"Here's to lookin at you, kid."

When a person thinks about classical Hollywood films, there is always one film that stands out above the rest. One image, one scene, one movie that each and every individual (even if they haven’t seen the film) imagine if asked about iconic Hollywood filmography. That film is Michael Curtiz’s 1943 Academy Award winning film, Casablanca. The film was made during World War II and is set to begin right before America joins in the fight. This film was made popular strictly by the wartime culture and moral that was spreading throughout the nation.  However, the underlying themes and motivations behind the film make it a timeless film of a century. Even though Casablanca seems to be a world away from the war in Europe, the viewer is constantly reminded of the fragility of secrecy and the sensation of being watched at all times. The audience is constantly reminded of the war in Europe and the German occupation not only in Europe, but in the European territories in Africa as well. The director uses the African front in order to educate the American audience about that front of the war. It also creates a paradise-like atmosphere that somewhat produces an escape from the atrocities of war. Lighting, especially watchlights, are extremely significant to the entire mise-en-scene of each scene that is set at nighttime throughout the film. In the 1943 classic Hollywood film, Casablanca, Michael Curtis utilizes the spotlight and different aspects of harsh contrast to utilize the motif that everyone in the film is constantly being guarded and watched due to the overlying premise of war and the loss of freedoms that are associated with the occupation.

The scenes in which the spotlight is shown on the characters and scenes where low-key lighting is utilized demonstrate the cinematographer’s actions to express the Nazi’s constant evil eye glaring on the characters in the film. Lighting is an essential aspect of the mise-en-scene concept in that it creates atmosphere in a black-and-white film such as this. Casablanca’s use of different lighting techniques to create a warlike atmosphere really spooks the audience and makes them feel as though they are being watched…“Here’s to lookin at you, kid.”