Scenes from "Casablanca" and "On the Waterfront" Hold Secret to Success
Posted: Sunday, August 23, 2009
by Donovan Baldwin
No Diet 4 Me
Ugarte (Peter Lorre): Well, Rick, after tonight, I'll be through with the whole business and I am leaving finally this Casablanca.
Rick (Humphrey Bogart): Who did you bribe for your visa? Renault or yourself?
Ugarte: Myself. I found myself much more reasonable.
- Casablanca 1942
There's no reason to wait for the praise or censure of others to be successful. Experts will tell you that one of the first steps to being successful is to believe in yourself. Your greatest cheerleader, your wisest mentor, and your most caring guide can...and perhaps should...be yourself!
After all, when all is said and done, and the people who affect your life now are gone or have lost their power to cause you to betray your own dreams, desires, and aspirations, who will be left to review your successes and failures with? Only that little voice in your head that likes such phrases as "woulda, shoulda, coulda".
Another movie, " On the Waterfront", with Marlon Brando, has a classic line which makes this point quite well. Terry, played by Brando is talking to his brother: Terry says, "You don't understand. I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender. I coulda been somebody, instead of a bum, which is what I am, let's face it. It was you, Charley."
The back story to this line is that Terry Malloy, a prizefighter on his way up, was influenced by his brother to throw a fight. After the loss, and, to many, obvious dive, Malloy got no more big fights, became a used-up, has-been palooka and wound up working on the waterfront.
It was in consideration of his brother's needs, beliefs, and wants, that Terry Malloy gave up his pursuit of the dream and his chance to progress towards his goal.
This is why the scene from Casablanca holds so much truth. Though a low thief, Ugarte has discovered that nobody is going to look out for your success like yourself. In a world where even well intentioned mothers, fathers, sisters, and brothers may try to lead you from the path to success, only you must make the decisions which will affect your future, your success, and your happiness.
I'm almost done, but I cannot leave an article which quotes Casablanca without at least one more scene...
Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman): Play it once, Sam. For old times' sake.
Sam (Dooley Wilson): [lying] I don't know what you mean, Miss Ilsa.
Ilsa: Play it, Sam. Play "As Time Goes By."
Sam: [still lying] Oh, I can't remember it, Miss Ilsa. I'm a little rusty on it.
Ilsa: I'll hum it for you. Da-dy-da-dy-da-dum, da-dy-da-dee-da-dum...
[Sam begins playing]
Ilsa: Sing it, Sam.
Sam: [singing] You must remember this / A kiss is still a kiss / A sigh is just a sigh / The fundamental things apply / As time goes by. / And when two lovers woo, / They still say, "I love you" / On that you can rely / No matter what the future brings-...
Rick: [rushing up] Sam, I thought I told you never to play-...
"Casablanca", like "On the Waterfront", is about dreams that were dashed because of the actions, beliefs, and needs of others. In one, there's love and Nazis and the war, in the other, love and the union and the worlds of prizefighting and the waterfront. While our personal dramas may never appear on film, they are of the utmost importance to us. It is how we choose to play our scenes which will determine whether our personal drama is a "hit" or a "flop".
In the meantime, you must remember this: You coulda been a contender. You coulda been somebody.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Donovan Baldwin is a 64-year-young amateur bodybuilder and freelance writer currently living in Stone Mountain, GA. He is retired from the U. S. Army after 21 years of service and is a University of West Florida alumnus (BA Accounting 1973). He has been writing articles and providing website content for several years and has a web page with information about a wide range of health products at http://nodiet4me.com/health_products .
--------------------
NOTE: You have the author's permission to use this article, in its entirety,
on your website, in your ezine, or in print, as long as you leave all text, links,
and the "About the Author" section intact.
This Article has been viewed 396 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
No comments yet.We want your comments! If you can read this, you don't have javascript enabled, so you can't use this comment system. Please enable javascript.