"Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine." It's Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman), the woman Rick (Humphrey Bogart) loved years ago in Paris, who happens to enter his bar in Casablanca. The pianist Sam (Dooley Wilson), a mutual friend from their past life, is shocked to see her. Ilsa asks him to play the song they both associate with, "As Time Goes By": "Play it once, Sam." Initially reluctant, Sam gives in, and as he starts playing, Rick emerges from the back room, saying, "I thought I told you never to play that song!"
Then he sees Ilsa, and their gazes meet. Ilsa, who is now married to Victor Laszlo (Henreid), a hero of the French Resistance, trying to escape the Nazis and seek refuge in the still-neutral United States. Rick, who thought he had lost her forever.
Produced and released in a period almost contemporary with the events on screen, Casablanca has all the elements of a genuine spy thriller, but they also serve as a constantly growing stakes within the context of the love story, which, although touching, pales in the face of the vastness of tyranny that has taken hold of the continent. The more we learn about Rick - and the more we learn, along with Rick, about Ilsa's sacrifices and loyalty - the deeper their relationship becomes, and this depth adds an even more serious note to the final scene when they choose to put the world above themselves. Romance films set in wartime always juggle between the intimacy that binds the two protagonists and the bombs that explode around them, and Casablanca adds weight to this game by asking how much this pursuit of happiness actually matters when much more important things are at stake.
Just as the war required a group effort to be won, Casablanca became a classic due to the collaboration engaged by Warner Bros and producer Hal B. Wallis. The screenplay by the twin brothers Julius and Philip Epstein and Howard Koch, which is sophisticated and wastes no moment. The direction by Michael Curtiz, which is of a simplicity and efficiency rarely matched. The music by Max Steiner, which invisibly ties together the elements on screen and adds an extra touch of emotion. The interchangeable cast, from Bogart and Bergman to the supporting characters who bring the Moroccan purgatory-capital to life. It's a film that not only feels fresh over 80 years after its release but works even better with each viewing. As Roger Ebert said, the more you know it, the more you love it.
Wednesday, June 14, 21:45 - Piața Unirii Open Air
Wednesday, June 14, 21:45 - Parc Poligon Florești