Casablanca

*“Louie, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.” Casablanca is a masterpiece. It has been dubbed as one of the greatest films of all time, but some believe it to be one of the most overrated films of all time. Personally, I believe it deserves all of the praise it gets. Released in the midst of World War II in 1943, Casablanca touches the theme of love and sacrifice that comes with it. Something that we still can relate to, 81 years later. I think the problem with older films is that they had bizarre themes, followed by subpar acting that we can’t really grasp today. But Casablanca *gives us a timeless theme and storyline with amazing acting. That’s why it’s so great. Like I say with all of her films, I absolutely adore Ingrid Bergman and her role as Ilsa is her magnum opus of all of her iconic roles. She’s absolutely amazing in this, giving one of my favorite performances of that time. Humphrey Bogart was also incredible in this and he was rightfully nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor, which I feel like he deserved to win. With its great acting, was an amazing screenplay with so many iconic quotes. I like to always put a quote from the film at the top of my reviews and it was so hard to pick just one. So many iconic lines and an overall amazing screenplay. And it also helps when you have Michael Curtiz directing the film. Curtiz rightfully won Best Director and it’s no surprise that it also won Best Picture. Again, it absolutely deserved it. Casablanca is an all time classic that will never be forgotten. I don’t think it’s wild to say that it’s probably the most famous film of all time and it deserves every last bit of recognition that it gets. Soundtrack: 9.4/10 Academy Award Winners: Best Picture: Warner Bros. Best Director: Michael Curtiz Screenplay: Julius J. Epstein, Philip G. Epstein, Howard Koch