Triumph of style over content

Rating: Null/10 (14 October 1998)

Casablanca remains one of the best loved films ever. made at a time when the world was in crisis, it shows that the affairs of some little people actually can amount to a hill of beans. There are of course moments of superb dialogue, much of which is taken by the supporting characters Louis (Claude Rains) and also Urgarti (Sydney Greenstreet). Lines such as (I'm only a poor corrupt official" and "I'm shocked, shocked!" have not become as famous as Bogart's "of all the gin joints..." line, but they always manage to raise a wry smile, worthy of Bogie himself. Of course it seems slightly clichéd, but imagine how terrible it would have been, were it not for the wonderful acting, and often stiring direction of Curtiz. The McTiernan of his day, Curtiz manages to keep the film moving at a quick, but not too quick pace. We bleed with Bogart, sing with Sam and idolise Henried. When I first watched the film, I longed for there to have been a sequel, but that would have missed the point. "Casablanca" was a one off. It could not have been repeated, as it was a curious mixture of atmosphere and something impossible to define. It is easy to imagine falling in love with Bergman, but it is impossible to imagine the torn identity of Blane. We do not live in a world such as this, and perhaps no one ever did. Casablanca is a fairy tale. If it were not, Berger would have shot Rick, but he did not. It is a clichéd tale about love, redemtion comradship and war. It is also a wonderful film, which MGM should release at the cinema one more time.
Altogether now..... "You must remember this......"