Wednesday, June 12, 2013

"Casablanca" T. Hopkins






There’s no denying that “Casablanca” is considered one of the best movies ever made. What’s interesting about this is that no one that was involved with making this movie thought that they were making such a masterpiece. The movie had a tight budget and was not expected to do so well. However, “Casablanca” with its witty dialogue, relatable characters, and intense love story became one of the most popular films of all time.
The lighting in this movie proved to be very effective. When Ilsa came to visit Rick in the café the night that she and her husband arrived in Casablanca to explain why she left him in Paris, the lighting was very dark. It gave a sense of despair and sadness. These were the emotions that Rick seemed to be experiencing, as we could tell by his dialogue with Sam, his pianist and friend. When Rick flashed back to his time in Paris with Ilsa, the lighting became a lot brighter, setting a happy and joyous mood. This reflected their happiness and intense love.
There were many other moments that had dark lighting, such as at the airport when Rick was trying to assist Ilsa and Laszlo in escaping to America. Here, Rick killed an officer, which is also a dark part of the movie. He had to say goodbye to Ilsa, whom he loved so much he gave up his own happiness for hers. This was also paired with him agreeing with what Laszlo was fighting for. This made Rick a hero.
Another important part of lighting was showing Ilsa’s face that was so often filled with such emotion. I believe they used a three-point lighting technique to really show her emotions. According to Ebert on “Casablanca,” the actress playing Ilsa didn’t know what the ending of the movie was going to be until they shot the scene at the airport. This made her emotions so much more realistic.
Although “Casablanca” has a lot of characteristics of film noir, I wouldn’t consider it to fall under that category completely. One reason is because I don’t believe Ilsa to be manipulative or use her sexuality to get what she wants. Also, I don’t believe Rick was a sinister character, which is the case for most film noir movies. However, the film does have some characteristics of film noir, such as a melancholy mood. However, “Casablanca” also has comedy and humor, showing it is not all melancholy. Also, this film was filmed with mostly darker lighting, with gloomy appearances and cigarette smoke filling most scenes. These are also characteristics of film noir. Most film noirs ended unhappily. People could argue whether the ending of “Casablanca” was a happy or not. In my opinion, the ending was both happy and sad. Ilsa and Laszlo got to go to America, which was happy because they got to stay together and Laszlo could continue his fight. Rick became great friends with the police chief stating “Louie, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.” I believe this, too, to be happy. However, it is heartbreaking that the two lovers, Rick and Ilsa, had to part. 


Source:
 

http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19960915/REVIEW/401010308/1023
 
 

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