well, but there are flaws in his performance, and they seem to stand out. Ingrid's performance is solid, but there again, there are moments in her performance that I am sure she later wished she could have redone.
Conrad Veidt is excellent as the bad guy ... just a great great job at being menacing. Claude Rains perhaps had the most fun lines to speak, and he seems to have had fun saying them. Sydney Greenstreet is very excellent as Ferrari, and Peter Lorre is good also. S.Z. Sakall is delightful as the waiter Carl ... and is a very natural actor, I think.
Paul Henreid (as Victor Lazlo) is OK. I read that, before he agreed to do the movie, he negotiated his billing to be up with Bogie's and Ingrid's. Did he deserve it? I'm not sure. Of all the film's performances, his seems to come across to the audience with the least effectiveness. He doesn't strike us as a great leader of a movement or as a patriot on the run. Nor does he seem to be the type of man that would inspire Ilsa's love. And so, it's hard to root for him. But maybe this helped the picture in a way ... in that it does allow us to root all the more for Rick and Ingrid to be together. But it's hard to put Paul Henreid up in the same categorie (acting-wise) as Bogie and Ingrid.
But, being the critic here, there are some unrealistic aspects to the plot I'd like to point out:
- When Ugarte is arrested (and later interrogated) he definately would have told the Nazis that Rick had the exit visas ... especially after Rick refused to "... stick his neck out for anybody."
- The Nazis, upon learning that Victor Lazlo was at Rick's Cafe, would have immediately arrested him, then killed him. Definitely.
- And Lazlo would never have travelled under his real name, nor would he have allowed it to be spoken aloud in a crowded restaurant.
- Rick's bravado toward the Nazis (mostly in the flash-back scene) would never be. It would have been foolhardy not to acknowledge the very real (and scary) threat they posed.
- And when Rick lets that honest young man win at gambling, so he and his wife could afford the bribe to Captain Renault, he (Rick) is lauded for it. But, no thought is given to the (certain) hundreds of times Rick used the same trick to cheat honest people out of their money.
Like I said ... just being the critic.
But it is a very watchable movie ... with no dull moments at all.
FOR THE 50th RE-ISSUE:
The "Making of ..." addition to the 50th anniversary re-issue of Casablanca gives us some interesting tid-bits, but is a weak effort.
They follow a standard format: Interview the guy who wrote the play, the lady who discovered the play, Ingrid's daughter, the lighting guy, have Bogie's wife narrate it, and so on ... but there's too much pap and not enough pith.
... and no gossip! We get absolutely zero gossip-type information.
Overall it just does not satisfy. With 50 years accumulation of film clips related to Casablanca (interviews, reflections, appearances, reviews, awards, etc.) ... which were completely ignored ... we are given a "The Making of Casablanca" that lacks the depth of research (and the height of quality) that this classic picture deserved.
Summary of Casablanca (Snap Case)
The story of a struggle among individuals who have sought refuge in Casablanca after fleeing Nazi occupied Europe.Genre: Feature Film-Drama
Rating: PG
Release Date: 7-JUN-2005
Media Type: DVD
A truly perfect movie, the 1942 Casablanca still wows viewers today, and for good reason. Its unique story of a love triangle set against terribly high stakes in the war against a monster is sophisticated instead of outlandish, intriguing instead of garish. Humphrey Bogart plays the allegedly apolitical club owner in unoccupied French territory that is nevertheless crawling with Nazis; Ingrid Bergman is the lover who mysteriously deserted him in Paris; and Paul Heinreid is her heroic, slightly bewildered husband. Claude Rains, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre, and Conrad Veidt are among what may be the best supporting cast in the history of Hollywood films. This is certainly among the most spirited and ennobling movies ever made. --Tom Keogh
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