Every few months or so there are always tons of those lists that come out all over the internet about the top 100 movies or books of all-time. As I have perused those lists, I realize that there are, apparently, a lot of classic movies I have never seen. So I decided it was time to finally watch one. I chose Casablanca. And it must have been fate to do so, because as I went into my Netflix account to add it to the top of my queue, I realized that I could just watch it instantly on the computer. Cha-ching! Rainy Thursday you have met your match! First of all, I realized very quickly that this movie had to do with World War II- something I absolutely did not know beforehand. (But when I made this observation Jacob smartly said, "Aren't all old movies about the War? Duh?" Yes, apparently, they are...) I also knew that there was supposedly some famous scene at the end- with fog, the trench coat and hat, the plane- so pretty much I was waiting the whole movie to find out how the movie exactly ends up there. And it didn't disappoint me! I was totally engrossed in it the whole time. Great acting, great dialogue, all those classic movie lines (Play it again Sam, Here's lookin' at you kid, etc.) and of course a love triangle! Then you had Nazis, intrigue, more fog, tons of smoking and dinner jackets, (Oh! The smoking! Hollywood was so great back then...) This also marks the first Humphrey Bogart movie I have ever seen. Didn't really know that is what that guy looked like. Ingred Bergman was quite lovely- but I think most of us would benefit from the black and white, soft-edged filtered camera lense. It was like they were filming in a cloud the whole time. And despite never having seen the movie before, I saw the ending coming a mile away. I just knew what he was going to do in the end!
So, most importantly, what do we learn from Casablanca? I will tell you.
1. Songs from the 40's, where the bandleader yells out a question and the band answers back, need to come back into style. Awesome.
2. When trying to hide something important, put it in a piano. People never look there (especially Nazis).
3. We all need to start wearing fedoras. If you are wearing one of those, people don't question you.
"If that plane leaves the ground and you're not with him, you'll regret it. Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow, but soon and for the rest of your life." Ahhhh, so on to the next classic! Harry and The Hendersons!
1 comment:
Loved your post. I was raised on the old movies, so it was especially entertaining to view it through a fist-timer's eyes.
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