Casablanca

This is one of those movies, that I had only seen bits of over the years, and those viewings mostly took place over 20 years ago.  So when I say they were screening the movie at the cinema 10 minutes away from my house, it seemed like a perfect opportunity to watch.

I knew the gist of the story.  Rick has escaped the Nazis who had invaded Paris by opening an American bar in Casablanca where ex pats, crooks, police and refugees gather, seeking a way out and safe passage to Lisbon, and onto America.  When the Germans arrive, the pressure increases as people become more and more desperate to escape. 

One evening in walks a renowned fugitive and his beautiful wife Ilse, Ricks lover who he last saw before he fled Paris.  Can she use their history to secure herself and her husband a ticket out of Casablanca?  Will they be trapped by the Germans?  Will she get back together with Rick?  So many questions.

I enjoyed the movie very much - it was nice to watch the entire thing and it was a marvel in  that I kept thinking it was quite the time capsule.  The fashions, the music, everyone smoking, the drinks and cocktails,  how they walked was different, the way they spoke seemed  so old fashioned too.  Yet it is only one lifetime since the movie was made.  Still a good story still is able to hold it's own and even though attitudes to affairs may have changed I wonder if it was quite a scandalous story for wartime viewing?  It is interesting to google actors from the time period, many of which have been married and divorced several times .  We like to think of divorce as a modern thing, but actors seem to have been participating for decades.

The next classic movie being shown is Gone With The Wind -  I'm not sure if I want to sit through a few hours of that, unless it is a rainy afternoon and I need a bit of an escape from sitting at home.