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| Casablanca | ||
Bogart, Claude Rains, Paul Henreid & Ingrid Bergman  |
Casablanca is Bogie's most iconic role, and is often voted as one of the
greatest films ever made. It won 3 Academy Awards (Best Screenplay, Best Director, and Best Picture). Set in the city of Casablanca, in French Morocco (Northern Africa) during World War II, our anti hero, mysterious, hard drinking and cynical American ex-pat Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart) runs a popular nightclub, Rick's Cafe Americana, which is the most popular spot in town. Everybody frequents Rick's, including the rich and the desperate, many of whom are refugees trapped in Casablanca, desperately trying to escape the Nazis by paying large sums of money, or even selling their bodies to obtain "letters of transit" from corrupt underworld figures and government officials, which will get them out of Europe and to the freedom of the USA. | |
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Rick doesn't get involved - as he puts it, "I stick my neck out for nobody". But his world is changed when Ilsa, a
beautiful long lost love (played by Ingrid Bergman) arrives in Casablanca with her freedom
fighter husband Victor Laszlo (played by Paul Henreid), both of whom are on the run from the Nazis.
From the moment Rick and Ilsa are reunited it becomes clear that something deeply painful and unresolved
exists between them, of which Ilsa's husband Victor is unaware. With Victor's life in great danger, Rick may possess the key to his only chance of escape, but why should he stick his neck out for the man who has the woman he loves? Thus begins one of the most famous love stories of all time... Claude Rains as the French police captain and Conrad Veidt as the German officer in pursuit of Laszlo both put in excellent performances, and Bogart regulars Peter Lorre and Sydney Greenstreet also make noteworthy appearances. Shot in Black & White. The 2 disk Special Edition DVD set presents the film in it's Original Aspect Ratio of 1.33 to 1. Extra Features include: Audio commentary by film critic Roger Ebert Audio commentary by film historian Rudy Behlmer Introduction by Lauren Bacall (2:05) Theatrical trailer 50th Anniversary re-release trailer As Time Goes By: The Children Remember (6:47) - featurette 2 deleted scenes (1:41) 8 outtakes (5:00) Scoring stage sessions (six vocal tracks from Dooley Wilson, and 2 instrumental) Bacall On Bogart (83:37) - documentary You Must Remember This: A Tribute To Casablanca (34:40) - documentary Screen Guild Theater Radio Show (1943) Television Adaptation, 1955: Who Holds Tomorrow (17:54) Cartoon Homage, 1995: Carrotblanca (8:04) Production notes (12:32) A Great Cast is Worth Repeating - text notes Cast and crew list - text Awards list - text | ||