IronBob

I figured I would hate this movie and I was disappointed. I didn't actually hate it but one thing that hit me right out of the gate was how horribly miscast everyone was. I liked the action scenes, in fact some of the best of the year but I can't remember a movie so woefully miscast. Not one single character in this movie had an ounce of believability with Karolina Kurkova MAYBE coming close to respectability but the rest are just fake Barbie girls with no connection to reality at all. Dennis Quaid as General Hawk? Puhleeze.

Now as to the story, it wasn't horrible but it's the same old crap we're always given. Weapons maker makes super weapon for the good guys, sells it to the bad guys, makes a lot of money but as usual has an ulterior motive--come on, that theme has been done to DEATH.

What kills me about Hollywood is they still want to use super models as bad asses and though they're totally fun to look at with all those finely tuned jiggly parts, they lend an air of silliness to any flick trying to appear real. It just doesn't work. Hand Kathy Bates a damn ninja sword over these washed out blond bimbos any day.

There's one aspect of Casablanca that is seldom if ever discussed. Every character in the movie has made choices out of necessity rather than desire and yet the entire movie centers around desire.

Humphrey Bogart's, Rick, settles in Casablanca after being on the run with Sam, his piano man who has very little choice but to follow him. Bergman's, Ilsa, who is torn from Bogart in Paris, leaves him out of necessity when she learns her husband who she thought was dead is alive.

Ilsa's husband played by Paul Henreid, is a non-reluctant political mercenary, taking refuge in Casablanca.

In the background there is Louie, the French prefect, who also by necessity plays the aggressive supporter of Vichy France and yet has no love for his superiors.

In the background is the oppressiveness of the German army in a town where every non-native is there out of necessity, trying to free themselves from the yoke of German viciousness.

Thus is the backdrop where desire must heed to necessity against a menace out to crush both. A truly remarkable film with remarkable performances that have gone on to be more than a timeless classic but rather a thread in the fabric of every American. It carries messages that may seem lost on today's youth but still provides timeless lessons.

I have to say, I wasn't very interested in seeing this until the end as it just didn't entertain me at the beginning but I hung in with it and noticed that over the coarse of the film, the relationship between a young, naive private and a grumpy old sergeant, both dentists bored with their perspective lot in the army who decide it's time to contribute to the war effort, began to solidify.

If even half of their adventures are true then they were two truly amazing men who pulled off quite a feat. This is one of those films that is more human interest than anything but it holds your attention as it progresses by some of the situations they find themselves in and the wonderful way it's brought to conclusion.