Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman in one of their few truly happy moments in Casablanca.
This year's Summer Classics series at the Kentucky Theatre has been about as classic as it can be, with all-time hits such as Citizen Kane and Gone with the Wind on the big screen. But Wednesday is arguably the biggest classic of them all: Casablanca, the Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman World War II doomed romance.
Why do we love this movie so much?
Is it the great lines: "Here's looking at you, kid?"
Is it As Time Goes By, the song Ilsa wanted to hear and Rick had to force himself to listen to?
Is it that perfect ending, "I'm no good at being noble, but 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."
Last week, we asked Copious Notes readers why Casablanca endures. Here are some responses:
Kathy Walsh-Piper, director of the University of Kentucky Art Museum said, "Casablanca is almost a brand. It’s about the scent of flowers on an EVENING BREEZE. The story is a true romance in an exotic place, in a time when exotic places were truly “foreign,” when they gave you cigarettes on the plane."
Deborah Core, an Eastern Kentucky University English professor writes, "I love Casablanca because, like most great romances, it ties the love story to a war. Rick makes the connection explicit at the end when he says that the problems of two little people don’t matter much in comparison to the problems of the world. But the movie has persuaded us of how much the two little people do matter. In the end, though, history wins, and we’re left with two more great movie conventions: the rise of men to heroic stature (Rick and Louie) and the implicit beginning of a buddy film (again, Rick and Louie).
"The music is magnificent, and Ingrid Bergman makes me want to buy a hat!"
Charles Edward Pogue, a Georgetown resident and screenwriter of films such as D.O.A., wrote:
"I
think it works largely because it is a lot of seasoned pros at the top
of their game...Bogart, Bergman, Claude Rains, director Mike Curtiz,
producer Hal Wallis, and writers the Epstein brothers and Howard Koch.
A happy symbosis of great writing, directing, acting, and producing.
"Warners also had a great collection of strong,supporting actors...Cuddles Sakall, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre, Paul Heinreid, Conrad Veidt, Dooley Wilson...all filling out their smaller, supporting roles with colourful vividness. People always talk about MGM's stable of actors; but for me, Warners always had the best line-up.
"It is also an example of the strengths of the studio system...a stable of writers, executives, actors, and artists working in an odd checks and balance system and with a repertorial connectness.
"It was also just a great deal of felicitious good luck...would it be the same memorable picture if George Raft had played Rick? With Ann Sheridan or Michelle Morgan as Ilsa? Joe Cotton as Laslo? Clarence Muse as Sam? Otto Preminger as Strasser? All casting considerations at one time.
"And let's not forget the whole thing had been based on a failed play called Everybody Comes to Rick's.
"Providing some insights to the evolution of the film, I recommend Inside Warner Bros. by Rudy Behlmer and Casablanca, Script & Legend by Howard Koch."
Chicago attorney Muriel Williams writes, "It's ironic that this theme came up this week. I recently had a strong urge to watch the movie for the hundredth time. I find myself in a strange place when I watch the movie. The romanticism of Rick and Ilsa's relationship is of course a strong theme, but there is something more. I am reminded of the scene at Rick's when the song duel took place. The actors singing the French anthem showed such passion, it stirred something in me as well. The movie urges the watcher to move past your own desire to think of the greater good. Each of the characters ultimately did that."
A poster named Thomason who writes a blog called Cinema Noir, said, "It's all about the passing of eras, and of persons passing-by even as opportunity extends a hand, and how melancholia and music can feed a souless self. Bogie is hardened by what's he run away from, and when he sees others on the run his moral compass points him clear of their troubles. The facade of laws, officials, and personal and professional loyalties, which Rick has learned to see through or to navigate around, cannot obscure Rick's need for love and desire for a companion.
"Change the time, change the war, reappoint new but as corrupt officials, pick a new man and woman to play the central roles, and the timelessness of the story will still make its point with us."
Poster Chuck writes, "The film is a classic because it succeeds on every level - an intelligent, touching, clever script, a terrific cast, a great director, excellent cinematography - all pros working at the top of their game. Most movies stumble in one area or another. No weak links here."