Casablanca, the iconic black and white film, started off as a failed playwright. The script was bought and turned into a low-budget film with very few costumes and mediocre actors, but somehow today it is often referred to as one of the "greatest films of all time". How did this happen? Why have audiences all over the world adored this movie? My guess is that we are all secretly suckers for love, one of the key themes in the film. The leading lady, Ilsa, is head over heels for two different men, Victor Laszlo and Rick Blaine. The story line of the love triangle creates an air of suspense because the audience doesn't know who Ilsa will choose. As viewers, we are forced to compare the two men and decide which one we think she should go with. Once we pick our favorite, it is hard not to get attached. Recent popular films such as
The Hunger Games and
Twilight also had love triangles, and the two movies became so successful because of their character fanbases. They always kept the audience in suspense as to which character the heroine would chose, so getting attached to the characters was inevitable. Another reason people were so drawn into the love affair was because it was calm compared to the chaos surrounding it. The setting of the movie was one involved in war and cruelty, which juxtaposed their love. If it was simply just a war movie it would be too harsh, while if it were simply a love story it would be too sappy.
Casablanca is the perfect mix of these two plots. This film has been successful for so many years because of the theme of love. Whether the viewer has been in love, is in love, or wants to be in love, they can relate.
Since
Casablanca is, in many ways, a study in American heroism, one could argue that Humphrey Bogart's character, Rick Blaine, is the idealistic man in our society. Rick ultimately sacrificed his happiness for Ilsa's when he let her board the plane with Victor. He also helped the young couple win money in his cafe so they could escape to America. Although he said he'd "never stick his neck out for nobody", he did both of those times. He also treats Sam and those who work for him with respect. Rick did let down a few people such as Ugarte and Ferrari, but both of those men were sleazy and just trying to use Rick. Rick knew the difference between someone trying to abuse his power versus someone who desperately needed help. If Rick is considered to be the idealistic male, would you consider Ilsa to be an idealistic woman in society?
I really like how you compared the love triangle between Lazlo, Ilsa and Rick with the characters in Twilight and The Hunger Games. That connection had never crossed my mind before I read your post. I also liked how you drew comparisons and differences between the people Rick "sticks" his neck for and the people he doesn't do that for, which shows more of how he is as a character.
ReplyDeleteAs for the question you posed at the end, I don’t think that Ilsa is the idealistic woman in our society. The word idealistic is defined as unrealistically aiming for perfection. Although Ilsa wants things to improve within her life, as seen through her wanting to leave Casablanca, she never strives to make her life perfect. In fact, I believe she isn’t a "perfect" character, she has flaws, such as breaking promises as seen when she first runs away from Rick. She also is caught in a love triangle, something that many people look down upon. Idealistic characters often do no wrong and strive to be perfect versions of themselves, but Ilsa refuses to ignore her mistakes and own up to them. It makes her a relatable character whereas in many films the characters often seem too “perfect”, and hard for people to identify with.
I really liked how you pulled out the two components of the film's success and built off of why they proved to be true- love and violence. I agree that too much love in a film or too much crime/violence can be not as engaging.
ReplyDeleteAs far as Ilsa being an idealistic woman in society, I do not think that she takes on this roll. Ilsa is a character with flaws and secrets. We first saw that when she ran away from Rick in the flashback. In no way is she trying to be "perfect", because if she were, she would try to please both Rick and Lazlow, by carrying on a relationship between the two of them, but her first instinct was to run away from Rick to escape the love triangle. As you mentioned, shes in the middle of a love triangle, which in agreement with Caroline, is not looked greatly upon in today's society. Although Ilsa may want to improve her love life, she is not one who is searching for perfection. In fact, this is proved when she gets on the plane with Lazlow, as she settles for less, when in reality, she loves Rick.
Awesome point you made, "...people were so drawn into the love affair was because it was calm compared to the chaos surrounding it." I never really thought about it that way, but completely agree and find it to be true (from an audience perspective), as well as if this film were solely focussed on the war it wouldn't have that balance that the audience would want. I think you did a really good job explaining your thoughts and ideas here. To answer your question, I think that Ilsa may have represented the idealistic woman for her time, however if we are looking at today and comparing the two, I would say that she is not. My reason being because I found Ilsa to be a very dependent character, especially when it came to men. She isn't the type of woman who can fend for herself, clearly she was in the midst of a love triangle and even then she wasn't loyal to the men in her life let alone herself; she instead was reliant on both Rick and Victor for different reasons. I almost view Ilsa as a "damsle in distress" character because of her entire image; while this may be suitable for her character, I don't believe it is suitable for a woman in today's society.
ReplyDeleteVery cool connection between the different love triangles and the possible influence of Casablanca on them. Your final paragraph about the idealistic hero is a very cool paragraph as well. You really summed it up well by saying he knew the importance of sticking his neck out for someone/ or an important cause. The deal of giving away his own happiness for a greater cause really is illustrated in the last scene of that movie during his monologue to Isla.
ReplyDeleteI really liked your idea of how this movie has maintained in the movie business as one of the greatest films of all time because of the love in the movie. The part where you say "This film has been successful for so many years because of the theme of love. Whether the viewer has been in love, is in love, or wants to be in love, they can relate." is really powerful and true because even though its set in an older time during World War II viewers today can still relate to the characters of the movie. I like the other idea of a love triangle and how you brought up how the viewers tend to pick a leading man that they believe to be the best man for Ilsa. I liked this because the whole time I was hoping that Rick would end up with Ilsa when in the end she ended up with Laszlo. It was hard for me to grasp because I was rooting for Rick the entire time.
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