Rating: 
Summary: The Classic Love Irony
Review: This is one of the best all time movies! If you don't own it, you should. The characters are GREAT! I have yet not to tear up at the end. I watch it about twice/year. This is better than what is put out today as a love story. You will not be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: "As Time Goes By" This Is Still A Classic
Review: "Casablanca" is one of those movies where you can't call yourself a filmlover without seeing it. It's a must in every sense of the word. Also on that list goes "Gone With The Wind", "Singin' In The Rain", "Citizen Kane", & "The Godfather", and I'm sure some of you can probably think of others. "Casablanca" is often called the greatest if not one of the greatest love stories of all-time. And maybe it is. "Casablanca" tells the story of Rick Blaine a hard as nails nightclub owner played by Bogart. He says he will never put his neck out of anyone. But, wait until the time comes. Blaine has left American well, it seems he was thrown out. He has made the best of it though. Blaine seems like the kind of guy who has a lot of stories to tell. He's a mysterious person. WW2 is on the horizon Germany may soon occupy France. Now is a time when underground movements are talking place. People are making an attempt to flee to America. And soon Rick will find himself caught in the middle of all of this. Victor Laszlo (Paul Henreid) is a known fugitive. He has escape the German army three times. He now with his wife have found themselves in Casablanca. But what Victor does now is that the German army is waiting for him. This is one part of the story. Rick Blaine a man who says he keeps to himself is soon place in a postition where he must make a choice. But, I suppose more people think of the movie as a love story between three people. Victor's wife is Ilsa Laszlo, a woman who spent some time in Paris with Rick. A love affair had started and soon she tells Rick they must part. And they have not seen each since. Until as fate would have it Victor and Ilsa come to Casablanca and into Rick's club. "Casablanca" has proven itself to be a great movie. I bet even if it wouldn't have won the "Best Picture" Oscar it would still be a movie filmgoers would love. There seems to be something universal in it's appeal. Something about the way the actors act. The emotion they project. And plus the screenplay is a knockout. This is without question one of the most quoted films. With lines like; "We'll always have Paris." "Here's looking at you kid." & "This is the beginning of a beautiful friendship." "Casablanca" was nominated for 8 Oscars when released. It managed to win 3. Bottom-line: One of the all-time classic Hollywood love stories. Also one of the greatest films of the 40's and one of the best American films of all-time!
Rating:
Summary: Classic example of Hollywood's Golden Era
Review: After having watched "Casablanca" for the first time, it has become quite clear to me why the period from the 1940's through the 1950's was considered Hollywood's 'Golden Era'. I suspect that is was still the relative newness of the medium that enabled movies of this period to be of such high quality, a quality lacking in almost all of today's films. During that period, gratuitous sex and violence were not permissible and there were no special effects to distract the audience from a poor story. As a result, the way directors were able to engross the audiences in their films was by telling compelling stories and developing their characters with great depth and care. These movies also involved some of quickest, sharpest, wittiest dialogue ever committed to the big screen. The only director today who shows any understanding of the importance of clever and intelligent dialogue is Quentin Tarantino, but he makes overly violent movies and only makes about one film every 5 years.
"Casablanca" may be the pantheon of the 'Golden Era'. It is easily one of the most quoted movies in cinematic history and it has some the most memorable scenes. For anyone who has not actually seen the movie, the plot centers on French Morocco during World War II in the city of Casablanca. The fear of the German war machine drives people to Casablanca to seek any form of passage to the United States. Business is fertile for men possessing the exit visas to get people across the Atlantic. Much of the business takes place at Rick's Cafe Americain, run by a jaded Rick Blaine (played masterfully by the legendary Humphrey Bogart). He was idealistic in his younger days, but now is a cynic and only helps people when it benefits him. His world gets turned upside down when the former love of his life Isla (played by the luminous Ingrid Bergman) enters the Cafe with her husband, the revolutionary leader Victor Lazlo, looking for passage to the States. It evokes one of the greatest lines in cinematic history and sets in motion series of events involving intrigue, passion, and suspense.
The wordplay between Bogart's Rick and any one of the other characters is true treat to behold. It is sharp and witty and seems so perfectly timed. The only other movie I have ever seen that comes close to this level of dialogue is the old Cary Grant film "His Girl Friday". Rick's enigmatic moods always leave the viewer wondering what path he'll choose. Will it be the one of selfish interest or the one of greater good? The viewer never knows until the very end. Bergman's Ilsa is one of the most beautiful female characters in the history of film. Bergman's beauty would be just as captivating today as it was back in the 1940's. The passion of lost love between Ilsa and Rick is largely unspoken, but it's very palpable. Unlike today's films, which feel the need show too much, "Casablanca" uses subtlety to convey the emotion and passion.
"Casablanca" is considered a violent movie without ever being too violent. The threat of the German 'Gestapo' hanging over every action and every scene creates a tension, a fear, and a suspense that few movies can match.
There is not one single wasted motion, scene, or character in this film. There is purpose in everything that happens. Characters from the shifty street vendor all the way to the shady Captain Renault have purpose and meaning. "Casablanca" has been termed by some to be the 'perfect film'. That's a lofty claim as some of the movies that were thought to be great in their time, now prove to be dated and almost a parody of themselves ("2001" and "The Graduate") are classic examples. "Casablanca", however, earns that praise and proves to be a timeless classic that is as moving today as it was in 1942.
Rating:
Summary: Better than I Remembered
Review: Many critics consider this film one of the great ones. Others think it is sentimental claptrap. I hadn't seen the film in many years, and I had to see it again to make up my own mind. I bought the DVD ... and looked at it just last week. Hey, this is really a good film. The photography is excellent throughout. There are great, moody B&W shots, and certain images, such as Ingrid Bergman in soft focus, her hat slanted low over her brow, have become iconic. Bogart drinking away his sorrows while Dooley plays "As Time Goes By" is a scene filled with dark shadows and lover's angst. The acting is superb. Bogart and Bergman weren't just stars. They can express emotion with the movement of their eyes or the gesture of a hand. They are fun to watch. This was supposed to be just another studio film, or so the legend goes. But it seems Michael Curtiz put more effort into this than one might expect. It is impossible to find a false moment in this film. The last time I saw Casablanca, many years ago, the print was scratchy and dirty. The DVD version is bright and crisp. I'm glad I revisted this old standard.
Rating:
Summary: "Here's looking at you kid..."
Review: This is a flawless masterpiece of American cinema about
star-crossed lovers who fall in love in Paris and meet again in Casablanca and rekindle an old flame. The characters couldn't be more perfectly played with Bogart as Rick and Bergman as Ilsa
and nobody can sing "As Time Goes By" like Dooley Wilson. Widely considered to be the greatest movie of all time and critically acclaimed story of undying love against a huge backdrop of World War II, this certainly is a masterpiece of cinema! If you like love stories, Humphrey Bogart, or just great classic films, this is a movie I highly recommend1
Rating:
Summary: The PERFECT movie with a perfect transfer DVD - good extras
Review: For those who attention spans are are too short or who think of the Matrix as "Deep" - I recommend "Casablanca" - the perfect movie. Star-crossed lovers have never been more heartbreakingly portrayed than Bogart and Bergman. The supporting cast and the script are perfect. The photography is transferred with museum-quality perfection to this DVD. The movie as it currently exists is so perfect - it is almost inconceivable to consider that up to the end of shooting they toyed with a different ending. "Citizen Kane" may have a reputation of being called "The Greatest Movie" more often than "Casablanca", and it is technically brilliant - but the characters of Casablanca visit my dreams often and vividly, and I never dream of Charles Foster Kane and his screen partners. Bogart is perfectly tough and tender-hearted. Ingrid Bergman is perfectly beautiful and torn between her noble husband and the man she loved earlier in Paris. This movie is, in short - perfect. I'll not give another film a higher recommendation unless something higher comes along. To date the film that is superior to Casablanca does not exist.
Rating:
Summary: Flawless classic cinema. DVD transfer A++
Review: So many others have done justice to this outstanding movie, I will focus on technical quality of this DVD. I do love this movie, I've seen it perhaps 15 times in as many years. And of course Casablanca is one of the most quotable movies ever! The DVD transfer of this B&W classic is OUTSTANDING!! I watch this on my 2200 lumens front projection system. I have an enormous screen measuring 14.5' diagonal! I can easily see the quality of the digital transfer on every DVD, and I am astonished at the high quality of this transfer for Casablanca. The film noire aspect is perfectly captured in high resolution sharp detail (but not excessively so). You can see absolutely everything ... the patterns on ties, Ingrid's jewelry and beautiful hair, incredible detail on wardrobe and props, etc. If you are used to seeing Casablanca on VHS, then viewing this DVD on a nice home theater system will be like seeing the movie for the first time ... it is so rich in detail. The quality of the contrast calibration is great! Deep black, crisp white and an excellent transfer curve in between. All the cast look great. They really did an excellent job in transferring this classic film. I know I sound impressed, but I am not exaggerating in the least about the quality ... my home theater screen is huge and this film looks great, as good as anything you would ever see in a cinema. I am not easy to please, and this disc is so well done that this great film is a joy to watch, again and again and again. The dolby digital 2.0 mono audio transfer is excellent as well. It's hard to believe that this disc is of a film made 61 years ago. Very well done DVD. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: A Timeless Classic
Review: Simply the greatest movie ever made.
Rating: 
Summary: Worst Movie Ever!
Review: I was all prepared to love this movie. It started out all cool and retro and stuff, and the black and white was a nice touch, but then it got totally stupid. I mean, are we really supposed to believe aliens want to come down and like messing with Rick's Cabernet (which I thought was wine, but I guess I'm wrong). Ok, so it's either aliens or French Police or Nami's, whatever those are, but they shoulda made that clear. But then it got okay again, cause Ingmar Bergman is like totally hot, and Bogart is easily the best looking chain smoking catcher's mitt to ever wear a tuxedo, so I just got sorta lost in the moment or whatever, but then they started ripping off all sorts of catch phrases. I was mad enough when Wayne's World stole "schwing!" but this movie steals tons of catch phrases: "Play it again", "this looks like the beginning of a beautiful friendship," etc. It even has a whole speech of nothing but catch phrases. Hire a screenwriter next time. And the movie ends wrong! Wrongly. Whatever. She's supposed to get on the plane, and Bogart is supposed to be sad, but then she's supposed to get off the plane and everything is happy. That's how it works. ... So that's why this movie is like the worst movie ever.
Rating:
Summary: THE GREATEST FILM EVER MADE
Review: I THINK CASABLANCA IS THE GREATEST FILM EVER MADE AND NO FILM IN MY OPINION HAS BEEN ABLE TO MATCH CASABLANCA AND NEVER WILL.THE SPECIAL FEATURES ARE INTERESTING &INFORMATIVE.OUTSTANDING ACTING,LEGENDARY DIRECTION,THE MOST MEMORABLE DIALOGUES EVER WRITTEN FOR A FILM,THE MOST BEAUTIFUL WOMEN OF ALL TIME,THE GREATEST ACTOR OF ALL TIME ,THE GREATEST CLIMAX.EVEN IF IT IS BLACK& WHITE,I HAD NO PROBLEM.THE DVD SOUND IS EXCELLENT,& IT IS BETTER THAN GONE WITH THE WIND,BEN HUR,LAWRENCE OF ARABIA,CITIZEN KANE.
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