I’m watching Casablanca for the second time this week. It had been about 20 years since I saw it last. I have a memory from the first time I watched it of a scene in which a young woman is leaving Captain Renault’s office in tears and then we see a satisfied, smiling Renault buttoning up his jacket, the implication being that he had extorted sexual favors from the woman.
Yet I haven’t seen this scene in the film this week. Did I imagine this scene? There are numerous references in the film to such extortions by Renault. So did that generate a false memory on my part? Or for some reason, have I just overlooked it in my recent viewing? Or could there be multiple versions of the film?
Renault didn’t consumate a relationship with her. He was going to at sometime in the immediate future, but Bogey thwarted this.
While I’ve perhaps watched this movie 50 times or more, I don’t remember Renault fiddling with his clothes, but I trust your description. I think it was a false memory, since you say it wasn’t in your viewing this week.
I think you are confusing it with the scene of the young woman talking to Ric about her husband, who has been losing money at the gambling tables, and asking if she did something bad and her husband never knew about it, would it ruin their lives? The implication was that someone was offering to pay her for sex.
Ric saves the day by allowing the woman’s husband to win a couple times and then chases him away from the roulette table.
Later, you see Capt. Renault buttoning his jacket as he insinuates that Ric just ruined a chance he had - the implication being that HE was the man who was going to pay that woman for sex.
Very subtle, and quick, but that is the only scene I can remember, and I have seen the film at least 100 times, if not more.
I believe this book, Casablanca Behind the Scenes, describes the scene you mention. See Page 108, paragraph beginning The final script: Renault is talking to Strasser when his (Renault’s) aide comes in and says “Another visa problem has come up.” **Strasser smirks while Renault straightens his uniform and says “Show her in.” **
This demonstrates that most or all of Renault’s “visa problems” are women, and that this is well known to and condoned by Strasser. Renault’s “straightening his uniform” is shorthand for primping to make himself look good for his lady caller, whom he expects to seduce to solve her visa problem. This also sets up the scene DMark is describing, which I agree you may be conflating with this one. When the desperate Bulgarian couple enter the scene, we already are aware of Renault’s indiscretions, so it doesn’t have to be spelled out for us.
The Bulgarian woman directly asks Rick if Captain Renault will keep his word. Rick answers “He always has.”
“Captain Renault sees us, and he is so kind. He wants to help us.” This is before she goes into the part about doing the bad thing. Later, Rick instructs Emil to fix the roulette game, and the couple give Renault their winnings.
Renault to Rick: “Why do you interfere with my little romances? . . . I’ll forgive you this time but I’ll be in tomorrow night with a breathtaking blonde. And it’ll make me very happy if she loses.”
It couldn’t be clearer that Renault expected her to sleep with him in exchange for the visas, but done so subtly that it won approval by the censors.
Yes. I think this was the origin of my phony memory. Together with the later scene in which the Bulgarian girl is weeping at the idea of having to submit to Renault.
Does that mean that Favre does women on, or that he does not? The former would be hardly surprising: After all, he’s a superb physical specimen, and he’s got a lot of money (both of which are, in general, aphrodisiacs).
Claude Rains had six marriages: five ended in divorce and the sixth with the death of his wife. So plenty of women found him sexy enough to marry but not to be married to.
