Casablanca (1943)

This is hands down on of the best films of all-time.
The world is at war and tons of people are desperate to get out of war-torn Europe, but visas are difficult to come by. Casablanca is a stop for many before journeying on to Lisbon and then to America.
Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart) is a bar owner and is completely neutral to the whole war thing, though in the past he has brought guns to Ethiopia and fought on the side of the Loyalists in the Spanish Civil War. But he sticks his neck out for no one. Which is why he lets the German guards arrest Ugarte (Peter Lorre). Luckily, Rick already took some letters of transit obtained from two dead German couriers from Ugarte earlier in the evening. And hid them in Sam's (Dooley Wilson's) piano so no one would find them.
The plot really kicks in gear when Victor Laszlo arrives. Victor is a member of the resistance. He has somehow eluded German capture three times, including escaping from a concentration camp. Louis Renault (Claude Rains), a French officer living in Casablanca does not want Laszlo to leave, though it soon becomes unsafe for him to say in the city. The German officer, Strasser (Conrad Veidt) will allow him to leave if Laszlo gives up all his contacts all over Europe.
The matter is complicated because Victor's wife, Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman) is an ex-lover of Rick's from just before he moved to Casablanca, in Paris. They had to flee because the Germans took over the country, giving way to the Vichy government. But Ilsa did not join him at the train station because it turned out that Victor wasn't dead after all.
Ilsa needs those letters of transit and tries everything in her power to obtain them. She tries threatening him with a gun, though Rick doesn't even budge and she tries seducing him, which appears to work. She can't leave him again. She tells him that he will have to do the thinking for the both of them.
And Rick does. He tells Louis that he will give the letters of transit to Victor, but then turns the gun on Louis allowing Victor and Ilsa to escape. Ilsa thought that it would be both of them leaving, but Rick tells her that she belongs with Victor. She gives him strength and keeps him going throughout all of his travels. Officer Strasser tries to stop the plane but Rick shoots him but Louis decides to take Rick's side and informs the other offices to round up the usual suspects.
The film is timeless, proving that sometimes, love is not the most important thing, not when it won't help the greater good. Now sure, thanks to the Hays Code, Ilsa couldn't end up with Rick. She had to leave with her husband, but Rick finally gets involved in a cause worth fighting for. It will help people.
Each character, even many of the small characters are truly fascinating. There is Ferrari (Sydney Greenstreet) who owns the rival bar. He wants to hire Sam, but Sam doesn't want to go even at twice the salary because he doesn't have the time to spend the money he earns at Rick's. Sam is also interesting. He is different from the usual African American characters in films at that time.
The dialogue is snappy but realistic and some of the lines are timeless including Louis's "I'm shocked, shocked that gambling is occuring here." Then a bar keep gives him a pile of bills, "Your winnings." "Here's looking at you, kid." "Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship." Everything about this film just works. Even the scenery is utterly believable despite the fact that it was filmed on the back of Warner's Brothers lot. The editing is seamless and the music, including the live songs, especially the classic "As Time Goes By" are brilliant. This is the best studio film ever made. It completely deserved the three Oscars that it won, and Bogart was robbed of an Oscar for this film. He was better here than in The African Queen.
This is without a doubt one the best love stories Hollywood ever made even though it is sad, but right in the end. I have seen this film five times and could easily watch it dozens more times. Grade: A