Citation:

Blakley, Johanna. "Propaganda, Pop Culture & Public Diplomacy.” Warner’s War: Politics, Pop Culture & Propaganda in Wartime Hollywood 73-77.

In the book entitled Warner’s War: Politics, Pop Culture & Propaganda in Wartime Hollywood, Johanna Blakley discusses the influence the Warner Bros. studio had during the wartime and how its films and cartoons influenced public opinion and war sentiment during the time.  In this chapter, Blakley specifically talks about the Warner Brothers studio and how it was deeply entrenched in the pro-war movement by creating pro-war, patriotic, and antifascist films and cartoons.  The article briefly talks about how Casablanca was a prime example in which Warner Bros. used a romantic theme as a stage for propagandistic undertones which supported aiding the Allied European powers.  As a whole, the article demonstrates Warner Brother’s clear intention of spreading propaganda which supported the antifascist movement.  This is important because it establishes a clear connection between a pro-war studio and Casablanca.  This ultimately demonstrates that the studio intended to have propagandistic undertones in its film.   

Citation:

Crowther, Bosley. "'Casablanca' With Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman." New York Times 27 November 1942.

This is the original film review from the New York Times written on November 27, 1942 after the film’s release.  This review, unlike the myriad of reviews on the films, gives the unique perspective of an erudite audience of that specific time period.  The reviewer not only heralds the film as one of the greatest of all times, but remarks about its unique story and subtle tendencies.  He demonstrates how Warner uses the action-packed thrill of the setting to enhance the romantic overtone to the film.  Most importantly, the author describes how the film contained a strong political message.  He writes that the film “inject[ed] a cold point of tough resistance to evil forces afoot in Europe today”.  With this statement, it is apparent that the film was viewed as a propagandistic tool of the war effort.  Its antifascist undertone and subliminal support for aiding the European cause against the Nazis is clearly demonstrated and understood at the time.  This further shows how the film was viewed not only as a great romantic drama film, but also a powerful piece of propaganda that influenced its audiences.