The Essentials: Casablanca

Title: Casablanca
Run Time: 102 minutes
Release Date: November 26th 1942 (premiere), January 23rd 1943 (general release)
Director: Michael Curtiz
Writer(s): Julius J. Epstein, Philip G. Epstein, Howard Koch, and Casey Robinson (uncredited)
Stars: Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid, AND Claude Rains, Conrad Veidt, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre, AND Dooley Wilson as 'Sam'

"Seeing the film over and over again, year after year, I find it never grows over-familiar. It plays like a favorite musical album; the more I know it, the more I like it. The black-and-white cinematography has not aged as color would. The dialogue is so spare and cynical it has not grown old-fashioned. Much of the emotional effect of Casablanca is achieved by indirection; as we leave the theater, we are absolutely convinced that the only thing keeping the world from going crazy is that the problems of three little people do after all amount to more than a hill of beans."
~ Roger Ebert

Three Reviews - Side Effects, Spring Breakers, and The Place Beyond the Pines

Hey, it’s been a while.

Last time we checked in, the Oscars had just blown past us, and I figured after a couple of months I’d check in. Q1 is, as a rule, something of a dead zone for cinema, so I haven’t seen many movies, but I don’t feel worse off for it. In fact, as of mid-April I’ve only seen three in theaters. I have some opinions on them, naturally. Read on after the jump.

The Essentials: Lawrence of Arabia

Title: Lawrence of Arabia
Run Time: 216 minutes (228 director's cut)
Release Date: December 16th, 1962
Director: David Lean
Writer: Robert Bolt and Michael Wilson
Stars: Alec Guinness, Anthony Quinn, Jack Hawkins, José Ferrer, Anthony Quayle, Claude Rains, Arthur Kennedy, AND Omar Sharif as 'Ali' AND introducing Peter O'Toole as 'LAWRENCE'

I would be remiss if I did not allow my first voyage into exploring essential film to be the film that is in the name of the blog, and there is a reason for that.

"There was no other director like David Lean. His ability draw you into the intimate portraits of his characters, of people like T. E. Lawrence, was remarkable. Lawrence of Arabia is the definitive epic, unrivaled in its capacity to combine pageantry and intimacy, and is the perfect example of the gift that only Lean had. He was able to awe you with spectacle and at the same time move you with the poignancy of a small, personal struggle. Still to this day, the film is one of the primary influences on both my career and my interpretation of the human condition. It inspires me just as much now as it did when I first saw it in 1962."
~ Steven Spielberg

"When I saw Lawrence of Arabia for the first time - 1962, Manhattan, the Criterion - I remember the lights going down, the opening 70mm shots from the point of view of a speeding motorcycle, and the powerful sensation that I was about to experience something completely new in cinema. David Lean and Robert Bolt took the epic form and gave it completely new life - in essence, this was the first interior epic, in which every monumentally scaled vision corresponded to the inner world of a hugely ambitious and complex man. You're looking at the landscape of the desert, as you've never seen it before, but you're also entering the landscape of a grand spirit, whose flaws were as vast as his accomplishments and his dreams"
~ Martin Scorsese

Reinvigorating The Blog

Dear friends,

It has been a while since Andrew and myself have been active in the blogging, and we did not start extremely strong, with both of us getting very busy with school. However, we hope to change that by using our time off from school this summer to get started on really working on the blog. The period of time between September-December is considered the "Oscar baiting season," and the first half of the year is usually a bit of a dead zone for good film to come out, so there is little for us to do. However, we hope to take this summer as an opportunity to being your guide to summer movie going, looking forward to the year's end releases, and covering film history.

We hope to begin a few specific, recurring columns in addition to reviewing specific films. One is very simply a director showcase, where we will explore the works of a director that has come to help shape film history. I am particularly interested in delving into film history, and exploring a lot of aspects of film that many people overlook. It is my intention to begin a column entitled "FILM: Fundamental Instruments for Loving Movies," where we will explore some classic elements, techniques, and directors that have shaped the film world today as a means of growing and learning together. Another new column that I am especially excited about is the "Essentials" collection, inspired by the weekly showcase on TCM of the same name. There we will recommend a classic and highly influential film that is essential for any great lover of film to see, or anyone who enjoys a great movie. We hope to be very active with our writing this summer, and we look forward to you coming along with us for the ride.

I would like to sign off with a small recognition of the recent death of Roger Ebert. Andrew and I are both extremely sad to see such an icon and giant pass, and know that he will be missed. He pioneered film criticism for the modern age of film, and I can say that he inspired me to write, discuss, and love film. He is a great hero to both of us, and his death leaves a gaping death in the world of film criticism. We hope for the best for his family, and that he and Gene Siskel are enjoying a great film, should heaven exist.

Andrew and I look forward to a great summer, and we hope to see you at the movies.