Hannah Huwe Casablanca blog

                                                     

                                               
    This was my first time watching Casablanca and I can admit that before watching it I really did not know much about the plot. I was a little skeptical at first because I am not usually one to watch old films, but I ended up enjoying the movie. The story line was easy to follow and draws you in as you are watching. Not knowing what is going to happen at the end leaves you in constant suspense and keeps you eagerly waiting to find out what the end result will be. Watching Casablanca has perhaps made me more interested in watching more movies from this time.
    Casablanca is a movie that most people can easily relate to as it is a story about love. With the ongoing love triangle, one does not know what will happen next. We can all feel Rick's pain as he boards the train to leave Paris and has to leave his love behind. Later when they are reunited, Rick has an opportunity to get Ilsa back as he possesses just  two letters of transit. He is faced with a decision between his love and his country and in the end chooses to give the letters of transit to Ilsa and her husband Victor.
    There are so many well known quotes from Casablanca that we still hear today. The words of some of the quotes are so powerful and have so much meaning. "but we'll always have Paris" shows how Rick will never forget his love to Ilsa. One "play it again, Sam", is even later used as a title for another movie. One of the most famous quotes would be "here's looking at you kid" A couple others that are remembered are "this could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship" and "go ahead and shoot, you'll be doing me a favor".
    What really stood out to me throughout this film was the constant use of shadows in the lighting. It was always clearly seen on the walls, on people’s heads and shoulders. I also noticed that in almost every scene the lighting from a lamp was used. Although the film was in black and white, the lighting and shadows seemed to bring a lot of “color” to the film. While watching it was easy to point out the use of back lighting and side lighting that we learned about.
    Watching movies from a few years back show us just how much filming has advanced since then. After watching Casablanca my mind compared angles and shots to those used in modern day movies. The film industry has improved so much. Throughout the movie Casablanca, the eye level shot was used quite often. The medium shot and close up shot also seemed to be used a lot. A few others were used but not as many as are used today. Although the film was “simpler” in filming style, it was still wonderful and captivating and told its story well.