A lot of people say: 'Casablanca is the greatest film ever'  Well, it's definitely one of them.

Rating: 9/10 (20 July 2006)

Casablanca has stood the test of time in a number of different ways. Given the time and circumstances under which this film was made, it's very easy to see why so many generations have warmed to it.
Casablanca leaps into action very impressively; in-fact there is hardly ever a dull moment in this film, contrary to what some people say. The beginning is quick and sets everything up very nicely. We're made aware of the situation, the setting and exactly what goes on here. The little thing the narrator mentions about the German soldiers being killed and some papers missing whets our appetite. It stays at the back of our mind for a while. We also get a good look at our hero's bar/casino and what goes on/who goes there. It's done fairly quickly and very professionally. Never boring, and that's the key adjective to mention. In-fact, the amount of characters we are introduced to is rather effective as we don't really learn too much about them all at once, creating an eerie suspicion about them.
The technique of building up a yet unseen character through dialogue is at large here, albeit briefly. The person in question is the eventual 'girl' of the film and we are told that she's been through hell already with a certain someone yet didn't leave them creating the atmosphere that she's someone special who sees things through to the end. This adds to the surprise our hero and us feel when we realise just exactly who it is.
The hero's bar is the setting for most of the early exchanges and the mellow music that flows throughout is very nice and adds to the on screen atmosphere. The dialogue Rick (Bogart) is given also adds to the film as we're forced into believing he's a certain type of person: witty, cynical, quick and clever. He doesn't stray away from habits and routines, either. So, when the bombshell arrives and he's suddenly breaking these traits we've come to see him never stray away from, we know something's wrong. Something or someone has forced him into straying away from his own self and suddenly become more serious about things. The dialogue mentioned earlier has done its job and we're hooked.
This is shown to us through an effective flashback sequence, which are memories in Rick's mind. The thing here in a filmic sense is that this could've happened at the start of the film, followed by a caption: 'xx years later'. The fact the makers didn't use this standard technique is evidence enough it's different for the good. Similar to 'Citizen Kane' a year earlier; the story is told, briefly, through means of time/space manipulation and it works very well if you've already been caught up in the film.
Casablanca never wonders away from its story line or characters. The routine romance plot is maintained throughout and comic quips are thrown in as well once Rick is forced to change. With a script which has stood the test of time like no other and that feeling of tragedy and emptiness flowing throughout, it's no wonder 'we'll always have Casablanca'.