300 Reviews

I like old movies. I like old movies for many reasons, some of which are: for their sincerity (for the optimistic sort, see Top Hat with its ludicrously rose-colored glasses); because their direction & cinematography is often strikingly artistic; and (most importantly for the purposes of this review) because the dialogue to be found therein is often pleasurably, wonderfully snappy.

Snappy: from the German snappen “to snap”, “quick movement”, etc.: snappy! Dialogue which is snappy moves quickly back & forth between characters; snappy conversations are often fun but are not necessarily always lighthearted. Take the following example, from Casablanca. Rick & Captain Renault are discussing (at about the 2:00 mark) why Rick is in Casablanca when Bogart delivers a classic:

CR: Then what in heaven’s name brought you to Casablanca?
R: My health. I came to Casablanca for the waters.
CR: The waters? What waters? We’re in the desert.
R: I was misinformed.

This is obviously very funny, but it’s also wry & intelligent: as an American stranded in Vichy Casablanca, Rick is bemoaning his lot in as pleasant a way as possible. In addition, because he avoids explicitly discussing – with an enemy official, mind you – why exactly he’s in Casablanca, Rick lets us know that he’s “got a story.” By bringing up Casablanca’s nonexistent waters, Rick both changes the conversation’s topic and tells Renault that he’s not going to tell him (Renault) how he (Rick) ended up there.

But the larger point is the emphasis on the writing here – not just writing for plot’s sake, but writing for writing’s sake. The repartee created by the rhythm of the short sentences (which feature a lot of repetition) is lovely: conversation as poem, as a form of art. Per Truman Capote: conversation should be dialogue, not monologue.

-Kevin O’Rourke

Tags: Bogart, Capote, Casablanca, Dialogue, German, Kevin O'Rourke, Top Hat