Summary Of The Film 'Casablanca'

1. Opening Scene

General Vision and Viewpoint:
The serious and heavy opening music suggests that the events of the film are serious, that serious issues are at stake. In the opening narration freedom is seen as desirable, and the “Americas” seen as somewhere it can be found, a desirable destination for those who wish to escape. The footage of the fleeing refugees elicits our sympathy for them – the innocent victims of the war. After the French Resistance agent is shot the camera points upward respectfully at the words “Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité” at the entrance to a building, the Palais de Justice, suggesting that these are the values we should aspire to. There is a sense of hope in the people looking up at the plane, especially the
Stock footage of the Arch de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower, along with scenes of Rick and Ilsa at the café show that it’s Paris. The announcements over the loudspeakers and the newspaper headlines fill us in on the war background – the Germans about to take over Paris. The takeover is conveyed simply by the announcements being in French the first time we hear them, and then later in German. The atmosphere of intrigue is suggested by Rick’s being wanted by the Germans, with a price on his head – it’s never quite clear why. The difficulties of keeping a romantic relationship going in such a context is conveyed subtly by the way we hear shelling as Rick and Ilsa embrace – Ilsa says: “I hate this war so much. Oh it’s a crazy world. Anything can happen”. There’s a strong sense of tension when the German arrival is announced – we can see it in the streets, and especially in the crowds at the station as people rush to
Rick has been drinking a lot, feeling sorry for himself and is unpleasant to Ilsa, who, we learn in the later market scene (see below), came to explain why she left him in Paris. She is upset and tearful at his harsh talk – “Why did you have to come to Casablanca? There are other places”. He describes himself as a guy whose “insides had been kicked out”. He is cynical towards here: “Tell me, who was it you left me for? Was it Laszlo, or were there others in between?”. We learn more about the relationship between Ilsa and Laszlo – on her part it seems to have been more a case of admiration. To her he was “a man about whom she’d heard her whole life, a very great and courageous man”. She describes herself as “a girl” who “looked up to him and worshipped him with a feeling she supposed was love”. Rick is dismissive: “I’ve heard a lot of stories in my time”. There is a hint that Ilsa is unsure who she should be with – “I don’t know the finish yet”. This love triangle revolves mostly around Ilsa – Rick and Laszlo don’t interact very much and there’s no sign of jealousy or aggression between