Casablanca Reaction

To me, a great movie requires a captivating opening scene. It's what draws me in and what connects me to the characters. If the opening scene is hard to follow or doesn't retain my interest, the rest of the movie is likely to do the same. This movie had a poor opening scene (in my opinion, of course). I didn't understand what was going on in the tavern and I had a hard time following the path of the camera. Bogart's character seemed naive and bored me to death. His monotone voice and lack of enthusiasm left me spacing out half the movie. I was actually surprised this movie had garnered such critical acclaim; perhaps it was because I am not used to movies of the era, but I could not connect at all. There were a few saving graces, though. The ending was well done and the acting of Signor Ferarri was great.