Casablanca (1942)

Casablanca is a 1942 romantic drama starring Humphrey Bogart (The Maltese Falcon) and Ingrid Bergman. It was directed by Michael Curtiz.

Casablanca is a classic romantic drama movie first released in 1942. Directed by Michael Curtiz and based on Murray Burnett’s and Joan Alison’s unproduced play Everybody Comes to Rick’s, the film stars Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman as the lead characters, with Paul Henreid, Claude Rains, Conrad Veidt, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre and Dooley Wilson playing supporting roles. The story of Casablanca follows a former freedom fighter-turned-nightclub owner named Rick Blaine (Bogart) who helps his former lover Ilsa Lund (Bergman) reunite with her husband Victor Laszlo (Henried) at the height of World War II in Morocco’s largest city.

Released during wartime in the United States on November 26, 1942 at the Hollywood Theater in New York City, Casablanca was an instant box office hit although reviews were mixed. Nevertheless it quickly became a cultural touchstone that has been referenced and parodied ever since its release. It was later awarded three Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay at the 16th Academy Awards held on March 4th 1943. The film has since been listed among the greatest films ever made by numerous publications, including TIME magazine in 2005 which ranked it number one on their list of All-Time 100 Movies.

The production of Casablanca was true to its time period with director Michael Curtis filming exclusively with black-and-white film stock which gave it a classic Hollywood look from start to finish. Everything from costumes to set design was authentic down to even using references from Moroccan culture such as Islamic architecture and traditional Moroccan music instruments like cajón (wooden percussion). Even some of the props used in background scenes were actually taken from World War II archives for authenticity in certain shots depicting news reports about Nazis entering Paris near the end of the movie.

Many lines spoken by characters have become iconic quotes throughout popular culture such as “Here’s looking at you kid” or “We’ll always have Paris”. Yet there are plenty more quotes aside those two though not all made it into the final cut due to censorship back then or simply because they were deemed ‘too sappy’ according to scriptwriters Julius J & Philip G Epstein who wrote many additional drafts before setting up a finalized version that included all elements we know today regarding visuals, dialogues or musical choices (including Max Steiner’s score).

At heart however Casablanca is still a story of love between two people amidst hardship during wartime where ultimately sacrifice prevails over self interests which makes this timeless classic so memorable even till today 78 years after its initial release date. With each new generation discovering this masterpiece more viewers can experience this spellbinding tale for themselves allowing them to get wrapped up into an unforgettable journey through dialogue that comes together beautifully like pieces of a puzzle forming an incredible nostalgic piece of art bound together forever in cinematic history.

Movie Reviews

“The film has a peculiar magic to it, and because of its pace the richness of its sense of detail often goes unnoticed (…)”
Jeremiah Kipp: Slant

“Seeing the film over and over again, year after year, I find it never grows over-familiar. It plays like a favorite musical album; the more I know it, the more I like it (…)”
Roger Ebert: rogerebert.com