Casablanca

Casablanca, a film made and set in 1942 directed by Michael Curtiz, is one of the most famous and greatest films in the American film industry. Its sharp writing and talented actors and actresses made this possible in this epic co-classic.
The plot is set in Europe during the time France was being occupied by the Germans. The two main characters Rick Blaine and Ilsa Lund are a madly in love couple that is torn apart by this war. Rick is at the train station in Europe when a letter arrives from Ilsa, saying she can’t go. Without a proper reason Rick is forced to leave aboard the train. Two years later we find that Rick is living in Casablanca, a city in Africa, where he owns a club called “Rick’s Café Américain”. Casablanca is a very important place because it is the only place that offers air travel to America, if one has possession of the right letters of transit. My people would risk their life just for the letters of transit, and many did. Rick is a bitter man with much anger from past events that come to bite him in the ass. One such event is when his ex- love Ilsa walks through his doors, with her husband. Victor Laszlo, Ilsa’s husband, needs Ricks help getting out of the country to America because he holds valuable info to winning the war and it just so happens that Rick is the only one who sells the letters of transit. Rick simply tells it is later revealed that she was still married to Victor Laszlo and she in fact cheated on her husband with Rick. Ilsa thought her husband, who is the lender of the Resistance, was dead at the time she was seeing Rick. After Rick learns the truth he helps Victor and his ex-lover escape to America. As the Nazi catch wind of the Resistance leader planning to get away Rick helps them get to the airport fast. The airport is one of the most famous scenes in movie history. The whole airport was a small set at Warner Brothers Studios. A small cut out model airplane was used and to make it appear bigger dwarfs were used in the scenes with the plane. During the scenes with dialogue the camera was in close to the characters to capture the tension. It becomes apparent that there is a love triangle when all three characters are in the same shot. Rick tells Ilsa she must go to America or she’ll “regret it, maybe not today and maybe not tomorrow but, soon and for the rest of her life.” Rick watches as Ilsa and Victor walk to the plane holding hands. Just then the head Nazi appears and tries to interfere and stop the Resistance leader from taking off, when Rick shoots and kills him. The plane then takes off as Rick and one of the French police officers that has always been Ricks rival throughout the movie. The officer does not arrest Rick for killing the Nazi as he is also glad that he is dead. Rick and the officer are walking down the runway into the fog as Rick says one of the most famous lines in movie history, “This is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”
I really like this movie I thought it had the best acting I’ve ever seen in my life and I thought the romance was very fresh and original. It’s not an action film it’s a drama so I didn’t walk into this one with high expectations but, I was amazed at the action that was present in this film. I give this classic my most elite honor and would recommend it to anyone looking for a memorable love story.