1. Casablanca is set in the early 1940s around the time when Nazi’s and their concentration camps are taking place. The European resistance is strong and the French underground takes place in Casablanca. Humphrey Bogart plays saloon owner Rick whom heads up the only exit to freedom, where visas are needed in order to leave. Rick soon finds himself face to face with a woman from his past named Ilsa, and her husband Victor Laszlo who leads the European resistance. Victor and his wife are also trying to obtain visas and Rick is holding the two that can get them to freedom. The problem is that Rick and Ilsa know each other very well from an affair she had with him in Paris while Victor was captured, and placed in a concentration camp. The character of Rick is one who would say “ I stick m neck out for nobody”, but throughout the tale he starts to open himself more and more to help others. The conflict is that Rick can’t seem to let Ilsa out of his mind, and she stood him up when they were to run away together.
Humphrey Deforest Bogart was not only a famous actor but also a man to be respected as the viewer can clearly see in the film Casablanca. In the film his character Rick was very serious, smart, cunning, and fearless. Bogart was direct with people, simple, honest, and it seemed like directors took his real life persona into consideration when Bogart was casted for the role. It’s hard to tell if Bogart is acting or just being himself in certain scenes, the character Rick is laid back, fast-talking, and quite the ladies man. It was easy for Humphrey to get into character, which made him very easy to work with on set. Casablanca is still considered one of the best pictures ever made and Humphrey Bogart is said to be one of the best artist who ever lived. Before casted in the film Bogart played in many other films, some of which he played the bad boy roles like in the petrified forest, starring as an escaped killer who holds hostage a handful of people. Humphrey’s presence was one that was very demanding and he had a certain edge that gave him the perfect gift to play theses roles like Rick in Casablanca.
4. The film Casablanca was indeed in my book a great, I wouldn’t mind sharing it with my friends, and fellow classmates. It had everything a film should have like romance, action, suspense, and drama. This was a classic film that now I could understand why is so popular, my mom loved it and now I love it as well. Humphrey Bogart really made the film what it was, without him I feel the film wouldn’t have been as interesting. Being apart of the new generation its very hard to take a black & white film from the 1940s, put it in front of our face, and expect us to watch the whole thing without complaint. Casablanca was a whole different story because it made the viewer want to know what was going to happen next. It felt like a mob movie and love story rolled into one film, this kept me glued to the screen. Another fact was how race didn’t play a big role in the film, when a man offered to buy sam the piano player Rick commented by saying how he didn’t deal in selling people. When a prejudice remark was made it was quickly defused and replaced with a more respectable comment, it was the small things that made a huge impact in this film. This was a piece about romance, jealousy, revolution, freedom, and who could ask for a better movie than Casablanca? The fact that a guy that was born in 1987 can sit down and watch a black &white film made in 1943 says a lot, it says this film was good.
