From “Casablanca”
“Here’s looking at you, kid.”
Set in French Morocco and released by Warner Bros. in 1942, the premise for Casablanca is a simple one. A man and woman are in love but sacrifice that love for a higher purpose. With an A-list cast, headed up by Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, and Paul Henreid, this is yet another example of a film where there’s nary a throwaway line in the whole script.
Bogie plays cynical ex-pat, Rick Blaine, who must decide if he will help his old flame, Ilsa (Bergman), and her husband Czechoslovakian underground leader Victor Laszlo (Henreid) escape the Nazis.
The chemistry between Bogart and Bergman is undeniable, and when he raises his glass, looks into her eyes and says, “Here’s looking at you, kid,” that is a declaration of his undying love, with some reviewers surmising the underlying message is that he will forever look after her, regardless of whether or not they see each other again.
Again, this is a film with so many re-quoted lines of dialogue that it’s difficult to do it justice in a couple of paragraphs. For example, who can forget:
“Round up the usual suspects.”
“We’ll always have Paris.”
“I’m shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on here!”
“If she can stand it, I can! Play it!” (When Sam plays As Time Goes By.)
“Louie, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”
From “All About Eve”
“Fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a bumpy night.”
I can’t believe that I originally left out this iconic line from my favorite film ever! Thanks to Denise Shelton for the reminder.
All About Eve is a masterpiece as is the script, which I’ve read many times. Bette Davis is Margo Channing, a grande dame of the theater and reluctant mentor to Eve Harrington, a star-and-stage-struck waif played by Anne Baxter. Of course, as with the theater, things are not always what they seem.
Touched by Eve’s devotion to her, Margo takes the conniving young woman under her wing and the ensuing havoc is “bracing,” indeed!
At a party thrown for her boyfriend played by Davis’s real-life husband, Gary Merrill, Margo, jealous of his innocent affection for Eve, fairly hisses the “seatbelt” line after one too many cocktails.
I won’t divulge more as you have to see the film for yourself. And keep an eye out for George Sanders, a standout as acerbic theater critic, Addison DeWitt, who steals nearly every scene he’s in.
I can’t think of a better place to end this story than right here, but I may consider writing a follow-up, a Part 2 if you will as I could go on forever and don’t want to lose you. In the meantime, why don’t you tell me what your favorite movie lines are? The ones you can’t get out of your head? Because ‘sharing is caring,” right? And you know how much I care.
See? I can be nice. In fact, me love you long time.
