Casablanca Revisited - Part 1

Film, War, Sports, Law and the Usual Suspects?

America’s Role/Goal Confusion

A Little Philosophy

Keith and the Movies:

Round up the usual suspects!

He’s perhaps the most complex character in the entire film. Captain Renault is the head of the Vichy controlled police in Casablanca.?He is unashamedly corrupt and never pretends to be otherwise.?Whether he is accepting gambling bribes from Rick or signing exit visas for favors from the prettiest of applicants, Renault rarely shows any sign of a conscience. But he is also in a tight spot. Lazlo’s arrival in Casablanca also brings a stronger Nazi presence and Renault’s hint of control hinges on the Nazis allowing it. Considering his lack of scruples, the question is how far will he go to protect his control and his own hide.

Google: Etymology. The phrase (round up the usual suspects) was commonly used in New York in the 1930s, by both criminals and law enforcement, often with regard to baseless arrests. The phrase was popularized more broadly by its appearance in the 1942 film Casablanca, especially since the 1990s.

Fast Forward and Back to the Future

Art (Film) and Reality: Casablanca Revisited

Arts in Exile:?[Round up the usual suspects! (ed. trans.)]

Quote from Casablanca: Police chief Renault shouts to his colleagues after the murder of Major Strasser at the airport.

Jul 24, 2024 — UFA (German motion-picture production company)?star?Conrad Veidt,?who had left Germany out of?moral conviction, going first to the UK in 1940, then into exile in Hollywood, met the same fate as many of his fellow actors. As a committed anti-fascist he had to play the German villain in American anti-Nazi productions. It was argued that his background and accent gave his act the “authentic touch”. He already played an SS man in his first role in the US, in Mervyn LeRoy’s Escape (1940). He then played a Nazi again in All through the Night (1942).

In the classic film Casablanca (1942) he played Major Strasser “of the Third Reich”, who had come especially to Morocco to prevent the prominent underground fighter Victor László (played by Paul Henreid) from leaving. At the end of the film, he is shot by Rick (Humphrey Bogart) at the airport.

In Casablanca,?Conrad Veidt played Major Heinrich Strasser. Veidt was a refugee German actor who had fled the Nazis with his Jewish wife, but frequently played Nazis in American films. He was the highest paid member of the cast despite his second billing. He died (while playing golf) shortly after the film's release.

In Contrast - the Double-Take

Keith and the Movies:?

In Casablanca, Victor Lazlo (Paul Henreid) is a well-known anti-Nazi underground hero. His reputation grew after he escaped from a concentration camp and later eluded the grasp of Hitler’s Third Reich. But this Czech Resistance leader enters “neutral” Casablanca as a fugitive along?with his wife Ilsa.?With the Nazi’s breathing down his neck, Lazlo arranges a meeting in Casablanca where he hopes to acquire exit visas for he and his wife. Lazlo is a bold and courageous man who will sacrifice all to stop the ruthless Nazi aggression. He’s also a man who loves Ilsa deeply which adds an interesting flavor to their visit to Rick’s place.

Google: Laszlo is a symbol of the resistance. He represents unwavering commitment, a quality that makes him as valuable to the Allies as he is dangerous to the Nazis. Laszlo is a symbol of resistance to the Nazis, and his personal conflict of whether or not he can escape Casablanca represents a much larger struggle for power and control. The Nazis officially control the city, but the underground resistance has the support of the majority of the people.

My Comment: Today in America

Antisemitism and autocracy are again on the rise in America today. It was vividly evidenced in Charlottesville:

and on January 6th, 2021. with the Trump-led attack on our Capitol, the Capitol of Democracy:

the Democracy, Constitution and Flag that we (and I) took a solemn oath to defend:

Oliver Wendell Holmes

Continued with Part 2 - As Time Goes By

Murderers, Senators and Lawyers?