One of our most quotable movies

Rating: 10/10 (9 March 2006)

Not only have countless responders talked about this film; geniuses of the film criticism have picked it apart. Like so many of my most highly rated films, it's all about character. Someone said that modern film audiences don't see it as a classic. I love all kinds of movies. I am disappointed much more with contemporary films than older ones because filmmakers were forced to us a lot more imagination. Granted, there are many bad films in every era as well as great ones. When I see every reviewer start with an evaluation of special effects. Why is it that so many films need to rely on special effects. This movie is a romance of the highest order. It asks so much of its stars. The incredible lighting that accentuates the faces of the characters makes it all work. Then you have real stars in Bogie and Bergmann. Todays actors are so bland and interchangeable for the most part. There was a reason for a star system. Even today, I want to see the less glamorous actors: Hackman, Eastwood, etc. When Bergmann is on the screen, there is no one who can show the passion and pain that she does. Also, consider the vignettes concerning war embattled Casablanca. There is a force at work to destroy all that is good and right. The singing of the French national anthem is antithetical to that scene in Cabaret where the young Nazis sing "The World Belongs to Me." See this if you never have.