the american spirit

An interesting post on Cinematical:

What film best captures the American spirit?

I knew my answer instantly (interestingly, no one else at the time of this writing offered this yet):

Casablanca

Sure, it takes place in Africa, features La Marseillaise in its most stirring scene, has only three American natives (Bogart, Wilson, and Joy Page) out of a credited cast of fourteen, and was directed by a Hungarian — heck, even Jack Warner was Canadian. But that's the point: all those émigrés came to America to make what is not only the most iconic Hollywood movie of all time, but the one which, out of all the great classics, is the most collaborative — the shining example of how a movie can be more than the sum of its parts, just as we all hope America is more than just the sum of its people.

It has all the elements of iconic America: Rick working his way to the top of Casablanca society from nothing; Sam a barely-emancipated sidekick to Rick and Ilsa — Casablanca is black & white on so many levels; standing up for what you think is right no matter what the personal sacrifices involved; and most of all, the hope that deep inside even the most cynical misanthrope lies a good human being.

Like the "Obama mandate", Casablanca may not accurately reflect reality, nor represent every American's view of what's right, but for many it holds the power to inspire that we all need every now and again to get through the hard times.