1. Specialist Study Areas: Auteur
1.1. Auteurship
1.1.1. Auteurs of Casablanca
1.1.1.1. Jack Warner (studio head)
1.1.1.1.1. Warner Brothers classic crime genre, film noir, reputation
1.1.1.2. Michael Curtiz (director)
1.1.1.2.1. Not considered an auteur director - Michael Curtiz is considered a Metteur-En-Scene despite pioneering Hollywood technology
1.1.1.2.2. Curtiz strived for good pacing in his films
1.1.1.3. Arthur Edeson (cinematographer)
1.1.1.3.1. Max Steiner (composer)
1.1.2. UPDATED Definition of an Auteur
1.1.2.1. Theory developed by film critics in cahiers du cinema in the late 50s
1.1.2.1.1. It is a director who displays a consistency of digital styles and themes like a recognisable stamp on a world view
1.1.2.2. Metteur En Scene
1.1.2.2.1. A skilled technician, but not the best director, in the second league of directors
1.1.3. UPDATED Michael Curtiz as an auteur
1.1.3.1. Characteristics
1.1.3.1.1. Adopted new technologies for storytelling, like moving camera and sound recording
1.1.3.1.2. Themes he covers tend to consist of anti-facism and the perspective of the US from an outsider
1.1.3.2. Michael Curtiz's auteurship in casablanca
1.1.3.2.1. German expressionism seen throughout, for example the use of chiasocuro lighting and shadows, for example just before the flashback
1.1.3.3. How May Michael Curtiz not be considered an auteur
1.1.3.3.1. He was contracted by the contract system to warner brothers
1.1.3.3.2. Producer Hal B. Willis has been considered the auteur of casablanca for writing in the iconic ending and casting the film
1.2. Aesthetic
1.2.1. Low Key lighting and fog often used to disguise cheap sets used by Warner Brothers
1.2.1.1. Warner Brothers' tight budget policy
1.2.1.1.1. Airplane hangar scene
1.3. Narrative
1.3.1. Equilibrium
1.3.1.1. Refugees being displaced due to WW2 and trying to get passage to lisbon then to the US
1.3.2. Disequilibrium
1.3.2.1. Disruption caused by the theft of the letters of transit
1.3.3. New Equilibrium
1.3.3.1. Rick retains the letters of transit and is able to help Lazslo escape with Ilsa
1.3.4. Macguffin
1.3.4.1. A narrative device with little importance but gets the plot moving
1.3.4.1.1. In Casablanca these are the letters of transit
1.3.4.1.2. Bonnie and Clyde does not have a Macguffin (Comparative point)
1.4. Representation
1.4.1. Love, lies, sacrifice, patriotism and commitment
1.4.2. Rick represents US foreign Policy of isolationism
1.4.2.1. Then shifts to self sacrificing and willing to join the war effort
2. End Sequence
2.1. Cinematography
2.1.1. Exaggerated lighting adding melodrama and heightening character emotions
2.1.2. Close up between Rick and Ilsa captures the emotions between one another
2.1.2.1. Encourages the audience to feel for Rick, but also they are happy he is doing the right thing
2.1.3. Spotlight Gauze filter
2.1.3.1. Ilsa's tears sparkle presenting feminity in Hollywood
2.1.3.1.1. Presents her sadness as beauty
2.2. Mise-En-Scene
2.2.1. Ilsa's costume is light grey, Ricks costume is dark, and Victor's costume is really light
2.2.1.1. Presents how Ilsa is torn between her devotion to the two characters
2.3. Editing
2.3.1. Continuity editing retains the fluidity of the sequence
2.3.2. Eyeline match cuts that match the eyelines of Rick and Ilsa in a shot reverse shot
2.3.2.1. Presenting a romantic bond between them in their last moments together
2.4. Sound
2.4.1. Non-diagetic dramatic music when Ilsa and Victor fly away dramatizing the atmosphere
2.4.1.1. Music crescendos at the emotional peak of the scene
2.4.2. La Marseillaise is played when the title cards come on
2.4.2.1. One final parting encouragement to the audience to join the war effort
2.4.2.2. Encourages patriotism
3. Paris Flashback
3.1. Cinematography
3.1.1. Ricks bar has dark chiascuro lighting
3.1.1.1. Presents Ricks internal sadness
3.1.2. Bliss montage has much higher key lighting and is much brighter
3.1.2.1. Emphasises how Rick is happier around Ilsa
3.2. Mise-En-Scene
3.2.1. Ricks costume in the flashback is classical Parisian clothing
3.2.1.1. Presents the subtle beauty and individuality of France (propaganda message)
3.2.2. In the bar there is an empty alcohol bottle beside Rick
3.2.2.1. Presents the internal struggle he is going through
3.3. Editing
3.3.1. Fade to white - traditional way of introducing a flashback in classical Hollywood
3.3.1.1. Dissolve transition to begin the bliss montage
3.3.2. Bliss montage itself romanticises scenes of love and passion
3.3.2.1. Slower paced continuity editing which is more romantic
3.4. Sound
3.4.1. 'It had to be you' song used throughout the film as a sound motif
3.4.1.1. Presents French Patriotism
3.5. Performance
3.5.1. Flashback is a contrast to Ricks solemn behaviour in the bar with his friend, Sam
3.5.1.1. Another symbol of the love the two had for one another
4. Contexts
4.1. Institutional Contexts
4.1.1. Hays Code/ Motion Picture production code
4.1.1.1. Set up in the 1930's as a means of film censorship
4.1.1.1.1. Limited the demonstration of nudity, violence and religious messages including homosexuality, portrayed the correct standards of life, and stated that no picture should be produced that would lower the moral standards of those who see it
4.1.2. Studio System
4.1.2.1. Five major studios from 1930-48 known as the classic studio system
4.1.2.1.1. Film studios were organised along factory lines using production techniques
4.1.2.1.2. Studios controlled every aspect of film production - known as vertical integration
4.1.2.2. Paramount Decree (1948)
4.1.2.2.1. Broke up the studios' monopolies on the industry and allowed cinemas to be owned independently
4.1.3. 7 Year Contract System
4.1.3.1. Actors were attatched to a 7 year contract to a singular studio, they were told their roles and their image was controlled by the studio
4.2. Historical Contexts
4.2.1. Pearl Harbour 7th December 1641
4.2.1.1. Casablanca takes place 4 days before
4.2.2. Jim crow laws
4.2.2.1. US audience predominatly in the deep south watch sam in an integrated neighbourhood in casablanca, while watching in a segregated cinema as per jim crow laws
4.3. How Casablanca is Shaped by historical contexts
4.3.1. Use of characters to demonstrate political ideologies like isolationism and conservatism that were prevalent in that period
4.3.1.1. Casablanca adheres to contextual references representing isla and bonnie as both sexualised an integral in driving both plots
4.3.2. Narrative
4.3.2.1. We are aligned with rick and his love for isla, suggestive of how curtiz attempts to encourage the political ideology of participation in war, anti fascist
5. Opening Sequence
5.1. Cinematography
5.1.1. Medium shot of the city establishing the location as bustling and busy due to the migration from WW2
5.1.1.1. Casablanca was a medium for travel onwards to USA
5.1.2. Tracking shot of above the city into the city optimises new moving camera technology
5.1.2.1. Director; Michael Curtiz, was a pioneer for new technologies in Hollywood
5.1.3. Famous tracking shot through Rick's bar
5.2. Mise-En-Scene
5.2.1. Pickpocketer costume is stereotypical of a villanous character in Hollywood
5.2.1.1. Implies the stupidity of the English tourists in Casablanca, because they didn't pick up on the costume
5.2.2. Ricks bar as a set presents the bar as a haven for American Idealism and luxury lifestyles
5.2.2.1. Perhaps to escape the reality of war
5.3. Editing
5.3.1. Montage editing portraying the number of refugees as a result of the ongoing conflict
5.3.2. Fast paced continuous editing used in the Police chase at the start
5.3.2.1. Synonymous with Classical Hollywood
5.4. Sound
5.4.1. Fast paced non-diagetic music emphasising the drama and intensity of the sequence
5.4.2. Patriotic French Music used at the very beginning during the motion graphic
5.4.2.1. Portrays the ongoing French nationalism despite Nazi occupation
5.5. Performance
5.5.1. Rick plays chess against himself emphasising his ambiguity hidden by chiascuro lighting
6. La Marseillaise Sequence
6.1. Cinematography
6.1.1. Close Ups of Singers emphasises the importance of the French National Anthem and the patriotic mood in the bar
6.1.2. High key lighting on the singers and audience singing along
6.1.2.1. Low key lighting on the Germans, a classic warner chiascuro effect
6.1.3. Mid-shots of the Germans and close ups of the French
6.1.3.1. Creates alignment with the French and empathy for the European conquored countries
6.2. Mise-En-Scene
6.2.1. German soldiers costumes are much darker compared to the light costumes worn by the French
6.2.2. Multiple props provide a sense of French allyship in Ricks bar and a anti-nazi message
6.3. Editing
6.3.1. Continuity editing and dissolve transitions
6.3.1.1. Romanticises the scene portraying the French as important to fight for
6.4. Sound
6.4.1. Two national anthems
6.4.1.1. Die Wacht en Reim
6.4.1.1.1. Portrayed as selfish and gives the audience a sense of distaste towards the soldiers as they are the only one to sing it
6.4.1.2. La Marseillaise
6.4.1.2.1. Sung by absolutley everyone apart from the soldiers which reflects communal support for the French
6.5. Performance
6.5.1. French people in the bar crying during the anthem, presents French pride
6.5.1.1. They are refugees creating another layer of emotion due to the cruelty of warttime
6.5.2. Ricks nod to the band to play the anthem shows he is willing to put himself at risk against the common enemy
6.5.2.1. Reflects the US's disownment of isolationist policy