Casablanca: Key Facts

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Full Title: Casablanca

Director: Michael Curtiz

Lead Cast: Humphrey Bogart as Rick Blaine, Ingrid Bergman as Ilsa Lund, Paul Heinreid as Victor Laszlo

Supporting Cast: Claude Rains, Conrad Veidt, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre

Writer: Julius J. Epstein, Philip G. Epstein, Howard Koch

Producer: Hal Wallis

Genre: Drama

Language: English (with some German and French)

Award & Nominations

1943 Academy Awards

Nominated: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing, Best Score (Dramatic or Comedy Picture)

Won: Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Screenplay

Date of Release: Released in New York in late 1942 and nationwide in early 1943

Setting (Time & Place): Casablanca in French-ruled Morocco, December 1941

Foreshadowing: The plane to Lisbon that passes over Louis and Rick as they sit outside Rick's Café on the first evening foreshadows the end of the movie, when the two friends again watch a plane depart for Lisbon, this one carrying Ilsa and Laszlo.

Major Conflict The major conflict is between Rick and Ilsa as he tries to understand and she tries to explain their suddenly aborted relationship in Paris. The conflict soon expands beyond their romantic past to involve Laszlo and his attempt to escape to Lisbon.

Rising Action The conflict between Ilsa and Rick is ignited when Ilsa shows up in Rick's Cafe with Laszlo. Laszlo and Ilsa plan only to pass through Casablanca, but the difficulty of obtaining letters of transit and the fact that the jealous Rick has the letters forces Ilsa and Rick into frequent contact and conflict.

Climax: The climax of the film appears to be the lovers' reconciliation in Rick's apartment, but Rick's decision at the airport to let Ilsa leave with Laszlo soon trumps this earlier scene.

Falling Action: The falling action begins with Rick's idealistic pronouncements at the airport about personal sacrifice, which justify his decision to let Ilsa leave with Laszlo, and culminates in his murder of Strasser, an act that ensures Ilsa and Laszlo's safe departure but forces Rick into further exile.