How does mise en scene make meaning in Casablanca’? [10]

One way that the mise en scene makes meaning in Michael Curtiz’s ‘Casablanca’ during the flashback scene is with the motif of the piano. Sam piano’s is a motif that appears in both the current time for the characters and in the flashback. The piano and the theme/motif of the ‘As Time Goes By’ song that is played on the piano triggers Rick’s memories to think back on his past with Ilsa. Casablanca like most classical Hollywood films has a linear narrative with a flashback that shows the protagonist’s motivations and feelings, in this case, we learn of Rick’s love for Ilsa and how she broke his heart, shown by the symbolic close up of her note to him getting washed away in the rain. The fact that the piano, and therefore Sam, is constantly a noticeable element in Rick’s life (both flashback and the current time) links to the representation of ethnicity. Sam always being present shows his loyalty to Rick, but Rick shows him no loyalty back; his performance includes him ordering Sam around. This representation would have still been a positive representation at the time that the film was made, but now the film’s representation of Sam comes across as very wrong, although being a named character, he has no exterior or interior motivations other than to work for Rick and Rick doesn’t really show him much respect.

During the flashback sequence, elements of Curtiz’s signature auteur film form elements can be seen. An auteur is a director that has an overview over the film, their techniques and styles can be seen in their films as well having frequent collaborations. In Casablanca, Curtiz worked with Hal Wallis, the producer, and Humphrey Bogart, two people he frequently worked with. In terms of the cinematography and mise en scene, Curtiz’s signature auteur style can be seen, there are lots of strong shadows caused by the high key and functional lighting, plus there’s a shadow of the window on the floor. This is an example of Curtiz’s signature style, as it’s an element of his technique that is in multiple of his films after being influenced by German Expressionism.

Ilsa’s forehead and cheeks are always lit up due to paramount lighting making her appear beautiful and more feminine as paramount lighting is a common lighting for women. This links to how the representation of women in this sequence is glamorised, for example, Ilsa wears a different outfit in every scene. This contrasts to Rick who is lit with side lighting. Controlment and manipulation of lighting and the way that it looks on the screen (mise en scene) is another one of Curtiz’s signature auteur film form elements. After Rick has the flashback, Ilsa comes in wearing all white, with a light shining on her, and being in the centre of the frame. This makes her appear like a ghost of the past that has come to haunt Rick to the audience, as well as angelic. The idea of Ilsa being angelic links to her (and therefore women) being represented as passive throughout the film, such as at the end when Rick does the thinking for ‘the both’ of them.

The mise en scene links Rick and Ilsa together. For example, the narrative repetition of a glass being knocked over. Ilsa knocks one over in the flashback due to feeling angry and upset. Partly because of having to leave Rick but also because of the war, the German’s are going to march in which is negatively affecting her life. This will link to the audience’s lives as well, as they too will be at war when the film comes out. This sequence heavily focuses in on American isolation and getting the idea that it was wrong across to the audience. This is because in many ways this film is a propaganda film, showing how the studio had influence over Curtiz while making it. America initially isolated themselves because they lost too many people in the first war, but after pearl harbour which the film was set days before, they became involved in the war and so the film had to put across this message. Similarly to Ilsa knocking over a glass, Rick knocks over a glass after the flashback which visually links them together. This could represent their bond that they will always have, and/or their memories that they will always have together to the audience.

When Rick and Ilsa are in the car, it is shot directly at them with a fake background that has edited in images. This is because the film was film in the Warner Bros. Burbank’s studio, just like Blade Runner, meaning that they couldn’t actually film them in the places shown. They often had to hide the fact that they were on a set. Such as, during the ending, the mise en scene is foggy because they needed to hide the fact that they were not actually at an airport. Plus, the planes were not planes but instead models because they had to budget their expenses.

How might we recognise ‘Casablanca’ as the work of an auteur?

The film ‘Casablanca’ directed by Michael Curtiz can largely be described as the work of an auteur despite being a studio assignment film because Curtiz’s signature style can be seen very clearly while watching the film; specifically, the cinematography due to his manipulation of shadows, camera and lighting which was influenced by German expressionism, and you can tell that he had an overview over the film due to everything such as the editing being very precise. As well as this, auteur’s are also known for collaborating with the same people on multiple occasions, for this film, Curtiz again worked with Humphrey Bogart who acted in many of his films as well as the producer Hal Wallis who Curtiz frequently worked with.

In the Rick’s Café sequence, Curtiz’s signature tracking shot is used to go from outside the cafe to inside the café. This is part of Curtiz’s signature style because he often starts from outside a building and then goes in, often uses tracking shots and pioneered putting cameras on wheels. Following this tracking shot there is another tracking shot inside the café that shows the audience everyone inside, allowing everyone to see that Rick’s café is almost utopian as there is a music and lots of people are welcome (many languages are spoken in the film and on set), it’s a place of escapism from the characters away from the troubles of world war two. The same tracking shot is also manipulated again and drops down to introduce us to Sam who is playing the piano. The piano is a motif throughout the film as it appears everywhere, both in Rick’s current life and his flashbacks.

Also, during the Rick’s Café sequence, Curtiz’s signature ability to manipulate lighting is seen through the motif of the search light that travels across the front of Rick’s café. This motif adds to the theme of constant surveillance and how the war has led no one to be safe. The film is in many ways a propaganda film. For example, it empathises the idea that American isolation was a bad idea through the character of Rick who represents America and isolates himself. He doesn’t drink with customers and says ‘I stick my neck out for no one’ on multiple occasions which Renault replies, ‘A wise foreign policy’, explicitly saying to the audience that America have isolated themselves due to the events of the first world war, but Rick does help others by the end of the film, emphasising the importance of not isolating themselves to the audience. In WW1, America lost many soldiers and so decided to only financially support England and to give them materials instead of military involvement. However, the extreme close up of the cheque that Rick writes allows us to know that the film was set right before pearl harbour which changed America’s involvement, it was set on December 2^nd in 1941, which means that when the film came out Pearl Harbour had already happened and America now needed to be involved in the war and so the film was used to encourage this message as well as boost morale which is another reason why Hollywood were encouraged to create more films during the war, they were even allowed to still use silver nitrate despite nitrate being needed as a resource for bombs because Hollywood cinema had necessary influence.

Because the film is largely a propaganda film as well as it being a studio assignment, some people question where the line between auteur film and classical Hollywood film is drawn. Throughout the film, many classical Hollywood film form elements are used such as in the opening when we are shown the people of Casablanca looking at the plane, it obeys the 180 degree rule like the majority of the film. However, this is also paired with Curtiz’s signature tracking shot again, as well as Curtiz’s excellent shifts in genre, even in just the opening it goes from a war time film with actual documentary footage of refugees (European refugee crisis), to a spy thriller with suspects being rounded up, to a comedy when the man steals the older man’s wallet and there is a non-diegetic trumpet noise to empathise the comedy of the moment. Curtiz worked on many films and in these films who developed a perfect understanding of each genres and so learnt to combine genres in his films which became another one of his signatures, making ‘Casablanca’ and auteur film.

During Sam’s scene he is a playing a song called ‘Knock on wood’, this song was already owned by the studio and was re-used in order to save money due to budgeting. The song ‘As Time Goes By’ which is often used as a motif such as in the flashback sequence was the only original song for the movie. ‘Knock on Wood’ is an optimistic song that was used as its meaning applied to not only the characters but the audience in the cinema at the time, it was a way of boosting morale as the song is saying don’t worry about your problems, but the war is going on for the audience as well as the characters. During this scene, Rick puts the letters of transit, another motif, under Sam’s piano when the lights go out, it adds to the theme of secretiveness as well as it being another example of Curtiz’s control of the lighting. The theme of secretiveness continues in the arrest scene. When Rick has to get money out of his safe, instead of seeing him do so we get a long shot the shadow of him doing so making it more secretive as well as being another example of Curtiz’s ability to manipulate light and shadows which he frequently does in is films; this is because of the influence that German expressionism (approximately 1905-1920) had on his films.

Strong shadows are often seen in the film, the mise en scene often includes having large shadows of random objects on set like a plant up on the wall. There is also a close-up of a shadow of a window on the floor during one scene. As well as this, the string shadows and use of functional lighting help give depth to the studio such as in Rick’s café and help it appear to be an actual room instead of just a studio where the entire film was filmed due to budgeting. Plus, during the blue parrot scene, there is a shot of Laszlo in the foreground and in the background on the wall there is a shadow of a women dancing which is an unusual but beautiful shot and therefore a part of Curtiz’s signature film form making it an auteur film. The blue parrot links to the motif of the colour blue, there is multiple occasions where the blue parrot is mentioned as well as a close-up of the blue parrot sign. Plus, Rick says that Ilsa was wearing blue in Paris and as blue has the connotation of isolation, the audience could again link it back to American isolation and America should be involved in the war, Ilsa goes on to say that she ‘put that dress away’ and that ‘when the German’s march out the world’ she will ‘wear it again’. This scene includes the motif of the song ‘As Time Goes By’, it goes from being diegetic and Sam playing it on the piano to being non-diegetic and orchestral when Rick and Ilsa are talking. This scene also includes a long duration close-up shot of Ilsa’s face which is also a signature of Curtiz and very unusual for film, it’s a shot that separates the film from being an auteur film to a classical Hollywood studio assignment film.