Casablanca (1942)

[montrealfilmguy]

Title: Casablanca

Tagline: They had a date with fate in Casablanca!

Genre: Drama, Romance

Director: Michael Curtiz

Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid, Claude Rains, Conrad Veidt, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre, S.Z. Sakall, Madeleine Lebeau, Dooley Wilson, Joy Page, John Qualen, Leonid Kinskey, Curt Bois, Enrique Acosta, Ed Agresti, Louis V. Arco, Frank Arnold, Leon Belasco, Nino Bellini, Oliver Blake, Monte Blue, Eugene Borden, Dick Botiller, Maurice Brierre, Sebastian Cabot, Anita Camargo, George M. Carleton, Spencer Chan, Melie Chang, Tex Cooper, Gino Corrado, Franco Corsaro, Adrienne D'Ambricourt, Marcel Dalio, Helmut Dantine, Jean De Briac, George Dee, Jean Del Val, Carl Deloro, Joseph DeVillard, Arthur Dulac, William Edmunds, Herbert Evans, Fred Farrell, Adolph Faylauer, O.K. Ford, Martín Garralaga, Gregory Gaye, Gregory Golubeff, Ilka Grüning, Creighton Hale, Winifred Harris, Jamiel Hasson, Arthur Stuart Hull, Olaf Hytten, Charles La Torre, George J. Lewis, Manuel Lopez, Jacques Lory, Lou Marcelle, Tony Martelli, George Meeker, Lal Chand Mehra, Hercules Mendez, Louis Mercier, Torben Meyer, Alberto Morin, Leo Mostovoy, Corinna Mura, Barry Norton, Lotte Palfi Andor, Paul Panzer, Manuel París, Alexander Pollard, Frank Puglia, Georges Renavent, Dewey Robinson, Richard Ryen, Dan Seymour, Lester Sharpe, Dina Smirnova, Gerald Oliver Smith, George Sorel, Geoffrey Steele, Ludwig Stössel, Mike Tellegen, Rafael Trujillo, Jacques Vanaire, Ellinor Vanderveer, Norma Varden, Hans Heinrich von Twardowski, Jack Wise, Wolfgang Zilzer, Trude Berliner, Paul Porcasi, Max Linder, Frank Mazzola, Henry Rowland, Leo White, Paul Irving, Brandon Beach, Victor Romito, Michael Mark, Bhogwan Singh

Release: 1942-11-26

Runtime: 102

Plot: In Casablanca, Morocco in December 1941, a cynical American expatriate meets a former lover, with unforeseen complications.

I've been wanting to tell this one for quite some time now..


Yes,there is such a thing as a Casablanca bit of trivia most people don't know about ONLY due to the fact

that you have to be french to figure it out,i think....


I could be wrong


It's related to Ilsa's first entrance into Rick's when she's accompanied by Victor,and even Sam hasn't caught a glimpse of her yet.


You know how throughout the first half hour,they make it a point of establishing Rick's mantra by making him repeat it a couple of times.


"I stick my neck out for nobody !"


Nobody,he says.


The moment i'm speaking of lasts but a second and yet it's so emotionaly connected to the entire Rick/Ilsa relationship,i just turn into a mess at that point.


Ilsa walks in and the maitre d' comes to show them their table.


At that exact moment listen to the soundtrack,in the background,you'll hear Sam playing a song.


It's this one.





The song is called: Parlez-moi d'amour.


Literally,tell me about love,and "love" walks in at that precise moment.


Now,Rick's got a reason to stick his neck out.


Man.

 

[montrealfilmguy]

oops


could a moderator send this thread in the more appropriate bluray section ?


thank you resistance brothers.

 

[TonyD]

Huh?

 

[montrealfilmguy]

whaddya mean huh ?


Resistance.As in Casablanca,As in Humphrey Bog...ohnevermind.

 

[Chad R]

I think the "huh" was because you haven't explained yourself very well. Rick says he won't stick his neck out for "nobody", not "anyone I don't love." So just because love walks in the door doesn't automatically mean he'll stick his neck out for her. In fact, I think the movie takes a good long time for Rick to reach the point where he will stick his neck out for her, especially since she's the reason he lives by that mantra.

 

[TonyD]

Originally Posted by Chad R

I think the "huh" was because you haven't explained yourself very well. Rick says he won't stick his neck out for "nobody", not "anyone I don't love." So just because love walks in the door doesn't automatically mean he'll stick his neck out for her. In fact, I think the movie takes a good long time for Rick to reach the point where he will stick his neck out for her, especially since she's the reason he lives by that mantra.

All of that and i din't see this as trivia but another interesting point of a great movie for discussion.

Very possible that not many people noticed that bit of info when watching the movie.

 

[montrealfilmguy]

granted Chad R,maybe i didnt explain myself,but then again just writing huh doesn't help either in understanding what Tony D didn't get,which could've been anything from the first post or my resistance brothers gag.

 

[TonyD]

We may never know!

 

[SamT]

I saw this for the first time and didn't really get it. I don't understand the situation. Germany is in control but a well known fugitive walks around in the clear with his real name and they don't catch him, they don't arrest him? The whole movie just didn't make sense to me.

Update: I actually would like an explanation for what's happening!

 

[Jeffrey D]

I saw this for the first time and didn't really get it. I don't understand the situation. Germany is in control but a well known fugitive walks around in the clear with his real name and they don't catch him, they don't arrest him? The whole movie just didn't make sense to me.

Update: I actually would like an explanation for what's happening!

It’s been a while since I saw it, but I didn’t altogether grasp it either. Definitely not my favorite Bogart film- it’s Treasure Of The Sierra Madre.

 

[Tino]

I saw this for the first time and didn't really get it. I don't understand the situation. Germany is in control but a well known fugitive walks around in the clear with his real name and they don't catch him, they don't arrest him? The whole movie just didn't make sense to me.

Update: I actually would like an explanation for what's happening!

I suggest listening to the Ebert Commentary. It will answer many of your questions.

 

[Tino]

It’s been a while since I saw it, but I didn’t altogether grasp it either. Definitely not my favorite Bogart film- it’s Treasure Of The Sierra Madre.

Treasure is tied with Casablanca for my favorite Bogart performance. Then African Queen.

 

[Robert Crawford]

I suggest listening to the Ebert Commentary. It will answer many of your questions.

I don't think I ever listened to Ebert's commentary in its entirety. I need to do that!

 

[Robert Crawford]

Update: I actually would like an explanation for what's happening!

Google can be your friend for such an explanation.

 

[Wayne_j]

I found this while googling:
"The Nazis officially control the city, but the underground resistance has the support of the majority of the people. The balance of power teeters precariously between the two groups. Laszlo's ability to escape Casablanca will be a sign as to which group may ultimately prevail."

 

[SamT]

Google can be your friend for such an explanation.

You think I don't know that? You just wasted a post.

The explanations given still do not make me understand or satisfy.

 

[Robert Crawford]

You think I don't know that? You just wasted a post.

The explanations given still do not make me understand or satisfy.

Some of the film’s plot points are not intended to make sense, but to entertain movie audiences in 1943. The whole concept of the letters of transit is one example. Letters signed by Charles de Gaullle (Free French) would be worthless in an area controlled by the French Vichy government collaborating with the Nazis. Listen to Ebert's audio commentary as it should give you a greater understanding of the movie's circumstances.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Treasure is tied with Casablanca for my favorite Bogart performance. Then African Queen.

I’m listening to it now. Those wanting a greater understanding of this movie would benefit from listening to it.

 

[LeoA]

I thought it was pretty clear that they're portraying it as Vichy being a bit cautious in their dealings that directly benefit Germany with no clear benefit to France, so as to not make it plainly obvious to the general public who it is that really is in charge.

Plus both the puppet government and the Germans are extremely confident in their opinion that he's not going to be able to escape. So there's no reason to rile the public by arresting him in a region that is under Vichy control instead of Berlin, since it's only going to give his cause a boost and he's essentially trapped already where he is.

At the end of the day though it's a movie. While they obviously wanted to connect it with current events of the time with the fall of France, the rise of Nazi Germany, and stir patriotic feelings among the audience, it's also not supposed to be a documentary or anything.

It's fictionalized entertainment for moviegoers.

 

[Robert Crawford]

It's fictionalized entertainment for moviegoers.

That’s exactly what it was and still is today. I just finished Ebert’s audio commentary and it’s one of the best I’ve heard as he explains the many misconceptions in the screenplay that were written to move the story forward and to entertain the masses.