Though the ambiguous conclusion is part of what makes Casablanca such
a remarkable film, not all of the ambiguity was intentional. During
the filming, director Michael Curtiz and the writers could not agree
on an ending. As Ingrid Bergman acted the part of Ilsa, she repeatedly
asked for a clarification as to which man she truly loved, but no
one gave her a straight answer. Bergman made the best of this frustrating
situation by making this uncertainty fundamental to Ilsa's character.
Ilsa is reunited twice with old lovers at the most inopportune times,
and she has become shut off from her own feelings. The real choice
at the conclusion is hers, but she elects to place it in Rick's
hands. When she tells Rick to think for both of them, she absolves
herself of having to take responsibility for her fate. Rather than
take action, for which she would have to accept responsibility,
she abandons herself to the whims of fortune. If Rick chooses wrongly,
the fault will be his, not hers.
Bergman portrays Ilsa as stony-faced and almost cold,
but Ilsa suffers most of all the principal characters. Although
Ilsa gets a chance at both love and freedom in the end, she has
not chosen her own fate. Her inability to steer her destiny is the
result of her choice to let Rick decide, and in this decision, we
see in her a dark, tragic fatalism. The romance of Casablanca is
undeniable. The male characters are able to love completely and
convincingly without appearing maudlin or sappy. Throughout the
film Laszlo is an unapologetic optimist, and by the conclusion,
Rick and Louis can envision brighter days ahead. Ilsa reveals herself
to be a character of a different sort. Only in the final scenes
do we even begin to grasp the full extent of her tremendous despair.
Her dark fatalism makes Casablanca much more than
a romantic tale set during a time when happy endings were not possible,
and the fact that Bergman actually had to struggle to figure out
who should be the object of Ilsa's true devotion renders Ilsa's
despair and indecision all the more realistic and affective.
