A film for everyone, even 'As Time Goes By'...

Rating: 9/10 (15 August 2002)

How does one even begin to describe CASABLANCA? I know that there's nothing I can say to improve its reputation, or to make it any more well-loved. All I can attest to is the fact that I had the chance to see this film for the first time today, and just couldn't help falling in love with it. It's as close to perfect as a romance film could get, with elements of war, action, suspense, and good old-fashioned friendship thrown in to spice things up a little.
(Summary contains spoilers, beware!)
It's war-time, and Casablanca is en route to America and freedom. Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart), cynical and crusty owner of Cafe Americain, hides a softer, wounded side beneath his tough exterior. He says many times that he's never going to stick his neck out for anyone, that it's a policy of his not to drink with people in his cafe--all things that change when Isla (Ingrid Bergman) comes back into his life, unfortunately accompanied by her husband Victor Laszlo (Paul Henreid). Victor is a top man in the resistance movement, and needs desperately to escape to America to continue his fight for freedom. CASABLANCA isn't all about politics, however. It really comes down to the love of Rick for Ilsa, whom he met for a heady love affair in Paris, all set to the tune of 'As Time Goes By' (surely one of the most beautiful and memorable love songs ever written). His choice is the most difficult one anyone could ever be expected to make, and what's good about the film is that it keeps the audience guessing, even to the end, about just what Rick will do with the power he has over the fate of Ilsa, and most importantly, Victor (and as the film would have us believe, the free world!). I dare your heart not to break when Rick tells Ilsa, as he so famously does, "Ilsa, I'm no good at being noble, but it doesn't take much to see that the problems of three little people don't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world." And then one realises just what war can do to people, and what people can do in spite of war.
It's a fantastic film to be discovering for the first time, since the directing, acting and script are all first-rate. Michael Curtiz pulls the entire film together beautifully, drawing an incredible performance from Humphrey Bogart (perhaps the only actor--aside from Spencer Tracy--who could come off as so apparently self-centred and cynical and yet reveal a believably vulnerable side) and capturing Ingrid Bergman in all her luminous beauty. The supporting cast is brilliant, especially Claude Rains as the parallel character to Bogart's Rick, Captain Louis Renault. He certainly rivals Bergman for screen-time, and justifiably gets the lion's share of the good lines. Moreover, the screenplay is one of the most oft-quoted ones ever written, and for good reason: you just don't get dialogue like this anymore, in any film, and it's a treat to be allowed to listen in on the lives of these characters.
CASABLANCA is often described as one of the best films ever made as well as one of the best-loved. Its reputation is fully deserved. Watch this for yourself to find out why!