Propaganda In Casablanca

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Casablanca: A Romantic Take on War Propaganda
Romance movies have played a huge role in the film industry since it took off in the early 1900's. One of the most popular romantic films of all time is Casablanca (1942), directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, and Paul Henreid. Casablanca tells the story of a love triangle between Rick, a cafe owner in Casablanca, Ilsa, a woman Rick fell in love with in Paris, and Victor Laszlo, Ilsa's husband. With the onset of the World War II, Europeans are trying to get to Lisbon, from which they can make it to America. Casablanca is a step in between the imprisonment of Europe and the freedom of America, because it allows flights to Lisbon. However, many people are stuck in Casablanca because they do not have the money or are not important enough to obtain a Visa. With only two letters of transit that allow travel to America, Rick must make the choice between going to America …show more content…

In the final scene, Rick has allowed Ilsa and Laszlo to use the letters of transit to leave Casablanca together while he stays. After shooting a German commander that was attempting to keep the plane from departing, Rick is left with Captain Louis Renault, who serves the Vichy government. A very significant part of this scene is when Captain Renault picks up a bottle of Vichy water to pour himself a glass. When he sees the label, he is disgusted and drops the bottle into the trash ("Casablanca (1942)."). Captain Renaults act of dropping the bottle into the trash "symbolizes his open rejection of Vichy France's appeasement of the German Nazi government and support for the anti-Nazi Allied cause" ("Casablanca (1942)."). Captain Renaults symbolic act of throwing away the bottle of Vichy water is anti-German propaganda because it shows he is not only against the German government, but also those who seek to pacify it by doing what it

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