Overrated

Rating: 5/10 (16 January 2002)

I'm not quite sure why so many people like this movie. It must be from decades of being told by the media that it's a great movie. But it's very hard to "enjoy" it. I could not connect on an emotional level to any of the characters. I got the feeling the director was trying to create sympathy for Bogart's "Rick" but it's hard to feel anything for a self-abusive, chauvinist, murdering, adulturer who never sees the error in his ways.
Every character except Peter Lorre's "Ugarte" is a cliche and overacted. Hollywood could only have gotten away with this in 1942. If anything this silly was produced today, it would be laughed right out of the theatre and onto video in a just a few weeks for being so unbelievable and ridiculous.
And what does "Here's looking at you, kid." even mean? It's just another stupid, catch-phrase that has no real meaning.
Maybe this movie's popularity was related to the anti-Nazism of the time. I don't know. I wasn't around then. Whatever it is, I don't get it.