JarrodMcDonald
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Posts posted by JarrodMcDonald
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I like to look ahead, just like the next guy.
But I am surprised the thread is being allowed when other June threads were pulled.
I am not trying to stir anything up, but I'm just wondering.
We really don't have anything to discuss schedule-wise for June, since there won't be anything posted about it for nine or ten more days.
I guess we can make wish lists...LOL
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I'd give Ilsa to Hilary Swank because viewers liked her with Butler in the romcom they did. They have a nice romantic chemistry and she could pull off an accent if necessary.
Brad Pitt as Lazlo.
Danny DeVito as Renault.
Quentin Tarantino as Strasser.
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Why is this thread being allowed? Isn't it too early?
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You are giving me too much credit...stating these are my values. Look at Wayne's westerns. You will get a sense of the values he is putting across. Look at his war films, you will see it there, too. Must it be such a problem for me to refer to those values and that definition of American Life? So you don't believe in it...we're not slamming you. Perhaps you are a leftist liberal...I am not bashing you. Stop trying to quash the rights of conservative Republicans who live life in America a certain way and look to see that reflected on screen. There is room in this vast cinematic landscape for all of us. Now, if you'll please excuse me, the Duke and I are trying to get the wagon train through.
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Gerard Butler, without a doubt.
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Well, it will be a big mistake if they don't remake it.
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I haven't seen it. Thanks for putting the title on my radar.
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We don't know where she met her husband, or where she first ran into trouble with Nazis. These characters are not fully fleshed out.
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I never said it was supposed to be tongue in cheek. Find exactly where I said that. Because I didn't say that.
This film could've been made better. A remake would not necessarily be a bad thing. There are ways to honor the material and yet really improve on it. Comprendez-vous, Ilsa?
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I think they should've had John Huston direct this film. It would've had more realism, the local culture reflected, and it would've had more exterior action.
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Do you have anything constructive to add to this thread. If not, then scram.
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When they have Bergman's character 'hear' French and translate it into English for him, without her speaking one little 'oui' it is obviously an American English film. Also, the fact that they didn't get Moroccan extras for the street scenes in the beginning really shows that it's a Hollywood studio film lacking in realism. The only thing real about this film was the documentary footage they inserted with the tanks.
I think Robert Taylor would've had the perfect look for a sexy cafe owner. It would be more believable that a married woman would be drawn to Robert Taylor, even if she was a wholesome person. Even Errol Flynn would've been more realistic. Having Taylor or Flynn in a white jacket, especially Taylor with his hair slicked back, that would've been classic.
You made some good points about the Czech resistance...thanks for bringing it to my attention.
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Yeah...who the heck is S.K. Sakall. What a goof!
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What is her business there. She's obviously lived in Paris for awhile...was it to escape the Nazis in the days before France fell? These points are not clarified. These characters just float from country to country without a reason for being where they are.
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9, 21, 37, 46...these are definitely serious comments.
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1. Takes too long to establish the background of the story?five minutes of introductory material.
2. Claude Rains is dressed like a bellhop in his first scenes?they didn?t put him on a platform or ramp like Hitchcock did. His short height and this uniform make him look comical.
3. The black musician, Sam, seems like an African-American, not an African. We learn he is from Paris?so is he a French African? This actor is clearly African-American. He speaks no French in this movie. He is miscast.
4. S.Z. Sakall. No explanation given why a Hungarian is in Morocco. No background on this character.
5. Bogart does not appear till 8.5 minutes into the film.
6. Peter Lorre?s arm causes unintentional shadows that upstage Bogey in their initial scene at the caf?. Curtiz should?ve reshot that.
7. Is it a caf? or a club?
8. The film repeatedly cuts to Sam at the piano singing?it can?t decide if it?s a drama or a musical.
9. This is a reworked gangster picture. Repackaged as a war drama. The arrest of Lorre?s character is a typical police raid scene in a Cagney or Bogart gangster picture. Reworked material, recycled scenes from other movies.
10. First political statement in script: about anti-isolationism.
11. Concentration camps mentioned?this is why the film is being made.
12. Rains calls Bogey?s character ?my dear Ricky.? This is kitsch. Theatrical and effeminate.
13. Minimal representation of Moroccan people?it?s all about tourists and ex-patriates. Highly unrealistic.
14. Too much talking at the tables. No action. Talking heads syndrome. Stagebound, very little outside action.
15. Ingrid does not make entrance till 25 minute mark.
16. She asks about Sam, calls him the ?boy who plays piano.? Boy? He?s a man. Nothing boyish about him. Again, he?s miscast. Curtiz should?ve altered the dialogue to reflect the casting choice. Dooley Wilson is not a young French boy.
17. Why does Rains comment on Bogey?s attractiveness? Bogart?s Rick is no Clark Gable. Why is Rains jealous of Ilsa?s interest in Rick? Subtle homosexual shadings.
18. 32 minute mark: we first hear ?As Time Goes By.? This is an 11-year old song, having been recorded by Rudy Vallee and others back in the 1930s.
19. Paris flashbacks: process shots in car, on boat. All done on Warners studio soundstages.
20. Footage of tanks and planes in Paris has different look, taken from documentary or newsreel footage.
21. Why is a Swedish woman in Paris? This is never explained.
22. Ilsa interprets French for Rick, but she does not speak it? How come we don?t ever hear her speak French? Unrealistic.
23. Some of the Paris scenes take place inside a caf??again, we are stagebound.
24. Line: ?Kiss me as if it were the last time.? Cliched.
25. The Parisian flashback lasted 7-8 minutes.
26. He?s not sexy enough for this role. Paul Henried is sexier than Bogart.
27. Not explained why she speaks so much English..why not some Swedish or French?
28. Tears, bowed head?the film becomes a melodrama at this point.
29. Back in Morocco, she is called Mademoiselle. She?s married. They should be calling her Madame.
30. Starts to get very political: Henried?s character says there are too many Jews in the concentration camps, there are too many of them for the Nazis to kill. Whatever. This line should?ve been cut. It sounds silly.
31. So Rick, the hero, will aid the escape of a Jew from the Nazis. It?s heroic to help a Jew, that?s the message now in the film.
32. Blue Parrot establishment. More interiors. Stagebound. Sitting around talking again.
33. Finally, an outdoor market scene. Done on Warners backlot.
34. Now, Rick is melodramatic. Says he was not up to seeing Ilsa last night.
35. She reveals she had wanted to ?cheat? on her dead husband in Paris with Rick. She?s the femme fatale of this film. She?s technically miscast?too soft, too stylish, too sophisticated, too continental, to be a siren luring Rick into danger.
36. S.Z. Sakall: tells Rick, ?you?re getting to be your best customer.? Thanks S.Z. Now go back to the bar sweet cheeks and wipe down the counter.
37. 62 minute mark. First French phrase uttered inside caf?. Too much English in this film. This should?ve been a much more multilingual film. Robert Altman would?ve had them all speaking different languages to reflect the actual convergence of cultures.
38. Finally, S.Z. speaks a little of his native language. ?To America? he says. Whatever S.Z. You missed a spot while wiping the counter. Go back and finish it.
39. Bulgarian woman willing to sleep with the devil to get an exit Visa. Hmmm?okay, if it works for you, darling.
40. They?re back at the club, Ilsa and Lazlo. Is this all these people do? Go to clubs? It?s like a gangster picture again.
41. Musical number, Viva La France. Political demonstration caused by Lazlo. Can we get more obvious?this film has a political statement to make through these characters.
42. S.Z. is done wiping the counter?he is going to a meeting. Underground involvement. The word ?blacklist? has been mentioned earlier, now it?s time for a political meeting.
43. Ilsa pulls a gun to get the letters from Rick. A very noir/gangster moment.
44. Ilsa can?t shoot Rick. More tears, melodrama.
45. She must stay with husband. The production code is hovering over this picture, choking the life out of it.
46. Why don?t we see the Gestapo break up the political meeting? Instead, it is merely mentioned that this has happened when S.Z.?s character returns to the caf?. Wasted opportunity by Curtiz to finally show some action in this picture. Billy Wilder?s A FOREIGN AFFAIR does a better job in this regard.
47. The plot is far-fetched. Rick would definitely leave with Ilsa and forget about Lazlo. The Gestapo does not need a reason to detain or arrest Lazlo. P-H-O-N-E-Y. Boo hiss hiss.
48. Too many shady characters in this story: Lorre (underused); Rains; and Greenstreet (underused).
49. Big political statement?wait for it?they will all wind up in a concentration camp if Ilsa does not get on the plane. Excuse me while I vomit.
50. The message: America is a safe haven for Jews.
51. Corny: She ?pretended? to love Rick for Victor?s sake. This time Victor knows their side will win.
52. Sentimental political fairy tale.
53. After shooting of the major, suddenly Rains is a sentimentalist and vouches for Rick? Unreal!
54. Close-ups, theme music. Emotional impact.
55. Rick and Louis go off at the end?so the woman goes with her husband, and Rains? queer character gets the not-so-sexy Rick.
56. 102 minutes of a viewer?s life. Now over.
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ITA...can't wait for it. My favorite Marx brothers film is GO WEST. That crazy train ride at the end...insanity! Harpo is the best.
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Interesting comments...Yes, she was no Jayne Mansfield, Kim Novak or Marilyn. Thank goodness for that!
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Thanks. My next post on this thread will be my 'official comments' on CASABLANCA.
I believe I have used humor and that some of it will be seen as rather charming. But I do tear apart a few things.
Remember that I will have to answer criticism from a group of people. It will be me, pitted against whoever reads it and chimes in on it and attacks me. LOL
The other thing I have reflected on is that I understand these actors and the crew spent x number of weeks making this film and it is a diligent effort on everyone's part. I am not looking at it as a classic, but as a product of the studio that was churned out before the next product. So while they were all assembled for this picture, they put their artistic minds together and this is what they created. Their children and grandchildren and subsequent descendants will take great pride in this film and in other less-known films these people created. I am aware of that.
Also, I realized that I have gained a greater appreciation for Ingrid Bergman's talent. In my opinion, she stands out in this film, in more ways than one.
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Oh...well, I guess people can decide if they think it helped the picture or not.
Auteur theorists and those in the Ford Sainthood camp are going to say that Bacon smeared a masterpiece.
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You can see some of her head and neck movements starting to get shakey in LION IN WINTER. By the time she did those TV movies in the late 80s and 90s, she was much more frail. But her acting was still fun to watch.
I have not seen her in LOVE AFFAIR with Beatty and Bening. I heard it wasn't too good, but I still want to see her take on the Maria Ouspenskaya role of the original.
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Do you want to play again? Here, you mix up the cards.
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I thought about that. It's all these CASABLANCA indulgences we have to deal with...
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deleted
Edited by: JarrodMcDonald on Mar 22, 2010 4:11 PM
The anti-CASABLANCA thread
in Films and Filmmakers
Posted
By the way, I think Nicole Kidman would also be great in the Ilsa role.
I think the director should be Altman.
If not him, then Zefferelli...I loved TEA WITH MUSSOLINI.