OVERLAY REPORT

The plot of the 1942 classic *Casablanca* is set in motion by a sequence of criminal acts and political maneuvers that converge at Rick’s Café Américain. These events transform the setting from a simple transit point for refugees into a high-stakes focal point of the European resistance. The following specific actions start the plot in motion: ### 1. The Murder of the German Couriers The inciting incident occurs off-screen but is reported in the film's opening moments. Two German couriers traveling on a train from Oran are murdered. This act of violence immediately brings the Nazi presence to Casablanca in the form of **Major Heinrich Strasser**, who arrives to oversee the investigation. ### 2. The Theft of the "Letters of Transit" The couriers were carrying two **letters of transit**. These documents are the "MacGuffin" of the film—the plot device that everyone desires. Unlike standard visas, which are subject to delay and scrutiny, these letters were purportedly signed by **General de Gaulle** (though some versions of the script and historical analysis suggest General Weygand, the film's dialogue explicitly names de Gaulle). They allow the bearer to travel freely through German-occupied Europe to neutral Lisbon, Portugal, and are "absolutely beyond question." ### 3. Ugarte Entrusts the Letters to Rick A petty criminal named **Ugarte** (played by Peter Lorre) reveals to Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart) that he is the one who killed the couriers and stole the letters. He plans to sell them to a high-profile buyer for a fortune. Because the police are closing in, Ugarte asks Rick—who famously "sticks his neck out for nobody"—to hide the documents for him. Rick hides them inside the upright piano played by his house musician, **Sam**. ### 4. The Arrest of Ugarte To impress the arriving Major Strasser, the corrupt Vichy Prefect of Police, **Captain Louis Renault**, stages a theatrical arrest of Ugarte inside Rick’s café. Ugarte is taken into custody (where he is later killed), leaving the letters of transit hidden in Rick's possession. This places the cynical, "neutral" Rick at the center of a dangerous political game. ### 5. The Arrival of Victor Laszlo and Ilsa Lund The final action that fully engages the plot is the arrival of **Victor Laszlo**, a renowned Czech resistance leader, and his wife, **Ilsa Lund** (Ingrid Bergman). They have come to Casablanca specifically to find the letters of transit to escape to America. **The Personal Catalyst:** The plot shifts from a political thriller to a personal drama the moment Rick sees Ilsa. She is the woman who broke his heart by abandoning him in Paris years earlier. This creates the film's central conflict: Rick now holds the only means of escape for the man the Nazis want to capture and the woman he still loves.