No one film will ever satisfy everyone’s opinion as being the greatest of all time. But if a decision had to be made, Michael Curtiz’s penultimate wartime melodrama Casablanca (1943) is a worthy contender. Based on an unproduced play, 'Everybody Comes To Rick's' by Murray Burnett, the screenplay finally fleshed out by Howard Koch and Julius and Philip Epstein plays fast and loose with its assortment of unsavoury characters, their past indiscretions and current scheming - all in an attempt to escape Nazi occupation on a plane bound for Lisbon.
In retrospect, it all seems to fit so neatly together that few today would guess how convoluted, strained and last minute the entire production was. In truth, Casablanca was just one of 52 films on the Warner slate for 1942 - a well-timed bit of pro-Allied war propaganda peppered with inimitable bits of sultry dialogue.
For years, rumours have abounded that Ronald Reagan and George Raft were first considered for the role of Rick; the hard bitten realist saloon keeper who comes face to face with the girl he thought he'd finally flushed from his system back in Paris. In fact, neither Reagan nor Raft were ever notified as forerunners for the part. As for Humphrey Bogart - the man who finally won the role - he had been a Warner contract player for more than a decade; largely relegated as a second string thug on the lam in gangster pictures starring Edward G. Robinson or James Cagney.
In many ways Casablanca was Bogart's graduation present from that murderer's row for his patience during that tenure. If he had not proven himself amiable as a leading man there is little to suggest his career would have survived the folly. But Bogart had been a romantic youth on Broadway long before his Warner film career. Although the passage of time in between those two careers had far removed him from Hollywood's ideal as a romantic figure, Bogart was every bit a ladies man in Casablanca; his sassy dispatch and bitter torment proving irresistible to women.
Shooting began under a tight deadline. The schedule was anything but smooth. Convinced that her husband might be having an affair, Bogart's first wife, Mayo Methot kept close watch on the set, causing Bogart to be overtly aloof toward Bergman on the set, thus straining their romantic scenes for the film. Bergman would later comment, "I kissed him but I never knew him."
As rewrites arrived almost daily to the set, Bogart and his co-stars grew more impatient about arriving at an outcome to their story. Would Isla Lund (Ingrid Bergman) go away with her husband, freedom fighter Victor Laslo (Paul Henreid) or remain behind with the man she truly loved - Richard Blane (Bogart)?
The Epsteins could not decide and as filming progressed the resolution became more immediate. In a moment of sheer brilliance - or perhaps mere exhaustion for a conclusion to their story - the Epsteins turned to one another and simultaneously spoke the same line of dialogue - "Round up the usual suspects!" It was an inspired bit of creativity. But now, this reviewer has allowed his own words to run away before completing his review.
For those who have never seen Casablanca (and, I understand there must be those who have not...to quote Ugarte - "Poor devils!") our story opens with Nazi Major Strasser (Conrad Veidt) arriving in Casablanca to oversee the capture of Ugarte (Peter Lorre); the man who murdered two German couriers in the unoccupied dessert. Strasser is first greeted by French Prefect of Police, Louie Renault (Claude Rains), whose roving eye is frequently focused on the desperate, though attractive, refugee girls seeking letters of transit to immigrate to America.
Louie and Rick are fair-weather friends; Rick allowing Louie to win at his casino tables to keep his official capacity from interfering in the daily operations of his cafe. Rick's Cafe Americain is in fact a hub of black market activity where everything from diamonds to human cargo is traded to the highest bidder. This lucrative hotbed is not wasted on Senior Ferrari (Sidney Greenstreet); a slave trader who also owns the seedy 'Blue Parrot bar just down the street. Nor is Louie entirely convinced that Rick's stoic silence is anything more than mere cover over the mysterious reason Rick had to leave America. "I like to think that you killed a man," Louie tells Rick, "It's the romantic in me!"
To any and all inquiries, however, Rick is silent. When Louie informs him that he plans to arrest Ugarte (Peter Lorre) for the murder of the couriers Rick's response is "I stick my neck out for nobody." Ugarte is arrested after a shootout at the cafe and later 'dies' of wounds inflicted by his Nazi captors. But Strasser has taken a mild interest in the Nazi dossier on Rick himself that shows a previous pattern of Rick providing aid and assistance to enemies of the Third Reich.
Enter the luminous Ilsa Lund (Bergman) on the arm of freedom fighter, Victor Laszlo (Henreid). Described as the most beautiful woman to ever visit Casablanca by Louie, Ilsa's mere presence in the cafe is enough to send shockwaves of simultaneous anger and disgust through Rick. After the cafe closes for the night, Rick quietly gets drunk while his hired man, Sam (Dooley Wilson) looks on. The halcyon haze of Rick's binge reverts to a flashback where we learn that Rick and Ilsa were in fact lovers in Paris. On the eve that Ilsa is supposed to meet Rick at the train station she instead sends him a letter cryptically explaining that they can never be together. Knowing that Rick's life is in danger if he stays behind, Sam coaxes him onto the last train out of France.
We return to the present to find Rick nearly passed out in the wee hours of the morning. Ilsa arrives and attempts to explain to him what she and Victor are doing in Casablanca but Rick cannot see beyond his own bitterness and jealousy. He admonishes Ilsa, driving her out of his cafe with dark, cold words. The next day Victor arrives at the cafe to ask Rick if he will sell him Ugarte's letters of transit - thus guaranteeing their safe passage to America, but Rick tells Victor to ask his wife instead.
Ilsa confesses to her husband only the most superficial of details about her affair with Rick, then quietly sneaks off to the cafe after hours to beg Rick for the letters herself. Denied access to them, Ilsa pulls out a gun. But her heart is not in the rouse and she once more succumbs to Rick's charms. The two share a night of passion and Ilsa informs Rick that she can no longer resist him. She will do whatever he says.
Rick asks Ilsa to bring Victor to the cafe after hours the following night where he intends to hand over the letters of transit only to him while keeping Ilsa for himself. However, when Victor and Ilsa arrive at the cafe they find a preening Louie Renault ready to arrest Victor as part of the conspiracy for the murder of the two couriers. In a moment of inspired brilliance, Rick double crosses Louie, holding him at gun point while he forces him to sign Ilsa and Victor's safe passage passports to America. Rick then orders Louie to telephone the airport's radio tower to confirm their reservations. Instead, Louie calls Strasser with a cryptic message, thereby alerting him of their plan of escape.
Rick, Victor, Ilsa and Louie arrive at the airport where Rick, after dispatching Louie and Victor to look after their bags, explains to Ilsa how their love can never last. She is getting on that plane with her husband while Rick stays behind to make sure their takeoff is successful. As the plane begins to taxi the runway, Strasser arrives and is killed by Rick in a shootout. Louie, who now has the opportunity to arrest Rick instead informs his police officers to "Round up the usual suspects" thereby absolving Rick of any wrong doing. In the final moments, Louie tells Rick that it's best he go away for awhile, adding that he intends to join Rick on whatever further adventures lay in wait. "Louie," Rick exclaims before the two men fade into the night fog for parts unknown, "This looks like the beginning of a beautiful friendship!"
Under Michael Curtiz’s unerring direction, and with a script masterfully patched together by Howard Koch and the Epsteins, Casablanca emerges as the most clever, romantic and ultimately, most memorably satisfying film of the 1940s. Basically a melodrama/romance – there is nothing conventional about Casablanca. Every performance is a gem, including the outstanding cameos provided by S.Z. Sakall (Carl, the head waiter) and Sidney Greenstreet (Signor Ferrari).
In retrospect, Dooley Wilson’s Sam is the film's most remarkable bit of casting. At a time when black performers were considered little more than servants or comic relief, Sam is neither, but in fact, Rick's equal, and at times, even his salvation. It is Sam who first encourages Ilsa to leave his employer alone; Sam, who saves Rick from certain Nazi capture at the train station in Paris; Sam, who looks after Rick after he has succumbed to a drunken stupor.
It goes without saying - but probable needs reiterating anyway - that Bogart and Bergman (on loan from David O. Selznick) are at the top of their game. Their on screen romantic chemistry is astounding, particularly considering how remote the two were towards each other behind the scenes.
Casablanca frequently hovers in the top five of most critics’ ‘best’ lists. It is also one of the most oft' misquoted movies in film history. For the record, Rick never says “Play it again, Sam,” but rather, “Play it. If she can stand it, I can.”
After viewing Casablanca in excess of 100 times this reviewer still considers it the best movie ever made, if for no better reason than it continues to generate perennial freshness each time I sit down to watch. Truly, the film has not dated. It continues to hold me spellbound in the dark. Hence, Casablanca remains that rarity amongst film favourites – eternally new. As Murray Burnett wisely assessed of a true classic some years ago, Casablanca remains "true yesterday, true today and true tomorrow." So, Sam, play it...not for old time's sake, then again for all time's sake!
Casablanca was one of Warner Home Video's early Blu-Ray releases, but the results are not as satisfying as I anticipated. Despite some deluxe packaging and superfluous extras (including a faux leather passport carrying case and luggage tag) the transfer suffers from edge enhancement that was not present on Warner’s slip case 2 disc special edition DVD released in 1998!
The beneficiary of a complete digital restoration in 1995, Casablanca's film elements are in superb condition with a beautifully balanced gray scale. Whites are pristine. Blacks are deep and solid. The Blu-Ray bumps up the overall clarity of the image, revealing some truly stunning fine detail in fabrics, faces and background information. What is regrettable is that edge enhancement that is prevalent on the Blu-Ray. When Ilsa arrives at Rick's cafe in the dead of night to confront him, film grain registers as harsh digital anomalies that shimmer. The audio is a 5.1 Dolby Digital rendering that is quite acceptable for this reissue. Is the Blu-Ray sharper than the DVD? Absolutely! Is this a smoother visual presentation than the DVD? Arguably, no.
Extras are all direct imports from the DVD and they include You Must Remember This – the making of the film; Bacall on Bogart – a marvellous retrospective of Bogie’s career, Carrotblanca – the Bugs Bunny spoof and the original pilot for a 1950s television series that proved a colossal flop. There are also audio and video outtakes, interviews, audio commentaries and other vintage goodies to delve into. *Please note: Warner has also issued a Blu-Ray only version of the film. The transfer quality is virtually identical to that in this box set! Recommended, but with reservations.
FILM RATING (out of 5 - 5 being the best)
5+
VIDEO/AUDIO
3.5
EXTRAS
4
0 comments:
Post a Comment