To Have and Have Not (1944)

• Year: 1944
• Released: 20 Jan 1945
• Country: United States
• Adwords: 3 wins
• IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0037382/
• Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/to_have_and_have_not
• Metacritics: https://www.metacritic.com/movie/to-have-and-have-not
• Available in: 720p, 1080p,
• Language: English, French
• MPA Rating: Passed
• Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Film-Noir
• Runtime: 100 min
• Writer: Ernest Hemingway, Jules Furthman, William Faulkner
• Director: Howard Hawks
• Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Walter Brennan
• Keywords: noir, island, nazi, singer, alcoholic,

	7.8/10
	90/100
	97% – Critics
	90% – Audience

To Have and Have Not Storyline

The tense situation in Nazi occupied France also hits the French colony Martinique in the Caribbean. In its capital Fort de France an American sea captain, Harry Morgan, has some trouble with the local authorities, who is all the time spying on possible collaborators of the resistance movement. But Harry Morgan is a recluse, who doesn’t want to be involved in anything. He keeps all persons at a distance, except the alcoholic sailor Eddie, who he cares for. A young woman, Marie Browning, age 22, moves into Hotel Marquis in the room opposite his. She immediately captures his interest, and she is also affected by him. Morgan thinks this isn’t a proper milieu for a young woman, and wants to help her get back home. To be able to pay her flight ticket, he contacts the resistance movement, saying he accepts transporting two persons from Anguilla to Martinique with his fishing boat in the night, if he is well paid. During the operation they are spotted by a patrol boat, but Morgan extinguishes their lantern by a gunshot, and slips away with his boat. Next morning Sûreté Nationale, the French equivalent to Gestapo, suspects Morgan for being the one who brought two resistance fighters to Martinique and tries to press him to reveal their hiding place.

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To Have and Have Not Movie Reviews

Excellent dialog but hindered by its similarity to CASABLANCA

Just a couple years earlier, Humphrey Bogart starred in what was probably his best film, CASABLANCA. In order to cash in on the success of this film, a story by Ernest Hemingway was re-written in a way that made it seem an awful lot like like a sequel to CASABLANCA. Sure, Bogie’s name was changed and Lauren Bacall was now his co-star, but the overall plot of the film of a jaded American who, down deep, is sympathetic to the Free French cause is once again here. Because this is such a derivative film, it loses a point or two in its rating.

Despite this extreme similarity, the film STILL is a wonderful old film due to great acting and a well-paced story. However, for me the biggest standout was Lauren Bacall and the wonderful dialog written for her. She is a wonderful “Film Noir”-like lady–a fast-talking, snappy dialog-spewing “dame” who really helped make the film come alive (though it was NOT technically a Noir film). Again and again and again, she had GREAT lines–not just the “you know how to whistle?” line, but all throughout the film. For fans of classic Hollywood, this film is a must and is among Bogart’s better films.

A must whistle for

A great director such as Howard Hawks directing. Humphrey Bogart, deservedly a screen icon, in the male lead role. Lauren Bacall in her film debut, which signalled the start of a legendary teaming. That it was based on an Ernest Hemmingway novel, and one of his most difficult to adapt ones as well. The comparisons to ‘Casablanca’, one of my all time favourite films, were enough to make me want to see it. Being a big fan of film, of all decades and genres, of the “golden age” and overall.

Was not disappointed in any shape or form. Not as great as ‘Casablanca’, but would have been a tall order, and as an adaptation of Hemmingway it is not exactly faithful to put it mildly, though the novel is far from Hemmingway at his best. On its own merits though ‘To Have and Have Not’ was a joy to watch and a must for Bogart and Bacall fans individually and also if one loves them together, as ‘To Have and Have Not’ is one of the quintessentials of theirs. This may cause uproar, but to me this is a rare case of the film being better than the source material.

The studio backlot sets are not exactly refined, though at the same time they were far from amateurish. The photography is truly gorgeous and more than makes up for them.

And it could have gotten going a little quicker, though mostly the pacing was fine and the cast and script carry it along brilliantly.

Hawks’ directing is accomplished and sharp and he doesn’t make it go over-the-top. One never gets either the sense that he was slumming it, and highly doubt in real life he was. While not quite one of the the all-time great screen performances (his Rick Blaine in ‘Casablanca’ does fit under that distinction though), Bogart still gives a performance that is among his best with it playing to his strengths as an actor. Bacall absolutely smoulders in her film debut and it is hard to believe actually it was her first film, few actresses before or since epitomised sultriness as much as she. Her chemistry with Bogart signalled the start of one of cinema’s most legendary pairings, on and off (very like Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy), and just crackles here on screen.

Support is marvellous, especially from Walter Brennan, very funny and loveable and there is a very good reason as to why he was a Hawks favourite and was a scene stealer whenever he worked with him. Hoagy Carmichael also adds a lot. Another big star, as indicated earlier on, is the script, which is full of a wonderful wit and edge. With some of the lines being very quotable and going down in history, especially the “do you know how to whistle…” (the quintessential Bacall line perhaps). The score is as lush as one expects from Franz Waxman without being overdone. The story is slight and fairly standard but the wit, emotion and dark tension ensures that it is seldom dull, a big highlight being Bacall’s singing in a scene with Carmichael.

In conclusion, great and a must watch. Bogart and Bacall went on to do even better later but as one can tell that is hardly knocking them and their chemistry here, a long way from it. 9/10

Whistling On Martinique

The screen adaption of Ernest Hemingway’s To Have and Have Not enjoys its place in cinematic history because it is the first screen teaming of Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. Turns out to have been a personal milestone for the both of them as well.

I was watching my VHS copy of To Have and Have Not today and included was the movie trailer and in it Warner Brothers announced it was introducing two exciting new screen personalities, Lauren Bacall and Dolores Moran. Ms. Moran was pretty enough and gave a nice performance as the wife of the resistance leader, but some careers take off and some don’t. Didn’t hurt Lauren that she married her leading man either.

The location of our story is Martinique right after the fall of France in 1940. As a French colonial possession Martinique fell into the hands of the Vichy collaborationist government. They didn’t get free of them until 1943, months after the Germans occupied all of France in November of 1942.

Humphrey Bogart is an expatriate American along the lines of his Richard Blaine character in Casablanca. He doesn’t own a swank nightclub, he’s just got a charter fishing boat that lives on and runs with an alcoholic pal, Walter Brennan. But like in Casablanca, a shooting in a nightclub of his client Walter Sande gets him involved with the local Vichy police and the politics of the island.

It also gets him involved with Lauren Bacall who’s just looking for a way to get back to the USA. She’s not above a little light fingered action to help herself, but all that does is get her introduced to Bogey. And their sizzling scenes made cinematic history.

To Have and Have Not is fortunate to have the presence of Hoagy Carmichael one of the greatest musical talents America ever produced. He plays Cricket, the club piano player and he sings and plays Hong Kong Blues one of his greatest songs. Hoagy also wrote for this film, How Little We Know, which Bacall sings for her supper.

Dan Seymour and Sheldon Leonard play a couple of especially smarmy Vichy police officials. They have the upper hand until the very end when tables get turned rather suddenly. The only two film I’ve ever seen something turn that quickly is John Ford’s Wagonmaster and the Richard Widmark police drama, Madigan. You can only push Bogey just so far.

Even in revivals today when Lauren Bacall tells Bogey all he need do is whistle and she’ll come running, the whistles of affection will go up in theater. As well they should.