The 1942 classic Casablanca has arrived on 4K UHD Blu-ray from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.
The Production: 5/5
Casablanca is one of the few classic movies made long before I was born that I had the pleasure of first seeing in a movie theater during its 1992 theatrical rerelease rather than on a television broadcast or on home video. I remember having doubts about seeing it during this theatrical run for two reasons. First and foremost – would the theater be able to screen it in its original Academy aspect ratio (1.37:1) or be forced to crop to either 1.85:1 or worse, 2:1 (all but one screen at the complex had fixed 2:1 screens)? Luckily, Casablanca was projected and presented in its full 1.37:1 aspect ratio. The other nearly equal issue I had was – would I be ultimately disappointed in the film like I was with Citizen Kane one year earlier due to the decades of praise heaped upon both films by critics and film historians? Thankfully, I found the film highly entertaining and was not let down or underwhelmed after all the build up of how great a movie it was. I have included fellow reviewer Cameron Yee’s analysis of the film from his review of the 70th Anniversary “box of junk” Blu-ray release from 2012 below:
Everybody goes to Rick’s Café Americain, a bar situated in the heart of Casablanca in French Morocco. “Everybody” would include refugees looking for a way out of increasingly Nazi-occupied Europe, and those willing to sell them passage in the form of exit visas.
Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart), the owner of the establishment, enjoys a healthy business as a result of the black market transactions, but never gets involved in the dealings himself. That is, until he comes into possession of the holy grail of travel papers – letters of transit that guarantee passage for those possessing them. When his long lost lover Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) and her husband Victor (Paul Henreid), a leader in the resistance, come into his bar the same night the papers fall in his lap, it looks like the documents are destined for their use. But Rick has changed since he and Ilsa were together – or rather he’s changed because of it, having become bitter and unsentimental since their separation. Though there’s no doubt the letters of transit will get used, by whom only Rick can decide.
Consistently topping greatest movie lists, Casablanca is a classic in every sense of the word. It’s a film many could never live without, that presents and embodies timeless values and ideals, and whose dialogue has become an enduring part of our popular vernacular. So it’s a surprise to learn the production, helmed by the versatile director Michael Curtiz, was so problematic – that the lines and integral scenes that we could never hear or see another way were either figured out last minute or constantly rewritten. That goes to show the path to greatness is neither painless nor predictable, though the film’s effortless and enduring qualities also show that’s an easy thing to forget.
Video: 5/5
3D Rating: NA
Although the previous 2012 Blu-ray release was sourced from a 4K scan, Warner created yet another new 4K 16-bit scan earlier this year from the best-surviving nitrate film elements. Comparing the included 2012 Blu-ray to this 2022 UHD Blu-ray, there are noticeable differences. Firstly, there is a major improvement in contrast, allowing for deeper blacks and brighter highlights. The lamps and rays of sunshine in Rick’s café appear to glow and the silk dress shirts have a more noticeable shimmer to them. Overall, the image does appear slightly sharper with a finer layer of film grain. The disc features a 2160p HEVC encode with HDR10.
Audio: 4.5/5
It seems with every new release of Casablanca, Warner upgrades the audio. The 2008 “Ultimate Edition” Blu-ray included a lossy Dolby Digital 1.0 mono track, upgrading to a lossless DTS-HD MA 1.0 mono track that hovered just under 1.0 Mbps for the 70th Anniversary Blu-ray from 2012, and now to a higher bitrate DTS-HD MA 2.0 mono track that is a constant 1.8 Mbps. The gains here are a slightly wider dynamic range and minor increase in overall fidelity. Otherwise, the tracks are nearly identical with virtually no pops or crackles and minimal hiss.
Special Features: 4/5
The UHD disc includes the commentary tracks and the Lauren Bacall introduction. The included Blu-ray disc is identical to the movie disc from the 2012 Blu-ray release. Missing is the bonus disc from the 70th Anniversary “box of junk” edition that included the featurettes You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story, The Brothers Warner and Jack L. Warner: The Last Mogul. Otherwise, there is no new bonus material included in this release, but kudos to Warner for including the commentary tracks on the UHD disc.
UHD Disc
Introduction by Lauren Bacall (upscaled 1080/24p; 2:03)
Audio Commentary by Roger Ebert
Audio Commentary by Rudy Behlmer
Blu-ray Disc
Introduction by Lauren Bacall (480i; 2:03)
Audio Commentary by Roger Ebert
Audio Commentary by Rudy Behlmer
Warner Night at the Movies: Create your own vintage movie night by preceding your screening of Casablanca with the following trailer and short subjects (hitting the Play All option will play the main feature afterwards) – Now Voyager trailer (480i; 2:19); Newsreel (480i; 4:35); Vaudeville Days (480i; 20:18); The Bird Came C.O.D. Merry Melodies cartoon (480i; 7:43); The Squawkin’ Hawk Merry Melodies cartoon (480i; 6:41); The Dover Boys at Pimento University Merry Melodies cartoon.
Behind the Story: Great Performances: Bacall on Bogart (480i; 83:27); Michael Curtiz: The Greatest Director You Never Heard Of (1080p; 37:20); Casablanca: An Unlikely Classic (1080p; 34:59); You Must Remember This: A Tribute to Casablanca (480i; 34:38); As Time Goes By: The Children Remember (480i; 6:45).
Additional Footage: Deleted Scenes (480i; 1:40); Outtakes (480i; 4:58); Who Holds Tomorrow? (480i; 18:37); Carrotblanca Looney Tunes cartoon with Bugs Bunny (480i; 8:02).
Scoring Stage Sessions (audio only; 15:22)
4/26/43 Lady Esther Screen Guild Theater Radio Broadcast (audio only; 29:38)
11/19/47 VOX Pop Radio Broadcast (audio only; 29:35)
Theatrical Trailer (480i; 2:17)
1992 Re-Release Trailer (480i; 2:53)
Digital Copy: An insert contains a code to redeem a digital copy in UHD on Movies Anywhere. Unfortunately, another studio mess-up with the digital of a classic film.
Movies Anywhere: Dolby Vision/HDR10
Vudu: 4K (no HDR)
Apple TV: Dolby Vision/HDR10
Prime Video: HD
Overall: 4.5/5
Warner’s new 4K UHD release of Casablanca is a nice yet minimal upgrade in both picture and sound, and carries over the basic special features of the previous Blu-ray release.
Casablanca (4K UHD)
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Todd Erwin has been a reviewer at Home Theater Forum since 2008. His love of movies began as a young child, first showing Super 8 movies in his backyard during the summer to friends and neighbors at age 10. He also received his first movie camera that year, a hand-crank Wollensak 8mm with three fixed lenses. In 1980, he graduated to "talkies" with his award-winning short The Ape-Man, followed by the cult favorite The Adventures of Terrific Man two years later. Other films include Myth or Fact: The Talbert Terror and Warren's Revenge (which is currently being restored). In addition to movie reviews, Todd has written many articles for Home Theater Forum centering mostly on streaming as well as an occasional hardware review, is the host of his own video podcast Streaming News & Views on YouTube and is a frequent guest on the Home Theater United podcast.
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