Closest Thing To Perfection Possible At The Movies

Rating: Null/10 (25 July 2013)

The first five minutes of Casablanca can be daunting to the viewer. So daunting that they may turn it off all together and go about their day. That's what happened to me my first time, trying to sit through Casablanca. I didn't walk away because I was bored by it, or uninterested in what laid ahead, it was the fear of something so beloved not holding up to its reputation or flying over my head completely. Thankfully, I returned to Casablanca and I'm forever thankful I did because it's one of the best films ever made.
In film schools, I'm sure Casablanca is the number one film analyzed for those future filmmakers waiting to make their mark on the industry. If it's not, it ought be. Casablanca delivers on every level technically, it's flawlessly constructed. It was made in the old-school Hollywood period where making movies like working in a factory, each part of the movie was put together by a specific person performing a specific task. The care and exertion put in by the set designer, costume coordinator, sound technician are all seen painted on the black and white, cinematography, which is my favorite part of the movie. The best photography ever put on film, playing with different camera angles, lighting, and emotional involvement like no film before it.
The direction is the other driving force behind Casablanca that makes it a movie that stood the test of time. Director, Michael Curtiz, juggles all the topics covered in the brilliant script making them feel effortlessly collected. He creates a swift, moving picture. Casablanca is the movie that defines great movie montages. The writing nails the contrast of love and war, which creates a finely tuned script. Humphrey Bogart and Ingird Bergman establish the precedent of war films being romantic and "the" movie couple of all-time.
Casablanca depicts the wartime world better than any film you'll ever find. Its romance has sparks that still fly today and the political back dealings of World War II play like a new story we would watch at this present time. Casablanca is about sacrifice and studies the character of Humphrey Bogart, as if the man's heart was speaking to directly to the audience. Being produced in 1942 without the technological advances today, the quality of the mechanical areas involved stunned me. It's an exceptional story that breathes long after its expiration date.
Rating: 10/10
Grade: A+