12 MEMORABLE BEST PICTURE WINNERS #2

CASABLANCA (1942)

16th Academy Awards

Nominated With:
For Whom the Bell Tolls
Heaven Can Wait
The Human Comedy
In Which We Serve
Madame Curie
The More the Merrier
The Ox-Bow Incident
The Song of Bernadette
Watch on the Rhine

Directed By:
Michael Curtiz

Starring:
Humphrey Bogard, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid, Claude Rains, Conrad Veidt, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre, Dooley Wilson

Synopsis:
Of all the "gin joints" in Morocco, Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman), with husband Victor (Paul Henreid) in tow, had to walk into the one owned by Rick (Humphrey Bogart), a former beau she abandoned in Paris. War looms over them all, and in a much-discussed ending, Rick and Ilsa make heroic but heartbreaking choices. As time goes by, director Michael Curtiz's 1942 classic war noir only gets better. Peter Lorre and Claude Rains also star.

Why this is a great choice:
What more can you say about Casablanca that hasn’t been said already except to say that it is worthy of all the praise it receives. Here is a film that never setout to win awards (it began as a B Production studio film). Now today, it’s moments, imagery, dialogue, and music has become apart of American culture. This is without question one of the finest selections the Academy has ever made for Best Picture. An unforgettable film even “as time goes by”…

12 Memorable Best Picture Winners -- previous enteries:
- How Green Was My Valley (1941)