Casablanca dances the war-driven night away with sweeping romanticism. Another classic that many critics and cinephiles believe to be one of the greatest pieces of cinema ever. And much like 'Citizen Kane', I unfortunately was not overly enamoured by it. That's not to say I didn't like it, in fact I thought it was a very classy romance amidst the prickly politics of World War II. The drama just lacked, well, drama. Rick, a nightclub owner, reacquaints himself with his former flame in Casablanca, to which her husband happens to be a famed rebel wanted by Nazi officials, leaving Rick with an ultimatum. Remain bitter and see these two lovers split due to the Nazi regime, or provide assistance in helping them escape but remain broken-hearted.
Set almost primarily in the club, director Curtiz successfully balances a variety of suave characters during a time of chaos. Refugees are overpopulating the city as they try to flee Europe, officials of the Third Reich wander the streets and local businessmen are constantly bartering with foreigners. The club and its customers acts as microcosm for the war, with the French consistently attempting to overpower the Germans and vice versa. Two opposing sides having to coexist in one large hall, with Rick acting as an overseer. The succinct dialogue and memorable quotes ("Here's looking at you, kid") is all thanks to an adapted screenplay that essentially carries the film. Sure, Bogart and Bergman's performances were good, but they would not have got any recognition if it weren't for that beautiful script. It's easy to list everything that Casablanca does right, I mean we all know it's supposed to be one of the greats (and it is). Gorgeous cinematography, inventive scene transitions and wonderful tracking shots.
But at no point did I feel that the characters were in danger or even remotely having any engrossing drama between themselves. After all, it's set during a devastating war, and strangely that historic event is put aside for the romance. Yes, it's a mature love story, and the film succeeds in that sense. However much of the focus was set on Laszlo, to whom I believe was underdeveloped. It's only during the last twenty minutes that certain plot details are set into motion, consequently making the preceding hour watchable but inconsistently paced. Rick's nostalgic flashback in particular skews the pacing and unfortunately is drawn out, in an attempt to lay the foundations of his romance with Ilsa.
There is no doubt that Casablanca is an important film. It was back in 1942 and still is today. Yet the curse of having the acclaim of "one of the greatest films of all time" results in expectations never being met. Technically a perfect film, but lacks that "oomph" to push it even further.
