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The Casablanca Effect and Its Obverse
I suppose I need to start by explaining what I mean by “the Casablanca Effect”. It’s not my idea or term. A decade or so ago, I read an article by an author whose name I can’t recall who described what he termed “the Casablanca Effect” referencing the classic 1942 movie. He described how both he and his brother (separately) had heard and read for years how great the movie Casablanca was, and when he and his brother (separately) eventually saw the movie, it more than lived up to expectations. When they became aware of each other’s experience they gave it the Casablanca Effect moniker, something which comes highly recommended (a movie, a book, a restaurant, a location, anything really) and lives up to expectations.
Some years earlier, I’d had a similar experience (just 180 degrees out of phase) with a sibling – my sister. One year at Thanksgiving we decided to watch Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Neither of us had ever seen the movie, but we’d both heard only good things about it. It had been nominated for several 
Academy Awards and had won a couple, its theme song was a well-deserved staple, film critics then and now all seemed to have nothing but good things to say about it, it was directed by Blake Edwards of Pink Panther fame, and it starred Audrey Hepburn. What could go wrong? However, when we watched the movie we both had the same thought: what a letdown! This movie not only doesn’t live up to the hype, it’s really just kind of a bad picture. The highlight of the movie is probably the opening sequence.
From there, the movie slides rapidly downhill. There’s no real plot to speak of. Holly Golightly (Ms. Hepburn’s character) is looking to marry a rich man when she becomes friends with Paul Varjak (played by George Peppard) a struggling writer who has just moved into her building. The main characters are neither very interesting nor much worth caring about either. She’s essentially a high-end prostitute who uses people, is unsympathetic and full of vapid thoughts, while Mr. Varjak is a gigolo, the kept man of an older married woman, although he has enough self-respect to dislike the situation. Even the minor characters add little of value to the story. The Buddy Ebsen character is just downright creepy and pathetic, while the Japanese landlord of their building (played over the top by Mickey Rooney with every possible negative stereotype of the Japanese) has not aged well to put it charitably. In fact, the Rooney character is about the only thing modern critics see fit to criticize the movie. But then again, his character existed for the sole purpose of comic relief in a movie labeled a romantic comedy and, while there are bits of romance in the story finding the comedy in the story is a more difficult task.
I mentioned Ms. Golightlys’ unsympathetic nature above. Let me illustrate my point by posting the final scene of the movie in which she kicks her cat out of the taxi in the middle of New York City. Tell me who would treat their own cat so poorly?
Well, I didn’t mean to write a movie review, something I’m not very adept at. In fact, I (and I’m sure you the reader as well) would much rather hear what @titustechera or @jameslileks have to say on the topic. The purpose was to explain the Casablanca Effect and its opposite and to ask the good members here at Ricochet if they’ve ever experienced “the Casablanca Effect” or its obverse, and if so feel free to tell us about it. Again, the Casablanca Effect can be about anything – a locale, a person, an event. – you name it.
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Clint should never have sung a song.
Lee Marvin wasn’t so bad. Neither was Harve Presnell
They Call the Wind Maria
Clint wasn’t so bad, the song was pitiful.
I felt the Casablanca Effect with:
1. “Casablanca “
2.”The Philadelphia Story”
3. “Diner”
4.Arizona
5. Utah
6. Jerusalem (and Israel)
I was hit with the Reverse Casablanca Effect by:
1. “American Beauty”
2. “Out of Africa “
3. “Curb Your Enthusiasm “
4. “Saving Private Ryan”
For some reason, Stephen King’s novellas, or short stories, translate into better movies than his novels.
I loved The Shawshank Redemption, which was a novella in Different Seasons (Rita Hayworth and The Shawshank Redemption). Different Seasons also included The Body (the movie was the most excellent Stand by Me).
The Green Mile is a terrific movie. The book was originally written as a serial novel, released chapter by chapter.
I had originally assumed the obverse effect was something reputed to be terrible but is in fact worse. In that category
The Star Wars Christmas Special
Hmm… positive examples, most of those I get from literature. If you go back to the great books you can see both sides of the effect. Can’t say that your list is going to agree with mine, but:
Positive:
And on the other side:
Life’s too short for long, poorly-written political polemics.
Yeah, well, I didn’t get where I am today by not testing things thoroughly.
Actually, that seems like an argument against.
Philistines!
I’m too shallow to qualify as a Philistine.
I’ll stick up for Breakfast at Tiffany’s, much-maligned here. I’m not asking anyone to fall in love with it; it’s a presage of the 60s, which for vast numbers of Americans meant running away from family, usually to hip cities. It’s an overtly romanticized version of tragedy, as the third act shows. It’s America–people with fantasies of aristocracy risk worse than disappointment–they might end up selling themselves to be abused. This, of course, happens in every generation since entertainment industries have arrived in America. People love the stuff; they don’t much care how the sausage is made.
This movie, too, was popular, made quite a lot of money. Tiffany’s was of course more than flattered to be glamorized by the movies in this new, democratic mood. They opened doors wide. Then came the awards accolades. It was very modern at the time–nobody paid attention to the misery the story is concealing. In a way, it’s middle America that should be taking a bow, since the whole resolution of the movie depends on young people realizing there’s nothing as reliable as decency. Like everyone in America, our protagonists learn that love is better than glamour–they learn to live up to their sense of shame.
You have to have some sympathy for young people who don’t have roots; some sympathy for all-American restlessness leading people to kick the can down the road; for the excitement of big city life. Then you might think all the lovely imagery & Audrey Hepburn are supposed to gentle passions that could easily become harsh, as they later did, for more than a decade…
John Ford Westerns & Akira Kurosawa samurai movies–there, too, great reputation is constantly exceeded by the reality!
I certainly agree with you regarding John Ford Westerns.
The Casablanca Effect I have experienced with:
The Seven Samurai- and the film still impresses me every time I see it again. We used to watch it once every year but have since gotten out of the habit.
Cocteau’s Beauty and the Beast- the special effects for 1946 are at times startling, even breath-taking. The film is terrific and exceeded my hyped expectations.
Citizen Kane- the movie that taught Americans how to make movies.
The anti-Casablanca Effect:
Every film by Robert Altman
No, it’s not.
I’ll work on the other half-
Great minds think alike.
My opinion in toto:
Well, not if one is the one writing them.
I wasn’t that fond of The Fountainhead, but Atlas Shrugged was OK.
That scene turned me off of the whole movie.
I’ll go out on a limb here & suggest we become somewhat less sentimental about pets!
Looking through the comments, I don’t think anyone’s posted anything about the Casablanca Effect & music – a song, a composer, or a performer. I guess I’m a little surprised by that, but only a little. For example, with popular music, it’s likely one has heard the song a time or two and has their own opinion about the song or the artist regardless of what the critics or others may say.
And from Literature, my examples of the Casablanca effect:
A Portrait of the Artist as Young Man
Macbeth, Hamlet and the Henry IV-V cycle
The Lost World (Conan Doyle, not Crichton)
Njal’s Saga
Parzival (Wolfram von Eschenbach)
And the anti-Casablanca Effect:
Ulysses
King Lear, Othello
Stranger in a Strange Land
The Magic Mountain (Thomas Mann)
This could be a category on its own: Movies We Loved in College – Before We Grew Up.
My #1 in this category would be Billy Jack. Saw it as a college sophomore and thought it was the coolest movie ever. Saw it a decade later and realized it was a laughable piece of junk. Positively awful.
I would add the Biltmore Mansion to that list.
-Beyonce. I just do not get the adulation. I can see she’s beautiful, and I get why people would want to look at her. But her voice is not that great, it’s breathy and superficial; or, as my old voice teacher would say, she uses her “head voice” not her “diaphragm voice,” and the songs she records are horrible, and they sound like she’s making them up as she goes along. (“To the left, to the left”? NO.) Just terrible.
-Katy Perry. She doesn’t sing. She shouts. And one of the most annoying personas out there today. Great boobs can take you only so far. Just awful.