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Casablanca (Two-Disc Special Edition)
Directors: Scott Benson (II), Douglas McCarthy, Michael Curtiz
Actors: Lauren Bacall, Julius J. Epstein, Lee Katz, Ron Haver, and Irene Lee Diamond
Rated: G (General Audience)
Retail Price (not our price): $26.98
Release Date: 2003-08-05
Theatrical Release Date: 1943-01-23
Studio: Warner Home Video
Run Time: 102 minutes
Format: Array
Format: Black & White, Closed-captioned, DVD-Video, Special Edition, Subtitled, NTSC
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Discs: 2


Editorial Reviews (supplied by Amazon.com):

1) Amazon.com essential video
A truly perfect movie, the 1942 Casablanca still wows viewers today, and for good reason. Its unique story of a love triangle set against terribly high stakes in the war against a monster is sophisticated instead of outlandish, intriguing instead of garish. Humphrey Bogart plays the allegedly apolitical club owner in unoccupied French territory that is nevertheless crawling with Nazis; Ingrid Bergman is the lover who mysteriously deserted him in Paris; and Paul Heinreid is her heroic, slightly bewildered husband. Claude Rains, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre, and Conrad Veidt are among what may be the best supporting cast in the history of Hollywood films. This is certainly among the most spirited and ennobling movies ever made. --Tom Keogh

2) Description
Considered by many to be the greatest Hollywood movie ever made, this WW2 classic takes place in war-torn Casablanca and tells the tale of mysterious nightclub owner Bogart and his old Flame (Bergman), her husband, underground leader (Heinreid), and other skeletons from his past. Won 3 Oscars - Best Picture, Director, and Screenplay.

Customer Reviews (supplied by Amazon.com):
Average Customer Rating: 4.5 out of 5

1) Peter's review of Casablanca   [Rating: 3 out of 5]
I found this movie engaging,considering it is nearly 65 years old.The lack of technological sophistication i.e.visual effects etc.is compensated by superb acting and a great script.The black and white of the film also works well for the genre.It is also just about the right length;not too long like some old blockbusters.Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman display great on-screen chemistry and the movie progresses along at a brisk clip.The bonus features are also not too bad,keeping you informed of the main actors in some of the movies of that era.

2) Easy to see why its one of the best!   [Rating: 5 out of 5]
We watched this for the first time, and I must say, it exceeded our expectations. It had many twists and turns, and the ending was just genius! Well shot, acted and written. A great one to add to any colllection. Wish they still made them like that. (It was filmed during WWII, and the story takes place during the same period. Thought it was interesting to watch a moving depicting real time events.)

3) A must in any video library.   [Rating: 5 out of 5]
The title says it all. It's a rare tribute to those rare good guys in life, and if you like romance, it has that too.

4) A classic summed up in one scene   [Rating: 5 out of 5]
A friend of mine asked me to show him Casablanca about 15 years ago. He seemed to like the film enough until the famous Le Marsailles scene where Paul Henreid's Victor Laszlo rallies the Rick's Cafe Americain crowd (and drowns out the Germans) with a rousing rendition of the French national anthem. At that point my friend sneered with disgust that the scene was ludicrous because the French are a bunch of defeatist cowards who would never show such blatant resistance. I tried to explain to him both the historical context and the importance of the scene to the film. He wouldn't have it -- his mind was made up. Disgusted, I switched off the VCR and told him that if he couldn't accept that scene, he might as well not watch the rest of the movie. I haven't seen this friend in over ten years, so I don't know if he ever saw the whole film and/or broadened his Bill O'Reilly perception of the French. I certainly hope so.What's amazing to me is that several other people I've met have questioned the purpose of that scene minus the anti-France diatribe. Some of them see the scene as wartime jingoism. Some of them like the scene but still think it's unnecessary. One girl in my college film class even said that the scene's purpose was solely to "give Paul Henreid more to do." Mind boggling, to say the least.Up until the Le Marsailles scene, we think we know the characters and their motivations: Humphrey Bogart's Rick Blaine is a world-wearly cynic who was left embittered by his Ilsa Lund's perceived abandonment -- his past as a gun runner to the Republican forces in Spain seems to be a part of him that is dead and buried; Ingrid Bergman's Ilsa Lund is the woman who has callously deserted our hero for Victor Laszlo, though it is clear she is still in love with Rick; Henreid's Victor Laszlo is a cold and distant person who puts everything, including Ilsa, second to his work; Claude Rains' Louis Renault is an amoral bureaucrat whose own pleasures are his only motivation.The Les Marsailles scene, however, puts everything into perspective, giving the characters depth as well as foreshadowing what they will do later in the film. The Germans, led by Conrad Veidt's Major Strasser, are singing German military songs when Laszlo commandeers Rick's band and leads them, the patrons and the staff in a chorus of Les Marsailles that drowns out the Germans. Rick doesn't have to order his band to accompany Laszlo in his rendition of Les Marsailles, but he unhesitatingly gives his permission, hinting that his long dormant idealism is still alive and well. It sets up his memorable sacrifice at the end of the film when he gives up the love of his life for the greater good.The audience, likewise, gains a much greater understanding of Ilsa from that scene. Up until that time, the audience is tempted to wonder why she would leave Rick for this activist who puts his cause above everything, including her. She may still love Rick, but when she gazes at Laszlo during the scene, it's clear that not only does she love him as well, she also believes in his cause and admires the passion and fervor he brings to his work and beliefs. Suddenly, the audience realizes why it's not so easy for Ilsa to simply go back to Rick and why the decision is so difficult for her.Laszlo suddenly becomes worthy of competing with Rick for Ilsa's affections. As much as we root for Rick, we also realize during this scene that Laszlo is a true hero who, unlike Rick, has never lost his passion and idealism despite the horrors he has been put through and witnessed. For the first time, the audience begins to wonder if Ilsa should really choose Rick over Laszlo. Later, when Rick initially denies the letters of transit to Ilsa so she and Laszlo can escape, the audience's sympathies have turned 180 degrees from the beginning of the film. We begin to see Rick as somewhat selfish for letting his own desires get in the way of the cause. When he comes to his senses and not only gives Ilsa and Laszlo the letters, but gives up Ilsa as well, we know that it's the right decision.Louis' later conversion to the side of right and virtue isn't as blatantly foreshadowed in the Les Marsailles scene. However, when the Germans are singing their military songs, he does register pronounced disgust with what he is hearing. He half-heartedly fights Major Strasser's later order to shut down Rick's, saying lamely that "everyone is having such a good time." However, he has made clear with his earlier expression of disgust that he detests the Germans and goes along with their orders out of convenience and not idealogical agreement.Without the Les Marsailles scene, Rick goes from cynic to idealist without any explanation, Ilsa's indecision is inexplicable, Laszlo seems unworthly to take Ilsa from Rick and Louis goes from appeaser to resistor without any warning. The story just wouldn't work without it. The scene switches the focus of the story from lost love to supporting the greater good. It's emotion rivals that of the final airport scene and is absolutely critical to Casablanca. It's so important to the story that I think that the film wouldn't have become the classic it is without it.In 1981, Harry Reasoner produced an excellent segment for 60 Minutes on Casablanca. He pointed out that when Casablanca was released, the Germans did occupy France as well as large parts of Africa, including Casablanca. This wasn't a period piece about events from a long time ago and the emotions portrayed in the Les Marsailles scene were very fresh and very current at the time Casablanca was being filmed. Not only is it absolutely critical to the plot, but it is also a snapshot of the feelings and passions of that time as it was happening. I hope that those who dismiss the scene can go back and, with some deepened perspective, can understand both why the Les Marsailles scene is so important to Casablanca's greatness and what it tells us about what 1942 America's beliefs and feelings were. It might give renewed perspective on our own conflict in Iraq. At the very least, I hope it convinces my friend that the French aren't really so bad after all.

5) MUST HAVE   [Rating: 5 out of 5]
This is a classic movie that I just watched for the first time this past year, don't wait as long as I did. Just buy it, you will watch it again and again.