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8 reviews
I'm flexible on what scene gets tagged as the ?inciting incident.
?(Although if the arrival of Ilsa is the inciting incident, it doesn't occur until 25 minutes into the movie. ? Which means the movie doesn't conform to contemporary conventions for placing plot points.)
But I think the Nazis are only a hurdle, a complication; ?Rick's emotional struggle with his cynicism, his bitterness over Ilsa seemingly to have deceived and ?dumped him is the major obstacle that impedes him from handing over the exit visas. ?Rick has several private moments with Ilsa and Victor, opportunities to ?hand them over -- no Nazis, no Renault around to stop him. He can give the letters of transit to Ilsa or Victor. ?But he won't.
Around 70 minutes into the film, ?in a private conversation, Victor begs Rick to sell them to him. ?Rick point blank refuses. ?When asked why, ?he says, "Ask your wife." ?After that Ilsa meets with him (privately) and tries to reason with him into giving the letters of transit. ?Rick refuses. ?She begs him to. ?He refuses. ?She points a gun at him. ?He still refuses.
It isn't a matter that ?he can't turn them over to Mr. and Mrs. Laszlo ?but rather that he won't.?
?
I'm flexible on what scene gets tagged as the ?inciting incident.
?(Although if the arrival of Ilsa is the inciting incident, it doesn't occur until 25 minutes into the movie. ? Which means the movie doesn't conform to contemporary conventions for placing plot points.)
But I think the Nazis are only a hurdle, a complication; ?Rick's emotional struggle with his cynicism, his bitterness over Ilsa seemingly to have deceived and ?dumped him is the major obstacle that impedes him from handing over the exit visas. ?Rick has several private moments with Ilsa and Victor, opportunities to ?hand them over -- no Nazis, no Renault around to stop him. He can give the letters of transit to Ilsa or Victor. ?But he won't.
Around 70 minutes into the film, ?in a private conversation, Victor begs Rick to sell them to him. ?Rick point blank refuses. ?When asked why, ?he says, "Ask your wife." ?After that Ilsa meets with him (privately) and tries to reason with him into giving the letters of transit. ?Rick refuses. ?She begs him to. ?He refuses. ?She points a gun at him. ?He still refuses.
It isn't a matter that ?he can't turn them over to Mr. and Mrs. Laszlo ?but rather that he won't.?
?
Rick's moral and emotional struggle is a hurdle, but his major obstacle is the Nazis.
I believe that his inciting incident is Elsa's entry into his gin joint... and his goal is her safety. Sure, at first, he wants her for himself, and he still suffers from the pain of losing her in France. However, when she first walks into his bar, he realises she's in trouble or at least in danger - his goal becomes her safety. Eventually, he realises her safety comes hand in hand with letting her go and the greater good of safeguarding Lazlo.
So:
In the midst of WW2 after his former lover shows up in his bar in Morocco, a former anti-fascist fighter must provide her and her resistance leader husband exit visas to Lisbon before the Nazis catch them.