Play La Marseillaise (Casablanca) | Movie-Making Moments
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 24 окт 2019
- One of the greatest films of all time is perfectly encapsulated in its most singular and moving sequence.
Subscribe for more Movie-Making Moments!
Follow me on twitter: scapdeville
The One (Avengers: Endgame) | Movie-Making Moments:
• The One (Avengers: End...
The Pinwheel (Inception) | Movie-Making Moments:
• The Pinwheel (Inceptio...
Casablanca belongs to Warner Brothers Entertainment
Avengers: Endgame belongs to Walt Disney Studios 
Кино
Hey everyone! It's so terrific to see this video taking off (lots of Casablanca lovers are being pointed this way apparently) but unfortunately this channel is on hiatus for the foreseeable future. However, if you enjoyed this video I am doing lots more film analysis over on my new channel Franchise Forum, and I hope to see you there!
ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
Movie-Making-Moments,
Another movie making moment
would be the ending of
Charles Chaplin’s 1940
“The Great Dictator”
With Its Speech Of Fraternal Love ❤️ Thrown down As
Gauntlet Of defiance to the
face of heinous tyranny
Especially the keas singer Madeline LeBeau,then Marcel Dalio's wife!
Most of the extras in this scene singing La Marseillaise were French exiles who fled Nazi-occupied France. They had been banned or too afraid to sing this song while in France. For many, this was the first time they were able to sing this song loud and proud since the start of the war. The tears and emotions of the people were very real as Casablanca was filmed in the middle of WWII.
Not just French exiles. The young husband at the roulette table was Austrian and had been a leader of the resistance to the Nazi Anschluss Österreichs in Vienna before his parents were able to get him out of the country.
Ironically, too, the actor who played Major Strasse was also a Jewish refugee.
I'd cry too, if something like that had happened to my homeland!
You finally get the meaning of our French Anthem "La Marseillaise" 🟦⬜🟥🇨🇵
@@cka2ndNot before he spent 3 months in a concentration camp. Helmut Dantine actions as the head of the Youth Anti-nazi movement in Vienna is very inspiring and impressive, but cost him much, his homeland, family and health. So many others actors in this movie have such inspired journeys that I wish they could all be made into movies.
There's a detail in this scene that is too rarely commented upon.
Lazslo comes down and tells the orchestra to "Play La Marseillaise, Play it". But before they begin, the horn players look up to Rick, who gives a very definite nod. It is only with Rick's permission that Lazslo's courage is allowed to have any effect.
If there's a single moment in the movie when Rick "Rejoins the Fight" it is here, not at the later Airport scene.
Everything you see later, begins here..
One aspect of the scene the commentator seems to have missed is the shot of Rick nodding to the band, giving them permission to play "La Marseillaise" as Laszlo is forcefully telling them to do. It not only is a small moment of realistic detail (the Band wouldn't defy the wishes of the guy who gives them their paychecks), but it is also a hint of whose side Rick is really on...and foreshadows his return to the fight against the Nazis. But since the focus of the piece is Laszlo, I guess this is no more than a minor quibble.
Not a minor quibble
This is more an a minor quibble--Bogart's nod is an indication the Rick is returning to the fight. It is a turning point in the film.
We as movie goers are NOT stupid people and most of us are adept at reading minimal body language. We all saw it and were on board with the meaning and it was not a minor quibble.
@@darrowfortheprosecution1404 nice hoodie Ted
This isn't something I missed as a viewer (I've seen the film SO many times), but it is something I should've noted in the video. I cut it out for the sake of time / pacing, but you're right that it's important enough to warrant a mention. It hints that Rick's character arc is further along than he's willing to admit.
If you want to see more film analysis from me, I do have a new channel going, Franchise Forum: ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
For me, easily the greatest and most inspiring film of all time. And THIS scene is what makes it so.
100%
YVONNE! Sing your heart out, Mademoiselle!
I have always felt that this was the best scene in Casablanca, a movie which has one amazing scene after another for its duration. Thank you for the historical context as well.
My favorite part of my all-time favorite scene in my all-time favorite movie is when the band members only start playing when Rick nods his head giving them the ok. This also signals Rick’s return to the fight.
The words of La Marseillaise are why it’s so important - the song is about standing up to the tyranny of an invading force (the Austrians originally) and about how the french will match and fight them until till the blood of their enemy waters the furrows of French fields. It’s not only defiant it’s threatening to the Germans.
Madeleine Lebeau (Yvonne) was married to Marcel Dalio (uncredited as Emil the croupier in this scene) at the time. She was the last credited performer from this movie to pass away (1 May 2016). Also, her tears were very, very real.
It can't hurt to add that "La Marseillaise" is pretty much the most bad-ass anthem in existence :)
Eh the Israel one is pretty good especially when Williams rescored it in Munich
I'm shocked, shocked to find that movie analysis is going on in here!
Here are your winnings, sir!
I bet you loved doing your Claude Raines impression!
@@mats7492 "Oh, thank you!"
Great reference to a phenomenal joke (perhaps the best in the movie?)
Don't be shocked, shocked to find even more movie analysis going on over at my new channel, Franchise Forum!
ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
oh but that cut to Rick and the nod he gives the okay to the band. The moment he becomes part of the war.
Paul Henreid is a frigging boss… no hesitation… knowing he’s a target. He just goes right over there and riles up the crowd. Gives me goosebumps, too. I love watching Rick taking a stand and while you know Claude Rains wants to join in he just stands there.
Your statement that this scene could be viewed alone as a short film could also apply to just about every scene in this movie. For me this fact alone is why Casablanca is the greatest movie of all time.
A very key beat in this scene and one that, in my opinion, the entire film rotates on, is when Rick gives his nod to the band when they look at him after Lazlo orders them to play La Marseillaise. This is the point that Rick both acknowledges Lazlo's importance and agrees, even if he himself doesn't realize it yet, to rejoin the fight. It's a small gesture but very, very important to the scene and story as a whole. Without it the scene would not have been nearly as impactful on the story in my opinion.
Agreed. My one regret with this video was leaving that out. It was absolutely worth drawing attention to.
Indeed. And Rick does take a split second before committing himself. No wonder Ilse is torn!
@@movie-makingmoments5370 Look extra closely. His hair is different for the nod.
They shot the whole movie without it, and when they were done editing the movie they realised they need Rick to nod. They pull him off his other movie to get just one shot.
If Rick never gives some low-key tacit approval, his entire character growth trajectory doesn’t work.
Is there a more perfect scene in cinematic history? If so, I’d love to see it.
One thing comes to mind when watching this this scene...fight tyranny by any means necessary!!
I really think that scene is the best in all cinema
‘Casablanca’ is renowned and is justly acknowledged as one of the most romantic films of all time but it is much more than the tale of a love triangle. Of course, it shows that the power of love can affect the human psyche, as demonstrated by Rick’s metamorphosis, but, actually, the film is one of the most subtle pieces of propaganda ever made.
Made in the bleakest times of WW2, this film has so many levels to it that it takes many viewings to appreciate them. The main theme is not romance but self-sacrifice as its message to the world at war is to give up the personal agenda for the common cause. It reminds wartime audiences, many of whom have loved ones fighting abroad, that their situation is the same as that of Rick, Ilsa and Victor.
Rick’s initial selfishness, (‘I stick my neck out for nobody’ and ‘the problems of the world are not in my department…’), is a metaphor for USA indifference. It must be remembered that the events and politics are hard to comprehend and put into perspective for current audiences than for those living through WW2, not knowing who the victors would be.
The script can be considered as a 'State of the Union' address, both for home and foreign policies, in which there are references to Civil Rights, as embodied in Sam and, of course, the debate about America’s involvement in the conflict. Basically, the film is politically motivated because it is a plea to America to join the war. Please note that the action takes place in pre-Pearl Harbour, December, 1941.
The screenplay is so intelligently written. It is a masterpiece of complexity, containing subliminal political opinions and messages all carried along on a thrilling plot with brilliant one-liners and memorable quotes, together with comedic elements and contemporary, social commentaries.
Michael Curtiz’s direction is multi-faceted: Documentary, Film Noir, German Expressionism, Flashback etc. He is the master of creating the plot via seamlessly connecting a series of rapid-fire vignettes.
There is subtle direction and cinematography. For example, Ilsa wears black and white clothes and is cast in shadows and in a mirror which symbolise the ambiguity of her role.
POINTS OF INTEREST AND NOTES FOR SUBSEQUENT VIEWINGS.
This is the the first non-musical movie to use music almost as an another protagonist, (which Tarantino does now). For example, ‘As Time Goes By’ is a valuable recurring theme and, in Paris, Rick and Ilsa dance to ‘Perfidia’ which means untrustworthiness. Also, ‘Love for Sale’ is played during the dialogue when the Bulgarian girl tells Rick about her ‘offer’ from Renault.
Each character represents a country e.g. Two Japanese plotting; the Italian on the tail of the German; American indifference; French collaborators; the British robbed by foreign policy. Even the Balkan problem , (still ongoing), are mentioned via the Bulgarian couple. Quite evidently, Rick’s actions symbolise the USA in its change in policy from isolationism to participation and ‘….the beginning of a beautiful friendship…’ is the USA and Europe joining forces to fight Nazism.
The significance of Letters of Transit is a metaphor for the might of America’s power and resources and must be delivered to the right side.
The ‘La Marseillaise’ scene is the pivotal moment in which both Ilsa and Rick realise that saving Victor is more important than their own personal relationship. It also comes in just as Rick and Victor are about to argue over Ilsa but both drop the issue when they hear the music. This scene is rousing now but imagine how it must have felt for audiences right in the middle of the war when Germany seemed invincible and modern viewers need to put it in perspective in terms of world events full of Nazi and Japanese domination and when the outcome looked very bleak.
The facial close-ups used throughout the film speak a thousand words: but particularly note Ilsa during ‘La Marseillaise’ when her expressions show her admiration of Victor’s power and her realisation that this must be preserved at all costs.
POINTS TO WATCH
‘It’s December, 1941 in Casablanca: what time is it in New York?...
I bet they are asleep all over America’. PEARL HARBOUR
‘Even Nazis can’t kill that fast’
CONCENTRATION CAMPS
‘I don’t buy or sell human beings..’
CIVIL RIGHTS
In any case... there is so much alcohol!!!! On this note, please watch out for glasses knocked over and glasses set upright…
The Bulgarian couple keep appearing many times as symbols of hope and determination.
In the bar room fight over Yvonne, Rick attacks the German only and not the Frenchman.
Captain Renault dumps the bottle of Vichy water to represent his rejection of the Nazi- collaborating French Government which was located in Vichy.
Just one example of the excellent and complex scriptwriting occurs immediately after the roulette scene. The girl thanks Rick for letting her husband win and Rick replies, ‘He’s just a lucky guy’, which, on the face of it, refers to the gambling, but, in Rick’s mind, means that the husband is ‘lucky’ because his partner truly loves him.
Please imagine what hope the dialogue must have projected when Ilsa states that she’ll wear the blue dress again when Paris is liberated. Nobody then knew when this would be.
The quotes from the film are now embedded in popular culture and are mostly said by Rick. However, Captain Renault has some of the best lines: e.g. when asking Rick why he had to leave America, he says, ‘I’d like to think you killed a man: it’s the romantic in me’ ; a gunshot to his heart would be his ‘..least vulnerable part..’; when told where the Letters of Transit were hidden in the piano, ‘’…it’s my fault for not being musical…’: on making the bet with Rick, …’make it 10,000 - I’m only a poor corrupt official…’
This is literally one of the greatest moments in the history of cinema. Just perfection. Thanks for the info.
You're welcome, and I agree!
Gotta love how La Marseilles begins with the little cafe band but in the middle they bring up a full orchestra underneath.
This scene is the one that always makes me tear up. Everyone taking up the song, and the look on Ilsa's face as she looks upon her husband. It's no wonder she loved him so much.
Just once before I die, I want a woman to look at me the way Ingrid Bergman (Ilsa) looks at Paul Henreid (Victor Laszlo) in this scene. The look of genuine admiration and sincere love is wonderful to behold, and the particular shot only lasts two or three seconds.
Do something. Be somebody.
This is my favorite scene from Casablanca- I'm moved by it every single time I see it! ❤
My favourite movie moment, period. Gives me hope even in the darkest depths of despair. And the best use of the Marseillaise in cinema, too.
I love that shot of Ilsa when she realizes why she loves Victor so much.
That shot of her falling in love with Victor all over again during his heroic act is a cinematic moment of truth.
Ilsa knows, immediately, that Victor means business when he storms down the stairs and goes straight to the band. Those shots of her adoring face, especially her tear-sparkling eyes in soft focus, perfectly reflects her oneness with Victor and his righteous goals.
As with the Scottish Play, the climax of Casablanca comes in its middle in this scene. Despite having the conflict between Victor Lazlo and Rick, with Victor seeking to escape to continue his work, he still takes an action to oppose oppression. Despite being jaded, Rick immediately supports this action. And despite being desperate people seeking escape, giving a leader asking them to stand together, the crowd stands and sings. Despite the darkness of the moment, the people will not give up.
This scene always makes me tear up.
Not just the greatest scene of any movie, but the greatest movie of all time.
What I love about this scene is that it works on multiple levels.
It works as literal call to arms, which are literally the words of La Marseillaise, both for the characters and for the audience itself. It brings something as abstract as world diplomacy and wartime strategy down to simple personal decisions.
But it also works as a battle scene using anthems as proxies, between the Free World and the Axis. Citizen power of the Free World rises up to defeat the militaristic Axis with overwhelming power.
Indeed! It's the entire film distilled into just a couple minutes! Which isn't to say the rest of the film isn't also terrific, but still quite the achievement.
Besides the strength and resistance embodied in the crowd singing "La Marseillaise," my favorite mini-moment is the soft-focus shots of Ingrid sitting at her table; she watches Victor storm down the stairs from Rick's office. She knows what is about to happen; she knows that Victor will wring every iota of power from the music, aimed, as a non-lethal weapon at the German group.
@Art Bagley. However, Laszlo - and Rick, Ilse, Louis and every person on screen and in the audience - knew that his show of defiance could so easily and instantly have proved fatal. No wonder such bravery inspired all but the German contingent. Stirring stuff!
A TRULY GREAT SCENE in movie history still capable of bringing tears to your eyes this many years later
While he was the heavy in this film, Conrad Veidt deserves nothing but respect. He was an escapee from Nazi Germany and a great actor
He also gave all of his money to the victims of the London Blitz and was involved in an organisation that got actors away from the Nazis, including Paul Henreid who was half Jewish
You can briefly catch a glimpse of the lady trying to sell diamonds early in this piece. Her name was Lotte Palfi Andor, and she was a Jewish-German refugee and aspiring actress who made an even bigger impression in "Marathon Man" 44 years later (as Lotta Andor-Palfi) as the "Old Lady on 47th Street" who recognizes Laurence Olivier's Nazi, "Szell, der weiße Engel." That's another scene that always gets me.
Missed an important part of the scene, Rick's nod to the band to play. The second Rick became the hero of the story. Without the nod from Rick, the band doesn't play and there is no scene. Rick's nod to the band is the second the movie changed to a classic.
Exactly. That is the moment Rick steps up from pessimistic ennui to heroism. That nod was Rick's decision to fight.
I was looking for this comment.
Yes. Yes.
One of my favourite movie moments ever
During WW 2 many fled Europe. Warner Brothers gave escaped European actors work as extras in many films. Look at the emotion that bled out of the extras as they sang La Marseille. The extras were channeling their emotions into their performance.
Yvonne (the flirty gal, played by Madeleine Lebeau) and Emil (the roulette croupier who hands Renault his winnings, actor Marcel Dalio) were wife and husband in real life, both refugees, at the time of the movie's shooting. They divorced in 1942. Dalio's entire family were executed by the Nazis, probably in Romania.
@@artbagley1406 a sad story but enhances the emotional impact of the mighty Marseilles scene
It was Indeed Lazaro who made this act. But, it was Rick who authorized his band to play. The movie shows it effectively.
Ilsa watching Lazlo's conviction and bravery. She conveys her own reaffirmation of her love for him with just the slightest smile
Right until the end of the film, the writers weren't sure who Ilsa was going to choose, which made it difficult for Ingrid Bergman to create her character. She asked Michael Curtiz what she should do and he said she should act as though she was equally in love with both of them. And she does!
"Casablanca" premiered in Lisbon, a week after V-Day in May 1945,. Although a neutral country at the time, Portugal was ruled by a right wing dictatorship, although the general population was overwhealmingly on the Allied side. It went to a point that they had to stop showing pre-movie newsreels at the theatres, because moviegoers would boo and throw stuff at the screen whenever Hitler or any Nazi leader would appear, while applauding when Churchill or Roosevelt came on. Back to "Casablanca", at the time it was customary for people to stand up in the movie theatre, when the "Play La Marseillaise" scene started.
Knowing just the bit of history I knew, I was shocked when this scene played out. It really makes Victor live up to his name and reputation. And knowing this film is being filmed during the war itself - and with fleeing refugees - just makes it ever more moving.
Thank you for making
this video. I just watched this masterpiece of a film for the very first time, and I’m surprised at how astonishing it still is all these decades later.
obviously IIlsa is very moved by the leadership and courage of her husband. This is proof that she belongs with him. He is a man with a very focused moral compass.
True .she is also disturbed by what this means for their future together and her husband's life is in danger
Thank you for this moving spotlight of this pivotal scene. The word was after the take, there wasn't a dry eye 👁️ on the set. It never fails to make me cry. Your essay serves as an important lesson. What a moment of courage can inspire.
It is important to remember that, as MMM points out, just before this scene, Rick has not only refused to help Laszlo, but made clear that his reasons are personal: His feelings for Ilsa. What else Rick is planning is unclear, but he makes clear that he is so jealous of Laszlo that he does not want to help him escape to safety. Immediately after "Play La Marseillaise," Rick's character changes, and he becomes increasingly active in organizing against the Germans. In fact, the moment when he faces Ilsa's pistol in the "Of all the gin joints in all the world" scene, it isn't clear why Rick hasn't already assured Laszlo of his change of heart. I guess Rick still wants people to think that he won't stick his neck out for anyone.
Yep, it's all a facade! The real Richard Blaine is the one who nods to his band for them to play. And you're also right about the juxtaposition. Rick's being selfish and unlikable when refusing Laszlo beforehand, so it's important that the film show us Rick's true colors right after, thus setting him up to return to his heroic ways as soon as he gets over his baggage.
PS, while MMM is done for the time being, I am doing (lots) more film analysis over on a new channel, Franchise Forum! Hope to see you there.
ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
What's wonderful is that this scene works so masterfully even if you don't know who all the characters represent politically, or what songs are being sung. And today, 80 years after "Casablanca" was made, comparatively few people will know the background of who the good guys and bad guys are. Yet you can immediately understand the scene regardless, and it's uplifting and exciting and enjoyable.
Filmed in 1941, the tears were very real
It was shot in May through August 1942 (per Wikipedia). The film itself clues you into this by the final actions taking place on December 6, 1941, the day before Pearl Harbor was bombed.
Longue vie à la France. Vive la liberté
I've always wondered what happened to Ilsa and Victor once the Nazis were defeated. Did their marriage survive? Did Ilsa, now that the great cause was won, leave Victor to find Rick? Victor was Czech; his chances of surviving the Soviet occupation of his homeland were small. Perhaps they both live out their days in London or New York, wondering what happened to the world. Absolutely the best film ever made.
Understandable. In occupied France Nazis officers frequented local bars and some even dated local girls as in the film
There was a sequel planned right after the film's release (working title Brazzaville) that never materialized, then back in 2012 a legacy sequel was announced to star Joseph Gordon-Levitt that never actually happened either, so I imagine we'll never know. Apparently JGL was going to play Rick and Ilsa's son, and I'm not crazy about that concept.
On the subject of sequels though, I've been analyzing a lot of those over on my new channel, Franchise Forum. Maybe see you there?
ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
@@movie-makingmoments5370
I, too, dislike the storyline of a Rick-Ilsa offspring.
Any possible result of their _penultimate scene together_ was supposed to be left to viewers' imaginations.
I always loved that that dive bar had the National Anthem ready to go!
Jesus. This scene ALWAYS get me …
More than a moment of hope and resistance - the timeless human struggle against oppression and tyranny
A point of interest, earlier in the film we learn that the letters of passage were signed by General DeGaulle ~ who was in exile in London & whose signature wouldn't have much weight in Vichy-controlled France including Casablanca, Morocco. This scene though is so pivotal & is a sort of stand-alone short worthy of study. Also Major Strasser, Conrad Veidt, was one of the highest-paid actors in Europe, who fled with his Jewish wife when Hitler took power in 1933.
That part about DeGaulle is interesting -- I didn't know that. Of course the letters of transit are just a device, no matter who signed them. And in fact Strasser is perfectly prepared to stop Lazslo, even when he has the letters. Conrad Veidt was a highly principled person. He eagerly played Nazi villains as a way of helping the war effort. He was almost assassinated after turning down Goebbel's offer of safety not only for him but for his Jewish wife (if he agreed to act in pro-Aryan films). Instead he took a role playing a good Jew, knowing he would probably have to flee Germany.
@@marilynsobel7414I'd have to insist ~ what many have noted as an error in the film ~ that DeGaulle's signature would be not only worthless but would draw unwanted suspicion as he was leader of the resistance (in London). Yes, Victor Lazslo would have been vulnerable to arrest; Strasser is constrained not to only by grace of some deference to Vichy French nominal control. Such 'billets de passage' would be a ticket out, not providing any guarantee of freedom of movement there. The next likely stop & a real scene of such tenuous waiting was Lisbon (more neutral but surrounded by fascist Spain). There's to be a movie soon based on the novel The Night in Lisbon, written by Erich Maria Remarque, author of All Quiet on the Western Front. Remarque actually had such difficulty though he had a house in Switzerland from his earlier success; his sister was executed by the Nazis for "defeatist" talk. Marlene Dietrich aided him gaining US entry.
It's amazing how many Jews and Germans (and German Jews) have played evil Germans during and since WWII. I think that every German in Hogan's Heroes was Jewish and most were of German extraction. Some had escaped from Europe, others had actually fought for the US during the war.
I agree with most of your premise ( and Casablanca has been my favorite film for more years than I wish to remember) but I think the " Play La Marseillaise " scene denotes a more powerful theme....namely that is spite of tyranny and overwhelming despair....the very singing of this song suggests a more " I spit in your eye" kind of moment from the oppressed to their oppressors and also tells the latter that the fight is not and will not ever be over....it is this kind of strength which has toppled oppresive regimes for centuries and is a testament to the human spirit...it's the Rocky in all of us vs the Drago of authoritarianism...
Another point in the scene-Victor approaches the band and demands the band play "La Marseilles". The band hesitates and looks to Rick, who had been maintaining a careful neutrality. Earlier, Rick broke up a fight between a German officer and French soldier concerning Yvonne's fraternizing with the German. He told them there was no room for politics in his place and to take it outside. To me, when Rick nods, it is a sign to the audience that Rick's neutrality is starting to crumble. By supporting Victor over Strasser in this scene, instead of just breaking up the political fight, Rick is signaling to the audience, ever so slightly, that he is coming back to the fight.
Well said! Casablanca as a whole is a very uplifting film, and this is its most uplifting scene!
This and the Odessa steps sequence from the Battleship Potemkin are my favorite bits of all time films
Bogies finest hour in the best film ever made and one that will still be watched in a hundred years time.
I am NOT sure where I heard this but the subject matter under discussion (it was a movie) was the observation that the French Army and their machines would not be much of a match militarily for an invader. The response from a high politician was that if push came to shove and the French Army had no more food, no more decent boots, and no more cannons to repel the enemy, the men would still persevere as they would have la Marseillaise.
You forgot The French Foreign Legion. They are still part of the courage that keeps France free.
You failed to note the excellent camera work & editing capturing all the characters without seeming labored. the views of Ilsa demonstrate her adulation of Laslo without speaking a word. The other remarkable element was the low production cost, excluding the Paris flashback and the final airport scene the camera seldom left the cafe", an excellent film.
WHAT a MOVIE!!!!!!!!!!
IT WAS THE ULTIMATE "BATTLE OF THE BANDS"! -BATTLE?! -HECK! -IT WAS A WAR!!!
Reading the comments for this video are almost as inspiring as the video itself and helps restore my faith in mankind
It was a treat to scroll through this comment section after stepping away for so long.
This is so great! Thanks for highlighting yet another layer to this complex masterpiece! 🤘🏻
Thanks for your analysis of this brilliant scene. You verbalized what I felt. I took a Robert McKee story structure class decades ago and the whole class centered on the movie Casablanca. Now decades later I appreciate the film the scene and your story analysis more now than I would’ve when I worked in the film industry.
Thank you for the kind words! I'm not surprised that someone was able to base a whole curriculum around this film, it really is that masterful. I only wish that such a class was offered at my college.
Also, just to let you know, I have continued to do film analysis over on a new channel, Franchise Forum: ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
Considering that this was filmed at a point where the war could've favored the Germans, it's an especially moving scene!
It’s a bit like Dr. Strangelove - it’s a period piece that still feels relevant but we no longer have the context to understand why it might have had a far greater effect to those who first watched it.
by the time the film is shown in cinemas the Allies have already landed in French North Africa and Casablanca has joined the Free French. Further East, the British have turned the desert war and are pushing the Axis forces away from Egypt. At Stalingrad the Red Army has started the encirclement that will destroy the German 6th Army. As Churchill says "not the beginning of the end but the end of the beginning".
the SHAME here is that the entire scene wasn't shown intact , as it's one of the GREATEST moments in all of movie history !
ruclips.net/video/cOeFhSzoTuc/видео.html
For me personally, I'm glad that Alberto Morin, the actor playing the French officer who gets disgusted by Yvonne befriending a Nazi (scene shown at 4:09) is Puerto Rican, like me 🇵🇷.
You should mention this was filmed and released while Vichy France was still a thing. It's crazy to think about it.
Yep, and they didn't knew if France would ever be free again
I had never even heard the term "Vichy France" before. Thanks for sharing!
@@elunicotobias vichy france was the french government when the germans occupied it, changing the capital to vichy
It is worth mentioning that those playing the roles of the Nazis, especially Conrad Veidt, were Germans wbo had left Germany before the outbreak of war and who were staunch anti-Nazis.
Among the reasons for his self-imposed exile, Veidt left because he defied the Nazi regime's demands that he divorce his wife, who was Jewish. Since he was a major film star in Germany, they couldn't just arrest him so they allowed him and his wife to leave Germany. For the remainder of his life he supported Allied war efforts any way he could, and insisted that whenever he played a Nazi in a movie he would portray the Nazis as the purely evil villains they were. He certainly did that as Major Strasser in Casablanca, which was sadly his last film before dying of a heart attack later that same year.
By all accounts, Veidt was indeed quite a man. I read a behind-the-scenes book a while back that went into his story and found it very moving.
One of the best scenes in my favorite movie!
I've always considered the La Marseillaise the best national anthem in the world. Nothing more so than in the scene from Casablanca. I'm not French, but it almost makes me want to be!
USSR National Anthem enters chat
I agree; while I love our national anthem, the Star Spangled Banner, La Marseillaise has one key ingredient that all anthems should have- it is easy to sing, and it is stirring like no other! Can anyone watch this scene and not be profoundly moved? For me it works every time! thanks.
Maybe read the english translation of the lyrics before you say this. It is damn gruesome.
That look @ 5:51 is what any man in love dreams of seeing in his beloved! .. Sigh!
Beautifully done, sir! and this film moment stands right up there with 1937's "Give Me Liberty", with its Academy Award depiction of Patrick Henry by John Litel. Thank You!
excellent commentary!
Thank you! I'd like to think that I'm making even better content over on my new film analysis channel Franchise Forum! I'll link it here if you want to give it a look!
ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
In my opinion it is the best movie scene.
Well described.
That was on point dude. Really enjoyed your thoughts on this S tier film
Thanks! I guess I'll agree that it's S-tier, but only because there isn't a tier higher. Really it's a Casablanca tier film.
Perhaps you'll also enjoy my film thoughts over on my new channel Franchise Forum?
ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
Excellent movie, well done video
Thank you! These kind comments played a big role in convincing me to start a new film analysis channel a couple months ago called Franchise Forum.
I'd like to think that you'll find them well done too!
ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
I enjoy Casablanca and consider this scene "the heart of the movie."
ALL of the people in the bar were refugees and yes it is a moment for them to stand up to evil.
This ism y favorite scene in my favorite film and YOU COMPLETELY MISSED THE POINT.
victor can say 'play the Marseilles' but the band doesn't do it! they look to rick. Rick, in e critical moment of the film gives a nod, gives permission.
Rick (America) has taken a side and joined the fight. The scene is critical becasue RICK is acting, not victor. we hear all about victor's acting and it hasn't changed the german's fate, they're still winning but when Rick just gives a tilt of his head, THAT lights the fuse Rick has shifted off of neurality and the world shfts with him.
Can't we say that BOTH characters are "acting"? Rick just sits there and does nothing without Viktor taking the lead, and, as you say, the band doesn't play without Rick's nod. You need someone to inspire the people, someone else to work behind the scenes to pull the levers. Both Viktor and Rick are needed to fight the Nazis, each in their own way.
Another very important part of this scene - and in fact for Rick's character in general - is that this story is set in 1941 BEFORE the Japanese attack on Hawaii on December 7th, which brought the USA into World War II. So Rick and his home country are not officially, actively fighting the Nazis yet and Rick therefore can act neutral. Yet with his very subtle nod he signals his opposition to the evil that the Nazis represent even without actually taking up arms - yet.
It is definitely a great symbol of what can happen to a loud, disruptive, angry group of people who will not tolerate any who disagree with them can be silenced by a great leader and the people -- but often at a cost.
It may be often at a cost, but once the stand is made it cannot be unmade whatever the consequences.
Great video
Thank you! I've got a new film analysis channel going now, perhaps you'd find those videos great as well?
ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
Thank you! My favorite scene from my favorite movie.
You're welcome, and same!
Vive la France ! 🇨🇵
Very very underrated channel! Subbed!
Thank you! Alas this, as you so nicely put it, underrated channel is on ice for now, but I'm currently making film analysis videos on an even more underrated channel, Franchise Forum!
ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
Victor Lazlo is such an absolute chad.
I would wish to point out as well, the subtle corruption of "The Watch of the Rhein", in history, this song was created during the Franco-Prussian War, it was about the ragtag confederation of German States and their fight against the French who were much larger and more powerful at the time (though they had a few weaknesses that would lead to their defeat, but That's hindsight), the song was about guarding the Rhein against the larger French force. However, here in Rock's bar many years later, the script has been flipped! Now the Germans are the unstoppable and the song is being used to mock the French! It's so clever I refuse to believe it was unintentional
Well, and the lyrics and history of La Marseillaise are also quite relevant to the situation apart from just being a symbol of France.
I pity anyone who is not French when I hear La Marseillaise.
It is a very stirring anthem. Do French people get all weepy when La Marseillaise is played the way Americans get when they hear the Star Spangled Banner?
@@fredgarvinMP Many do I'm sure.
@@jean6872 Thank you. Interesting.
I know, it just adds a whole other layer to that scene. It is not just words to an anthem, it is a literal call to arms with the emphasis on "Aux aaaaaaarmes, citoyens!" It is on par with the best of Churchills ww2 perorations. They made La Marseillaise into the anthem of the entire Free World, not just of France, which is remarkable considering this is not a French production.
What is clear though is that the extras on the set singing it know exactly what it means. And Yvonne most definitely knows what it means.
Very insightful. My favorite scene of my favorite movie. I see others here have mentioned your stopping your videos. Some good things are built gradually, and some things gain momentum.. Maybe it could a side project. I’ve only seen this video, and I think you you have a voice that needs to be heard. Best wishes, and Happy Thanksgiving.
Sally, this means a lot to me. The often painfully slow climb to success is one of the reasons I stopped doing MMM, but your comment was one of the handful on this video that, late last year, helped convince me that I should give it another shot.
So, if you want to hear more of my allegedly needed voice (thank you for that sentiment in particular), you can check out the channel you helped inspire, Franchise Forum, here: ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
Spot on my friend.
Thank you! I'd like to think that my career in being spot on is continuing over on my new film analysis channel Franchise Forum!
ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
Long live France indeed!
Well done, mate! :)
Thank you! Perhaps you'll fine my new film analysis channel well done as well?
ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
Something not often noticed is that composer Max Steiner wrote an inspiring hymn tune as a leitmotiv fot Victor Laszlo. It's overshadowed by the pre-existing American popular tune As Time Goes By, and by the vernacular French and German tunes.
Steiner had a knack, not shared by his colleague Erich Wolfgang Korngold, for using vernacular tunes in his film scores for Warner Brothers.
This video deserves more views.
Longue vie à la France. Vive la liberté
Hey, thanks! It did end up taking off a bit, which was terrific to see!
If I may be so bold as to direct you to other videos that I think deserve more views, I have a new film analysis channel now: Franchise Forum!
ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
Good analysis, please continue
Thank you! MMM won't be back for the foreseeable future, but I have continued general film analysis over on a new channel: Franchise Forum!
ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
You got my subscription when you said this was your favorite movie of all time. As it is also mine.
That's a great reason to subscribe! It isn't hard to find fellow Casablanca-appreciators, but it's aways nice to come across them nonetheless.
If you want to hear me heap even more praise onto the best movie of all time, I recently got to go much more in-depth on a podcast called My Favorite Movie Is...
www.mfmipodcast.com/casablanca/
Brilliant
Thank you! I'm being equally brilliant (your word!) over on my new channel, Franchise Forum, if you'd like to check out my current work!
ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ
When you put this into the time and context in which it was made, it is one of the most uplifting, powerful and effective propaganda sequences ever filmed.
in the older meaning of propaganda, which is information/writing/movies/etc. that takes a side and influences people, not the more recent, unfavorable meaning that usually means some kind of lie used to influence people.
That look @ 3:55 is what all men in love dream about seeing from their beloved! ... Sigh!
The uploader references Avengers Endgame
In the days of my callow youth, I would've looked on a movie with battle scenes as the ideal expression of heroism. It was my 40's before I got smarter and began appreciating Casablanca as the noble and lofty depiction of goodness that it was.
But...a paradox. A few days ago I happened to be listening to Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture at work to infusie my weary mind and body with energy.
And it occurs to me now how the brief inserts (for lack of a better expression) of Le Marseille are meant to represent Napoleon's aggressive incursion into Russia as opposed to liberty and the quashing of tyranny.
Yvonne and Ilsa are such beautiful women; their eyes are liquid, glinting with tears. It's almost as if their beauty defies the murderous savagery of the Nazis. I actually think the two songs really go together quite harmoniously as they overlap each other.
Well said
Ingrid Bergman's classic Nordic beauty is the real winner here!
Watch Ilsa's breathing quicken and get shallower as Victor storms down the stairs from Rick's office and stands before the band. Those closeups of Ilsa penetrate the soul, reveal her deep love of Victor and their cause.
She had the most beautiful eyes in Cinematic history.
Cogent comments. Good work.
Thank you! I'd like to think that I'm making equally cogent comments over on my new film analysis channel, Franchise Forum!
ruclips.net/channel/UC_8073PwgXCuwOvf8voc2uQ