My Favorite Collection: Casablanca (10/10)

“Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into mine.”

This is another personal favorite of mine and perhaps one of the most quotable classic films of all time. Directed by Michael Curtiz, Casablanca takes place during the early days of World War II in French Morocco where many European refugees were searching for a way to escape to the Americas and evade Nazi control. In Casablanca we are quickly introduced to the owner of a nightclub, an American expatriate named Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart). Rick is a bitter and cynical man who has decided to look out for himself and offer his clients a good time at his club. But when a man shows up and gives Rick a couple of transit letters that will allow the holder of these papers to travel freely through Europe in order to escape to the United States from Lisbon, they know they can make a lot of money by finding the right buyer. A married couple show up at Rick’s bar to buy the letters and this is where we discover why Rick is so bitter. Victor’s (Paul Henreid) wife Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman), had met Rick in Paris a while back when she thought her husband, a resistance leader, had been killed during the War. The two had an affair, but when Ilsa discovered that Victor was alive and that he had escaped the Nazi concentration camp where he was held she leaves Rick without giving him any explanation. Rick has never been able to get over the betrayal and seeing her at his joint with her husband makes him even more bitter. And so the adventure begins as Rick must decide if he wants to help Victor and Ilsa escape from the Nazis or if he should simply look the other way. Claude Rains has a supporting role as a corrupt French official while Conrad Veldt plays a Nazi Major.

Today we all praise the screenwriters for this film, but there was much skepticism during filming. Neither Bergman nor Bogart thought it was any good and some claim that they didn’t want to work together. I don’t think Michael Curtiz ever imagined this film would become such a beloved classic either, but somehow the film clicked in all cylinders and the story has stuck with audiences ever since. The on screen chemistry between Bogart and Bergman is the main reason why the romance works so well and the scenes they ask Sam to play their song on his piano is memorable. It’s the best romantic film of all time in my opinion because it has it all: romance, betrayal, and sacrificial love. There are so many beloved quotes in this film and it only gets better over time. The ending is also one of the best in any movie and one of the reasons why so many consider this such a revered classic, but I can point out several other emotional moments such as the scene where Sam is ordered to play a German patriotic song for the Nazi soldiers in the bar, only to have Victor respond by asking the band leader to play La Marseillaise and drown out the song from the Germans. Even the revelation scene where we get flashbacks of Rick and Ilsa’s affair and discover how she never meets up with him at the train station and instead he’s handed a farewell note from her, is quite emotionally engaging. The film offers plenty of thrilling scenes as well for those that aren’t interested in the romance so there is no excuse for anyone not to see this classic. In case you forget how brilliant the screenplay is let me just remind you of some of the best quotes in this movie.

“Louie, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”

“If that plane leaves the ground and you're not with him, you'll regret it. Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow, but soon and for the rest of your life.”

“We'll always have Paris.”

“Here's looking at you kid.”

“Play it, Sam. Play "As Time Goes By."”

“I remember every detail. The Germans wore gray, you wore blue.”

“Alright, I'll make it easier for you- Go ahead and shoot. You'll be doing me a favor.”

“Round up the usual suspects.”

“Mostly I remember the last one. The wow finish. A guy standing on a station platform in the rain with a comical look in his face because his insides have been kicked out.”

“It doesn't take much to see that the problems of three little people don't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world”

Notorious (7/10): Hitchcock's romantic spy thriller in Rio.

“You could have stopped me with one word, but no, you wouldn't. You threw me at him!”

Alfred Hitchcock’s 1946 classic romantic spy thriller has tried to be imitated many times by lesser films over the decades, but nearly 70 years later its style and fabulous camerawork continues to leave its mark on audiences everywhere. The master of suspense lived up to his name once again with a slightly different film focusing more on the characters than on the thrills. Set in 1946, with the Second World War recently over, Ben Hecht’s screenplay captured the spirit of the era where the fear of a nuclear war breaking out was eminent. American spies were focused on hunting down the remaining German Nazis that had spread throughout the world. The story begins in court where Alicia Guberman’s (Ingrid Bergman) father is convicted of being a German spy. Alicia has a reputation of being a heavy drinker and dating many men, and she is ashamed of her father’s activities. During one of the parties she hosts at her home she meets Devlin (Cary Grant), an American spy who falls for her beauty and charm, but isn’t willing to admit it. He convinces her to travel with him to Rio de Janeiro using her father’s connections to spy on his friends. She’s asked to approach Alexander Sebastian (Claude Rains), an old family friend who they suspect is also involved with other Nazis in the area. Alicia wins his affection easily, but at the same time it distances her from Devlin who she has feelings for. Once she’s in Alexander’s home she begins uncovering their secrets, but risking her life at the same time. 

Notorious relies heavily on the romantic chemistry between Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman, two of the most talented actors of their era. Honestly, I found the romance between the two of them was rushed, and I didn’t buy into it very easily. One has to consider the restrictions however (the Hayes Code for example which restricted kisses to less than three seconds on screen) so there wasn’t much more they could do. But that was what made the on and off kiss between the two actors all the more passionate for audiences at the time. Today, however it doesn’t have the same effect. I had a difficult time buying into the romance and that affected my enjoyment of the film during the first half. But once the plot settles in Rio de Janeiro, the film has a couple of thrilling scenes. The wine cellar scene was one of the most gripping moments of Notorious and Hitchcock masterfully combined different camera shot and edits to build the suspense accompanying it with Webb’s suspenseful score. The final ten minutes also had me at the edge of my seat so the second half of the film made up for the tedious first half. Notorious isn’t among my favorite Hitchcock films because he’s mastered the suspense in other better movies like Psycho, Vertigo, or Rear Window, while I found his work in Rebecca a more compelling character driven film. 

Notorious does bank from the strong lead performances from Grant and Bergman, who despite not being able to sell the romantic element at first, they still give engaging performances. Devlin’s stubbornness and unwillingness to share his feeling for her, and Alicia’s attitude towards his indifference becomes the soul of the film. Claude Rains plays Alexander extremely well, and he gives the strongest performance in the film. He falls in love with Alicia very quickly and that prevents him from seeing what his mother has suspected all along. The influence of Alexander’s mother over him is a trademark from Hitchcock and in this film Leopoldina Konstantin plays the mother better than most. It’s a fascinating story that slowly builds up to a memorable finale.