My old friend Tyler Cowen wrote a blog post sharing his view of the 1942 film Casablanca. The film was directed by Michael Curtiz and the screenplay was written by the brothers Julius and Philip Epstein and Howard Koch. I will expound on the film, taking for granted familiarity, even obsession, with it. I come back to Tyler’s post later.
Let’s confess that the plot of Casablanca involves the unrealistic premise that the Nazis or Vichy officers do not dragoon Laszlo on the spot. Likewise unrealistic are the legal niceties of the letters of transit. At the end of the movie, the Nazi boss Strasser is ready to stop the plane and shoot to kill, belying the premise.
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