Full Movie Reviews
Rating of
4/4
Yes. It is that good people.
Indyfreak - wrote on 08/10/2014
I know it's a cliche to write/say this nowadays but it's true for once! Casablanca is one of the best movies ever! For this movie to have its plot driven almost entirely by memorable dialogue and iconic characters but remain so popular well over 70 years after its release says something about the state of Hollywood with its reliance on mostly half-baked comedies, derivative horror shlock, and CGI drenched crowd-pleasers. I doubt mind the 3rd one of course but seriously, it's not that heard. Casablanca finds originality and heart in something that had the strong likelihood of becoming just another ensemble piece being churned out regularly during WW2.
Oh look at that, I got carried away again. Needless to say, I loved this movie because of its atmosphere, its exceptionally strong cast, …
Rating of
4/4
"Casablanca" by Yojimbo
Yojimbo - wrote on 03/09/2012
Wartime cafe owner Humphrey Bogart's life is turned upside down when the woman who broke his heart walks into his bar with her husband, a fugitive from the Nazis, looking for an escape to America. This is one of those films the phrase "they don't make 'em like that anymore" was invented for. At its core it is a propaganda film made to encourage the American public to join the fight against the Nazis, but it is far from the usual heavy handed flag waver. It skillfully interweaves the patriotic message with political intrigue, wartime heroics and romance with a script full of wit and sophistication. The cast are all pretty much faultless, but it is the uneasy friendship between Bogart and the brilliant Claude Rains which makes the film, and their cynical interplay and banter is a joy to …
Rating of
3.5/4
Casablanca review
Daniel Corleone - wrote on 09/19/2011
Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart) owns Rick's Café Américain in Casablanca. He bumps into an old flame Norwegian Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman) with her husband Victor Laszlo (Paul Henreid) who is a fugitive Czech Resistance leader that escaped from a Nazi camp. Captain Louis Renault (Claude Rains) is a friend of Rick’s and a corrupt official. Political tensions arise in the Café and Major Heinrich Strasser ensures that Laszlo doesn’t conduct any revolt against the German’s. The priceless "letters of transit" have been used to flee Ilsa and Victor. Some of the many memorable quotes that I enjoyed: Rick –"Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon and for the rest of your life." Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship." Victor – “Apparently you think …
Rating of
3.5/4
A bonafide classic!!!!!
mdtinney - wrote on 10/07/2009
If ever a film deserved to be considered a classic then this is it, even if you haven't seen it before you'll recognise much of the dialogue; it is probably the most quoted, and misquoted, film of all time. Humphrey Bogart is excellent in this career defining role as bar owner Rick Blaine who has come into possession of two "letters of transit" which guarantee the holders unhindered passage out of Casablanca. He has these as Ugarte, the man who asked him to look after them, was captured by the Vichy French police before he could get them back. Ugarte had been planning to sell the documents to Victor Laszlo, a Czech nationalist who is fleeing from Nazi occupied Europe to the United States via neutral Portugal. Things are complicated by the fact that Laszlo's wife Ilsa had a relationship …
Rating of
3/4
Review - Casablanca (1942)
Delorted - wrote on 11/15/2007
During the early days of World War II in an unoccupied region of Africa, Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart) owned a nightclub for refugees. Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, Isla Lund (Ingrid Bergman) had to walk into Rick's, reminding him of their romantic history together. Now Rick has to decide whether to save the woman he once loved or help the French resistance against Nazi Germany in the Best Picture winning film, "Casablanca."
It's always interesting to see a film with such a grand name as this. The original cast and crew of the film never expected it to be as big as it is today. Coincidentally, I have to say that I feel the same way they did. I believe "Casablanca" is a good movie, but it's really just another '40s movie. The acting is good and the story is …
Rating of
4/4
Imperfectly Wonderful, As Time Goes By...
jkownacki - wrote on 07/25/2007
The most amazing thing about Casablanca is not that it still holds up 60 years later -- which it does, albeit as an obvious product of the '40s -- but the fact that nearly everything about its success was accidental.
The film is based on a stage play called "Everybody Comes to Rick's" -- which was never produced.
The lead role of Rick Blaine was given to Humphrey Bogart only after Warner Bros. resident star, George Raft, turned it down. (George who? Exactly.)
The script was rewritten on the fly during filming, to the point that the actors complained because they had no idea what they'd be filming until they arrived on set. Why? Among other reasons, the filmmakers were unsure what would happen during World War II (which was ongoing), and didn't want to alienate the Allies OR …
