Casablanca
Label: Rhino
Catalogue No: R2 72911
Release Date: 1997
Total Duration: 64:01
UPN: 7-24382-35022-4
CASABLANCA is unarguably one of the best movies ever made. In terms of story, dialog, nobility of character, performances, lighting, direction, music, every aspect the film seems to be perfect. Max Steiner’s musical underscore was one of his best: heartfelt, brooding and tuneful. Featuring his characteristic quoting from external sources (the French National Anthem, for example, which creates a sense of time and place; and his masterful use of the standard, “As Time Goes By” as a thematic device); Steiner’s music intensifies the film’s underlying sense of lost romance, nobility, and quiet heroism. For the first time, an original soundtrack CD is available of Steiner’s wonderful score.
Warning: The CD is laced throughout with dialog excerpts. That’s right: the “D” word. The infuriating bane of the film music aficionado. The need for dialogue cues on an audio CD has become dubious now that we have the easy availability of video tapes, laser discs, and DVDs. Those seeking an opportunity to hear a film’s music on its own are usually going to be disappointed. To Rhino’s credit, we are given 26 minutes of uninterrupted music, which was all the original music the producers could locate in the Warner vaults. Tracks 1, 8, 9, 18, and 19 are original soundtrack underscore only. The second half of track 6 (starting at 2: 18), when Rick first confronts Ilsa, is also pure underscore.
Filling out the CD are all the Dooley Wilson songs from the film – including one outtake and several alternate versions (including a great orchestral version of “It Had To Be You”) not heard before. The dialogue cues are memorable – this film, after all, contained some of cinema’s most classic lines of dialog – but they do tend to get in the way when you want to hear the music. Watch the video if you really want to relive the film’s unforgettable moments. Program in the Wilson tracks for some catchy 1940’s jazz. But program your CD players for those 6 cues and you have what we really have been wanting all along: a 26-minute original soundtrack album from CASABLANCA.
