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Unfortunately in the case of Casablanca, despite an extensive worldwide search, the original camera negative no longer exists. "In this particular case, we scanned a nitrate print. That was the best existing element of Casablanca," explains Eisenberg. "Sometimes you may end up with 80 percent of the original film elements of the movie and the remaining 20 percent is pieced together with other existing elements." In 1989, the United States Library of Congressselected the film as one of the first for preservation in the National Film Registryfor being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." several hours of extras onto the same disc as the film. Casablanca's 4K disc now gets almost all 66GB of real estate to itself, revealing a Documentary: "You Must Remember This: A Tribute to Casablanca"(SD, 35 minutes) - This1992 documentary narrated by Lauren Bacall chronicles every aspect of the film's production - the evolution of the screenplay, the use of "As Time Goes By," casting, censorship issues, and the eleventh hour creation of the film's ending. Screenwriters Julius Epstein and Howard Koch, original playwright Murray Burnett, historians Rudy Behlmer and Ronald Haver, composer Henry Mancini, and Bergman's daughter Pia Lindstrom, among others, offer wonderful insights and anecdotes. Scholars love the film for its Freudian intertexts, while others see the title casa blanca – “white house” in Spanish – as a symbol for American foreign policy.
Years after its release, Ingrid Bergman was asked her thoughts regarding the iconic film. She answered, “I feel about ‘Casablanca’ that it has a life of its own. There is something mystical about it. It seems to have filled a need.” That’s a fair assessment, but at its core, Casablanca is an endorsement for being a good person. It advocates selflessness and doing the right thing. These are sentiments that will always resonate with audiences. Acting justly, courageously, and honorably transcend any era, which is why Casablanca has continued to be relevant till today.To a degree evident in few other dramatic films, the music of Casablanca has taken on a life of its own. The signature tune—“As Time Goes By” (originally written by one Herman Hupfeld for a now-forgotten 1931 Broadway show)—immediately evokes images of this film, as does one of its iconic lines of dialogue—“Play it, Sam.” However, the use of “As Time Goes By” almost didn’t happen, for Max Steiner (who wrote the score for Casablanca) didn’t particularly like the song. We’re taking it a little easy here at The Bits this week, especially in this stretch between the holidays, so that our whole team can relax, unwind, and focus on family and whatnot. But we do have a good post today with release news, a new disc review, and a bit of a look ahead at a few new 4K UHD catalog titles that we expect to arrive sometime in the new year. As always, let’s start with the review first... greater format resolution of true 4K and a rather tasteful application of HDR10, the result is a much finer, tighter, and more dialed-in presentation Newcomer to Casablanca? Seen it dozens of times before? This one's for all of you. Here are five very good reasons why you can't miss the movie at Cineworld. The Star Trek: The Motion Picture – The Director’s Edition: The Complete Adventure Limited Edition is a 3-disc set here in the States that includes the DE in 4K, a newly-authored 4K of the previously-released Theatrical Cut as well as the Special Longer Version (included via seamless branching), and a Blu-ray full of bonus content that I’m told includes basically everything ever created and released for the film on home video. (I’m awaiting confirmation of the exact contents from the studio.) But it does NOT include a Blu-ray of the DE itself, nor are Blu-rays of the Theatrical and SLV versions included. The DE is available separately on Blu-ray, and obviously the Theatrical Cut Blu-ray was included in the original 4-Movie Collection from last year.
The cast of ‘Casablanca’ is mostly of European extraction, no doubt meaningfully at a time when Europe was being torn apart by several fascist regimes. Even if taken as a propaganda piece (which ‘Casablanca’ certainly is , to an extent), one can’t help but notice not only how seamlessly the actors work together, but how these actors’ real-life experiences inspired a genuine urgency in the film’s plot, as well as its thesis. Who Wrote This, Anyway? Keeping their tradition of perpetually celebrating five and ten-year anniversary increments, Warner Bros. has finally released catalog staple Today, it ranks third on the American Film Institute’s 100 best movies of the last 100 years, and it is one of the most referenced films of all time. Films like Casablanca succeeded because they were made within a thriving ecosystem that placed storytelling, creative expertise, and cast and crew competence at the heart of its artistic practice.Casablanca boasts one of the greatest ensembles of any classic Hollywood movie, if not thegreatest. Paul Henreid plays Ilsa's new beau Victor while Claude Rains (The Invisible Man) plays the sharp-witted Captain Louis Renault. Many films throughout the history of Hollywood are considered classics but none have endured like Casablanca. Released in 1942, the picture was directed by Michael Curtiz and stars Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman. It has long defined the very pinnacle of filmmaking and currently holds a Rotten Tomatoes rating of 99%. In 2012, renowned film critic Leonard Maltin referred to “Casablanca” as “the best Hollywood movie of all time”. Winner of three Academy Awards, including Best Motion Picture, the film is an undisputed cinematic masterpiece. More importantly, it continues to attract virgin audiences and fresh appreciation, despite it being 80 years since its release.
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