Well, you can give me my diploma now, I've graduated from Movie University. Yep, I finally saw "Casablanca", and I must say it certainly lives up to it's reputation. It's a Noir, a war film and a classic romance all rolled into one, a multifaceted story that works on every level. There are very few perfect motion pictures in the world, but Casablanca is one of them. I feel a little silly writing about it because of it's iconic status, but I'll give you a plot synopsis in case you're like me and haven't seen it (but wait a minute - now I have!)
"Rick Blaine" (Humphrey Bogart) runs the Cafe Americain in Casablanca. It's a hotbed of intrigue, as Morocco is a colony of unoccupied France but still under the thumb of the Nazis and overseen by the collaborating Vichy government. One night, Peter Lorre enters and asks for Rick's help. Lorre's got some transit letters that were stolen from German couriers. The letters are certificates that guarantee safe passage out of the country. He wants Rick to hide them because he expects to be arrested. The couriers were also murdered and Lorre's the likely suspect. He dies in a shootout with the Gestapo. Rick hides the letters as requested.
There are many Europeans in Casablanca, expatriates and others who are fleeing the Germans. Some are desperate to escape to America. The regional Gestapo chief - a "Major Strasser" (Conrad Veidt) - has put a hold on one would-be emigre, a man named "Victor Laszlo" (Paul Henried). Laszlo is the leader of the Czech underground. Strasser's in Casablanca specifically to prevent him from leaving. He tells "Captain Louis Renault" (Claude Rains) to refuse Laszlo a visa. Renault is the Prefect of French Police. He puts on a happy face for everyone and is noncommittal in his politics, but when push comes to shove he's likely to side with the Nazis, to avoid trouble.
As for Rick himself, he's just trying to run his club. He was once a freedom fighter who assisted in Ethiopia, but he got arrested and now prefers to stay neutral. "The only side I take is my own", he tells people. It might as well be his motto.
But one night Victor Laszlo does come in. On his arm is Ingrid Bergman. "Of all the gin joints in the world, she has to walk into mine", says Rick. It's just one of the many lines of dialogue in this film that have become part of the cinematic lexicon. Seeing Bergman knocks Rick off balance because they were once lovers in Paris. That was in 1940. But in rolled the Nazi juggernaut and they got split up. Now suddenly she's here, in Rick's very own cafe. But she's with another man. "Of all the gin joints" indeed.
The crux of the plot hinges on the hidden transit letters. Rick's got 'em stashed away; Laszlo and Bergman need two, so they can leave Morocco. Legally speaking, even Major Strasser can't prevent them from flying out if they have signed transit letters in their possession. But Bogie won't give them any. He's still mad at Ingrid Bergman for ditching him in Paris. They were madly in love, but she left him at the train station. Getting her out of his heart took everything he had, and he's become cynical in the process. Bergman had a reason for leaving Paris without him (which I can't tell you) but Bogie doesn't care to hear it. "If you loved me you'd have been there", he says. She does love him though. Man what a heartbreaker. Laszlo's between them, yet he's a good man. It's gotta be the all-time romantic triangle in movies.
That's as basic a synopsis as I can give you, because there are many other characters and minor plot threads. There's always something buzzing at Rick's. There's Sidney Greenstreet, owner of a rival cafe. Greenstreet's always asking to buy Rick out. He's happy in Casablanca and knows how to play the game. As a black market specialist, he keeps a low profile. Greenstreet represents suave diplomacy as does Claude Rains. Both know how to go along and get along, and how to profit along the way. But Greenstreet doesn't have to deal much with the Nazis, unlike Rains. So he's the picture's smoothest operator.
Bogart on the other hand, is a cool cucumber but only until Bergman arrives. Then he turns cold and hard. He projects icy stoicism and resentment. She's the flame that wants to melt him. Love takes center stage for a while, but don't forget "Casablanca" is a war film. In war, which looms larger, love or duty? I can't reveal that, either (and I know you've probably seen the film a dozen times so you don't need me to!), but let's just say that "Here's lookin' at you, kid" is the most romantic line ever uttered in motion picture history, and also the most tearjerking.
You know how so many catch phrases originate from Shakespeare or the Bible? "Casablanca" is like that, in a cinematic way, beginning with "Play it, Sam" (not "play it again"), and ending with "This could be the start of a beautiful friendship". And let's not forget "Sam" (Dooley Wilson", the piano player. He maintains the mood with multiple renditions of "As Time Goes By". Paul Henreid provides the class and honor, Conrad Veidt the pervasive threat. He plays Major Strasser as a sneering, smiling Nazi boss who knows he's hated yet still remains polite. Nazis in the movies are always wanting to be liked, to not be seen as evil.
I'll leave my review there, but hey! do I get a pat on the back? I mean for finally seeing the movie after all this time. Excuse me?........what's that you're saying?...........oh yeah, well you're right : I still have yet to see "Gone With the Wind". Maybe you'd better hold off on that diploma. /////
The previous night we enjoyed a veddy Brrrittisssh murder mystery, "Account Rendered"(1957), starring Ursula Howells as "Lucille Ainsworth", the self-indulgent wife of a banking executive. She revels in luxury and lives to spend money, which is easy when you've got a rich husband. But she spends more than he brings in. Where are the extra trinkets coming from, that gold necklace for example? Is there another man in her life?
In fact there are several. They aren't all romances, but when Lucille turns up dead, each one becomes a suspect. It's a Ten Little Indians plot, tightened up to fit the 59 minute running time. The Brits don't fool around when it comes to solving murders.
After an unpleasant dinner with a bickering married couple, the Ainsworths return home to their mansion. Later on, Lucille sneaks out thinking hubby is asleep, but he isn't. He follows her to the heath (a grassy area), where he sees her with another man. But worse, he watches as the man kills her and runs away. Terrified, he hurries back to his car but falls and bumps his head, resulting in a large bruise. This will make him the prime suspect when the police inspector comes calling, which he does in the middle of the night. "I didn't do it", says Mr. Ainsworth, but aren't those famous last words?
In addition to Ainsworth, there's another main suspect - an artist with whom the wife was having an affair. It began when she hired him to paint her portrait, which turned out gaudy and salacious. "I was bringing out the Inner You", he explained. She didn't find that amusing. Did an argument with the artist lead to her death? We don't know yet. The Inspector is still running through the clues.
There's also the bickering couple, an adversarial man and wife. He hates her because she's always complaining; she hates him because he constantly fools around, and she's sure one of his conquests was Mrs. Ainsworth.
You can take your pick : there's also the Ainsworth's lawyer, who warned that a bankruptcy was coming. Did he kill Mrs. Ainsworth, to stop her maniacal spending and save his job? I guarantee you'll guess back and forth, like I did. One thing you'll appreciate is the English efficiency with dialogue. One fan at IMDB mentioned that it's like a radio drama; it's so well written you could listen without watching the screen and still understand what is going on. Though it uses the Ten Little Indians format, it's not as simplistic as those films often are. It's not limited to a single location, for one thing. The characters have depth because of strong acting, almost a given in British pictures.
I give "Account Rendered" Two Big Thumbs Up. It's short (which we love) but plays like a full length crime film. And, the Youtube print is razor sharp so you can't go wrong. /////
That's all I know for tonight. Today's prog album was "Civilian" by Gentle Giant. I also snuck in Matching Mole as a bonus. I'm reading "The Little Sleep" by Paul Tremblay and waiting on the new Bill Clinton/James Patterson thriller, "The President's Daughter", which should arrive soon at the library.
Hope you had a great day. I send you Tons of Love as always! xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
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