Period 1 - APLAC
Ms. Taylor
12 February 2012
In today’s world the only way to escape challenges is to engross yourself
into those of another. In the 1942 classic, Casablanca,
a questionable love from Paris leads to harsh decisions. It’s World War II
has just begun. Germans have invaded Europe and everyone seeks refugee from this
control. All refugees to gamblers find themselves in the popular city of
Casablanca, Morocco where Ricks Café Americain is the place to be. Most are searching
for some nighttime entertainment but the inner-workings of the club seem to be
the key to a confrontation that sets a life-altering plan in motion.
The best dramatic movies are those that depend mostly on in-depth development of
realistic characters dealing with emotional themes or conflicts within
themselves according to filmsite.org. Casablanca’s
creation of a melodramatic tale between three people places it as one of the
best dramatic classics of all time.
The
movie begins with an action seen that sets the stage for war-plagued Europe. The
high octane search for two men who stole letters of transit and murdered the
carriers, brings us to the small but swanky Ricks Café. When Victor Lazlo comes
searching for these letters of transit so he can leave war-plagued Europe and
head to the Americas, he is accompanied by his wife, Ilsa Lund. Soon do we find
out that Ilsa and Rick have had a past in Paris due to Ilsa’s belief her
husband had been killed but he soon was to be found alive, forcing her to leave
Rick, the man she fell in love with. When the two meet again in Ricks Café we find
the beginning of a classic.
At the very beginning Michael Curtiz’s dynamic characters were created to
make a lasting impression. Humphrey Bogart plays Rick Blaine, the sly, witty,
strong-minded owner of Ricks Café. When Rick is faced with Ilsa because, “Of
all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into [his],” (IMBD.com) Bogart sets the
stage for a character engulfed with conflict. There becomes a change from a strong-minded
man to one who can’t decide on where to take his life due to love. Herself
faced with uncertainty, Ingrid Bergman plays Ilsa. Ilsa is a free-spirited, loving
women whose ability to love is unmatched by any. But when confronted with Rick,
we see the true charming, romantic Ilsa break through, not the woman that left
Rick unexpectedly. Bergman’s ability to connect with Bogart enhances the
characters onscreen connection, creating a power duo that is irreplaceable. But
we cannot forget Paul Henreid who plays the allusive Victor Lazlo. Henreid
plays the character that creates the moral center to which the film evolves. His
relationship between both Rick and Ilsa leads to questions by both Rick and Ilsa
of whether or not to leave with Victor. One must never forget the small roles
that are undermined in these great films.
We can then tell there was intent on creating a lot of emotion within the
characters by use of a song “As Time Goes By.” The song seems to connect Ilsa
and Rick, because we see that they both become lost in past memories when the
song is played. Ilsa urges, “Play it once, Sam. For old times' sake.” Upon hearing
the song, Rick rushes in and yells I thought I told you never to play” (IMBD.com) noticing that Ilsa
is sitting in front of him. We seem how Curtiz joins the characters with a timeless
song. This chemistry resulted in the movie’s
8 nominations which lead to 3 Oscars. This “unforgettable” and “top-notch” cast
has aided tremendously to the movies spot on the top one-hundred movies
all-time list. Roger Ebert believes that Casablanca has
it all: love, adventure, action, intrigue, humor. The ability of this movie to
last over several years speaks to the definition of a classic movie (Null) .
Another key to creating a classic drama movie is to enlace the plot with
a conflict. I believe that Casablanca
exceeds this qualification because Rick must choose between the “right-thing”
and what would be most beneficial to him; we see that he is torn between the
good and the bad. Because Rick must choose his own destiny, this is a sure way
to keep your audience involved, in my opinion. Ricks indecision in allowing Ilsa
to get away with Victor or keeping her in Casablanca with him, lead me to
wondering what he will do next. Without a doubt a bit of suspense is a perfect
way to get an audience involved in the movie. Casablanca encapsulates all of this controversy within its love
triangle. Knowing that she loves Rick but her husband as well, and Rick knowing
that he must support her because he still loves her, will we find that the two “are
honorable, [and] choose to do the right thing (Fandango.com)?"
Although one might say a melodramatic love story can be too sappy, Casablanca is far from this thanks to the
aspects of action and strategy that lies beneath the story. Michael Curtiz’s
directing has eluded this story from boring to unforgettable because he uses
his characters to create a story that connects the love triangle with the
current events of the war. He uses the melodrama as a cover over the war-time
issues that occur in the movie.
One cannot
do justice to a movie of this caliber in a simple explanation. I advise to any
and all watch Casablanca and decide
for yourself; did Rick make the right decision?
Works Cited
Fandango.com. n.d. 12 February 2012.
<http://www.fandango.com/casablanca_1415/criticreviews>.
IMBD.com.
n.d. 12 February 2012. <http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0034583/quotes>.
Null, Christopher. n.d. 12 February 2012. <http://www.filmcritic.com/reviews/1942/casablanca/>.
I really liked how you clearly stated the standards you would be using to evaluate if Casablanca was a classic drama or not. I think you also had really good, detailed support that clearly related to what you were evaluating and showed a good understanding of what happened in the movie. I was extra impressed that you chose to mention a song as part of what helped make the movie great, it's an aspect of film that I wish I had thought to mention in my own evaluation. If anything, you could work on improving the intro a bit (there's some grammar/misuse of words) but overall really good!
ReplyDeleteYou do a really good job at summarizing the concept of the film without giving too much away. You transition well between paragraphs and do a good job transitioning by talking about how the movie starts and the significance of it. You talk a lot about what makes a classic drama and how Casablanca fits into to that criteria. This is definitely strengthening to your argument. Other than some minor grammatical errors that may have been overlooked, this evaluation explains both the basis of the film as well as significant details that may have more meaning.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great review! You transitioned from the background and context of the movie into your reasons for why this film is truly special. From the characters, to the soundtrack, you discussed all of the special characteristics of the film. You evaluated what a classic drama film was while proving that Casablanca was certainly one of them. I found it very helpful that as you developed your argument, you included many examples and explanations from the film so that your argument was not confusing. Love, being such a powerful, yet intangible topic, was key in your appeal to emotion. The movie, having to have a great deal with love, was reflected in you evaluation. Your appeal to logic and reasoning was also evident by giving a plethora of evidence and backing to you argument. As we have read in the textbook readings, an argument is completely unreliable is there is no evidence. Citing your sources also proved your credibility. Furthermore, your bias yet academic tone reflected your passion about the film, but also remained reputable, not alienating your audience. This evaluation was great and certainly had qualities that I wish I would have included in mine!
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