Why do I like this power-rapist?

Beria, the villain from The Death of Stalin, uses his political power to sleep with desperate women, and I hate him for it. In Casablanca, Louis does pretty much the same thing. But I like him. What gives?

First there’s the casting. Claude Rains is so charming.

Then there’s the tone. Casablanca jokes about Louis’s “little romances.” I’m supposed to think his behavior is funny, and so I do. Swept up in the spell of the movie, I accept and enjoy what would repulse me in ordinary life—just as I enjoy warfare in movies but would hate to see a real battlefield.

But it seems to me the key difference between Beria and Louis is how each feels about women. Beria laughs at their pain; he’s a sociopath. Louis enjoys their company. His attitude is, “My dear madam, I have something you want, and you have something I want. Let’s be French about this and have fun while using each other.” And even though his attitude is purely selfish… well… the hard truth is… I kind of enjoy selfishness mixed with a sense of fun. I like a charming scoundrel.

But not a sociopath.

What’s the takeaway from all this? When creating a character, you don’t need to make him moral for the audience to love him. The important thing is his attitude.