It’s “Casablanca,” which is not exactly a groundbreaking choice. “Casablanca” is a movie that shouldn’t work, but does, on just about every level, because of sharp writing, whiz-bang directing and fantastic acting by an international cast that found itself marooned in California during World War II. I saw it again recently (my 20th or 30th viewing; I’ve lost count) on Turner Classic Movies, and I was struck by the diversity of the actors and extras, particularly in the crowd scenes. That was extremely rare for studio films in Hollywood’s Golden Age, but it gave an exotic flair to a movie that was shot on a couple of lots in Burbank.
I believe you can find out a lot about people by asking them to name their favorite movie. The folks who know me will tell you that I often express a dim view of human nature. So does Rick Blaine, the Bogart character in the film. But it also turns out that he has fought for the underdog, and his loathing of Nazis is obvious from the first time he meets Major Strasser, the Conrad Veidt character. Throughout the movie, even while uttering cynical wisecracks, he does the right thing.
There’s one other thing I want to mention about “Casablanca” — almost everything you need to know about the Bogart character is established in the first shot you see of him in the movie. What’s he doing? Playing chess. Who’s his opponent? We don’t know. But he’s trying to puzzle out a problem, and think ten moves ahead, even as everyone in the cafe bothers him with their problems.
For the record, I didn’t realize this until about the 12th or 15th time I watched the movie.
