Casablanca

According to the article "Play it Again and Again," the movie Casablanca captured imagination that no other movie ever has. This is evident because the theme of Casablanca is very contriversal. The movie was based around World War II politics and was released to the public only a year after the United States entered the war. Movies are made for more than just entertainment, Casablanca was produced to increase Allies support and American involvement in World War II. By watching this movie I saw the efforts of support in several ways. One that sticks out most in my mind is when Victor gets away from the Natzis and the Gestopo captain remains on Rick's side.
Most movies are based on novels, but Casablanca derives from a play. In the article "Casablanca," Ray Merlock researches the origins of the play. Merlock finds that Murray Burnett (original playright) has a personal connection with the story line of Casablanca. Burnett and his wife spent some time in Vienna and saw disturbing events while there. When they arrived back in the United States, they created a play called Everybody Comes to Rick's. This play is what the movie Casablanca is based on.
Reading these two articles before I watched the movie gave me some insight into the backround of Casablanca. Knowing that a lot of the scenes and actions are based around true life events gave the movie more meaning and significance. The love triangle in the movie took some darkness out of the World War II situation and gives viewers something to hold onto and hope for, that true love lives forever. Even though Rick and Victor usually fought on the losing end of the fight, there was always something that came around and gave them hope to gain ground and get ahead.