Claude reigns

Rating: 10/10 (19 March 2004)

Ah, Casablanca...everyone's second favorite movie! On the recent DVD commentary, Ebert remarks that he's never heard a bad review of this film. I think he's asking for it there, because I've certainly heard some negative comments in my time, but usually these criticisms come from the sort of people who have a seizure the moment they're forced to watch something in black-and-white. So, we can disregard their opinions then! Every movie lover seems to like Casablanca, and that kind of almost limitless appeal is certainly remarkable.
I consider this movie a triumph in the name of good screenwriting. The directing and production values are certainly fine, for their time, but it's the great LINES that everyone remembers; yet Hollywood still rarely acknowledges the key role that writers play in movie-making, preferring instead to pump up the myth that directors are the sole creative forces that drive production (I'm not denying directors' importance here - merely arguing that it is perhaps exaggerated, as this movie's classic status indicates).
My favorite thing about Casablanca? Strangely, it's Claude Raines, who is simply so funny and seedy that he sticks in my mind every time I watch it. I love him, but because he's such a sleaze, I feel uncomfortable for it; in many ways, he's the most morally ambiguous part of the movie! Of course, Bogey rules too, and the supporting cast contains two of the greatest character actors...well, ever. Greenstreet and Lorre (or, as I prefer to call them, the Fat Man and the Bug) have more personality than most of today's "stars" combined, and they're just two of the many highlights here.