Far East (1982) is another in the growing ranks of interesting new sub genre of Films. That is, it's another remake of the famous 1942 film Casablanca starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman as Rick Blaine and Ilsa Lazlo. Far East joins the ranks of Casablanca remakes along with Cuba (1979), which starred Sean Connery and Brooke Adams and Caboblanco (starring Charles Bronson). But it is this Australian production set in what I presume to be Manila (in the Philippines) which is the most faithful to the original. Instead of Humphrey Bogart playing Rick Blaine the ex-pat American owner of "Rick's Café Américain" we have Bryan Brown playing Morgan Keefe as an ex-pat Aussie who owns a bar/nightspot called "The Koala Klub". "The Koala Klub" has a piano but no Sam to play it, I guess they don't remember that, so they make do with disco on the hi-fi. But it doesn't matter; this is in no way the swanky diggs like "Rick's", "The Koala Klub" caters only to assorted local and imported sleaze. All is right with the world, at least as far as can be in a corrupt backwater like Manila, when as they say "Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, SHE walks into mine" she is Helen Morse in this case. Morse plays Jo Reeves an old Acquaintance of Morgan's. Her husband is an investigative reporter doing good deeds just like our Czech underground leader Victor Lazlo. But the local military government gives the Lazlo's... I mean the Reeves nothing but grief. So it's up to Rick... that is its up to Morgan to smooth things over for them. The final plane scene isn't a plane scene it's a boat scene, and there isn't a "beautiful friendship" that starts after the plane... I mean boat takes off. But it's Casablanca all right. Well, it is if you squint and if you've had a little too much gin. You must remember this? As time goes by... we appreciate the original more and more.
