A classic, in romance, in story, in cast and everything else

Rating: 10/10 (21 February 2019)

Rick (Humphrey Bogart) once lived in Paris, before World War II broke out. An ex-pat American, he now runs a cafe, named after him, in Casablanca, Morocco. Its 1942 and many folks who want to escape Hitler arrive in Morocco to look for a visa to go to the United States. Not very many are successful. So, Rick sees desperate people every day at his establishment. Most of the time he is unmoved, as for some reason, Rick is a jaded fellow. However, he does come across a pair of valuable visas when someone trusts him to hid them in his piano player Sam's instrument. Not long after, "THE WOMAN", Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) comes into the place, asking Sam to play a song Rick has forbidden him to play. When he comes rushing to chastise him, he meets Ilsa. Flashing back, we learn that Ilsa had a grand love with Rick in Paris, just as the Nazis were getting closer and closer. Yet, when they made plans to escape on a train, Rick was jilted on the platform. No Ilsa arrived. Now, will Rick learn why this happened? Yes! Ilsa had a huge secret which comes spilling out, only to make Rick hurt all over again. In the meanwhile, the Germans in town are trying to find an escaped hero of their concentration camps, Victor (Paul Henreid). He is the most wanted man in Africa and word has it he's coming to Casablanca. Can Rick be an uncaring spectator forever? This beautiful, classic film has everything, as you have probably heard. It's a fine romance, with grand passion indeed. The story is a heart grabber and the cast is superlative. Made before anyone knew how long Hitler would remain in power, and at a time when he was winning the war, one sees how all of Europe wanted to escape his clutches. If you have never taken the time to watch Casablanca, don't delay. Almost every movie fan agrees that it is a top ten listing every time.