ama2405's channel

A delightful movie, once you get over the shock of seeing Paul Henreid, suave lover or Nazi villain, as a swashbuckler. He swashes buckles with the best of them, and the plot rolls right along with swordfights, pistol duels, men thrown overboard, loving (1940's restrained), teasing, and general d...

The music: Pergolesi's "Stabat Mater"; it's on YouTube. Second tune: from Faure's "Requiem." Magda Goebbels had been praised as the ideal Nazi wife and mother. The gruesome end she orchestrated for her children and herself illustrates the wierd, twisted mentality of the Reich's last days. Surely ...

Nice music, but otherwise, not balanced at all. Where's Victor Lazlo, the plot hinge, the moral center and by far the best actor in the movie, Paul Henreid? You gave Strasser more time than you gave him! I'll file this under "Oh, come now!"

Of course, the real center of the movie and best piece of acting by far is Henreid's Victor. At first he's so cool and restrained it's hard to believe he's a charismatic leader but when he lets loose with the Marseillaise, he's got passion & power enough to stir people 70 years later. Or when he ...

Charming. He was a great actor, but under-rated; for example Casablanca was shot and edited towards Bogie (Henreid wasn't happy with the role anyway). He suffered for what he believed in 3 countries, and his career sagged as a result. Talk about old-world charm, he had it. But he had great talent...

Yes, a fantasy but a dandy piece of film-making. Viktor yields to impulse & shows his passion, commitment, & leadership qualities; Rick's nod is a first step to new commitment; Yvonne the bar girl swings back to patriotism, Ilsa swings from "What's he doing now to get in danger" to love & pride f...

Remember back in the '40's? Equality didn't exist for women: Men were to be masterful, reasoning, taking charge because women were passive, emotional creatures who could only "understand some day." Rick doesn't give Ilsa any freedom, does he? But Viktor's sensitive to it: he didn't push her to e...