To Have and Have Not (1944)
To Have and Have Not is a 1944 romance-war-adventure film. It was directed by Howard Hawks and starred Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, in her first film. Although it is nominally based on the novel of the same name by Ernest Hemingway, the story was extensively altered for the film.
The film is set in Fort de France, Martinique, under the Vichy regime in the summer of 1940, shortly after the fall of France. In this exotic location, the world-weary fishing-boat captain Harry Morgan (Humphrey Bogart) is urged to help the French Resistance smuggle some people onto the island. He refuses, until the client, Johnson (Walter Sande), who has been hiring out his fishing boat (and owes him $825) is shot before paying him.
The hotel owner Gerard, commonly known as Frenchy (Marcel Dalio), asks Harry to rent him his boat for one night to transport some members of the resistance. Broke, Harry ends up smuggling Helene (Dolores Moran) and Paul de Bursac (Walter Szurovy). Meanwhile, a romance develops between Harry and Marie Browning (Lauren Bacall), an American wanderer who has come to the island.
After picking up his passengers, Harry is spotted by a patrol boat, and Paul is wounded before they escape. Harry is surprised to find that Marie has stayed in Martinique to be with him. At Frenchy's request, Harry removes the bullet from Bursac's shoulder and learns that the de Bursacs have been assigned to help a man escape from Devil's Island. Bursac asks for Harry's assistance, but Harry turns him down.
Later, the police, who have recognized Harry's boat the previous night, reveal that they have Harry's alcoholic buddy, Eddie (Walter Brennan), in custody and will coerce him to tell the truth about the boat's cargo. At gunpoint, Harry forces Police Captain Renard (Dan Seymour) to arrange for Eddie's release and sign harbor passes, so that he can take the Bursacs to Devil's Island. Slim says goodbye to her piano-playing friend Cricket (Hoagy Carmichael). As soon as Eddie returns, he, Harry, and Marie leave Martinique.
NY TIMES Review published October 12, 1944 ' To Have and Have Not,' With Humphrey Bogart, at the Hollywood -- Arrival of Other New Films at Theatres Here By BOSLEY CROWTHER Published: October 12, 1944
Having once cornered Humphrey Bogart in a Casablanca café and beheld his tremendous potential in that sultry and colorful spot, it was logical that the Warners should have wanted to get him there again—or in some place of similar nature, where the currents would flow much the same. A fellow like Mr. Bogart needs a well-coupled circuit, you know. Well, the desire has been accomplished with surprisingly comparable effect in Howard Hawks' production for that studio. "To Have and Have Not," which came to the Hollywood yesterday.
Maybe they say that the story is based on Ernest Hemingway's tale of the same name, and maybe the locale is visually French Martinique four years ago. But there's no use dodging around it: "To Have and Have Not" is "Casablanca" moved west into the some-what less hectic Caribbean but along the same basic parallel. And, although there are surface alterations in some of the characters, you will meet here substantially the same people as in that other geo-political romance.
For what Mr. Hawks and his script-writers have done to Mr. Hemingway's tale is to shape it out of all recognition into a pattern of worldly intrigue. Now the professional sports fisherman, who was a brute in the original, is a much more tractable fellow where human destinies are involved, and especially is he open to persuasion when a fascinating female waves in. And thus, while pursuing his profession in the region of Martinique, he is coerced to fish in the deep waters of pro and anti-Vichy lawlessness by the push of his own moral suasion and the lure of a very fetching girl.
There is much more character than story in the telling of this tough and tight-lipped tale, and much more atmosphere than action of the usual muscular sort. And that—as was true with "Casablanca"—is generally just as well. For Mr. Bogart is best when his nature is permitted to smoulder in the gloom and his impulse to movement is restricted by a caution bred of cynical doubt. And those are his dispositions which Mr. Hawks has chiefly worked on in this film. As the hard-boiled professional fisherman who gives his ample ingenuity to a cause, Mr. Bogart is almost as impressive as he was as Rick, the Casablanca host.
And as the wistful bird of passage who moves dauntlessly into his life, Lauren Bacall, a blondish newcomer, is plainly a girl with whom to cope. Slumberous of eye and softly reedy along the lines of Veronica Lake, she acts in the quiet way of catnip and sings a song from deep down in her throat. Accompanied by Hoagy Carmichael, who plays a sweetly sleazy pianist in this film, she mumbles a song of his composing, "How Little We Know," in perfect low-down barroom style. Mr. Carmichael himself also does grandly by a sort of calypso song, which is strictly in keeping with the rambling and melancholy atmosphere.
Dan Seymour is powerfully sinister as a hyper-thyroid gunman for Vichy, and Walter Brennan gives an affecting performance (albeit pointless) as a drunk. A good many other ratty characters move in and out of the film—apparently the ones who kept on going when they passed through Casablanca some time back.
Synopsis
In Fort de France, Martinique, in the summer of 1940, shortly after the fall of France to the Germans, an American named Johnson hires professional fisherman Harry Morgan to take him fishing on Morgan's boat. Johnson complains about the cost of the expedition and the onboard presence of Eddie, a drunk, and Horatio, a native. Refusing to listen to Harry's instructions, Johnson loses a rod and reel belonging to Harry. Fed up with Johnson, Harry cancels the rest of the trip and insists that Johnson pay him for the lost equipment as well as his fees for the past week. Johnson promises to pay what he owes after the banks open the next morning. Back in Fort de France, bartender Gerard, commonly known as Frenchy, asks Harry to rent him his boat for one night to transport some members of the resistance underground, but Harry refuses to become involved in Frenchy's political activities. Later, in the hotel bar, Harry sees attractive young Marie Browning pick Johnson's pocket, and when she leaves the bar, he follows her and demands that she return the wallet. Harry checks the wallet and is surprised to see that it contains enough money in traveler's cheques to pay his fees and that Johnson's plane leaves early the next morning before the banks open. After Marie, whom Harry has dubbed Slim, returns the wallet to the indignant Johnson, Harry insists that he sign some of the cheques, but before Johnson can complete this task, he is killed by gunshots from the street directed at Frenchy's allies. The police detain some of the customers, including Frenchy, Marie and Harry, for questioning. Later that night, Marie tells Harry that she is tired of her footloose life and would like to settle down. In order to earn enough money to put himself back in business and help Marie, Harry agrees to pick up Frenchy's friends. Before he leaves, he buys Marie a ticket on the plane leaving that afternoon for the United States. After picking up Helene and Paul De Bursac, Harry is spotted by a patrol boat, and Paul is wounded before they escape. Harry is surprised to find that Marie stayed in Martinique to be with him. At Frenchy's request, Harry removes the bullet from De Bursac's shoulder and learns that the De Bursacs have been assigned to help a man escape from Devil's Island. De Bursac asks for Harry's assistance, but Harry turns him down. Later, the police, who recognized Harry's boat the previous night, reveal that they have Eddie in custody and will coerce him to tell the truth about the boat's cargo. At gunpoint, Harry forces the police to arrange for Eddie's release and sign harbor passes, so that he can take the De Bursacs to Devil's Island. After Eddie returns, he, Harry and Marie leave Martinique for a more committed life together.
Cast & Crew
Howard Hawks Director Humphrey Bogart as Harry Morgan Walter Brennan as Eddie Lauren Bacall as Marie Browning, also known as Slim Dolores Moran as Helene De Bursac Hoagy Carmichael as Crickett Sheldon Leonard as Lieutenant Coyo Walter Molnar as Paul De Bursac Marcel Dalio as Gerard, also known as Frenchy Walter Sande as Johnson Dan Seymour as Captain Renard Aldo Nadi as Renard's bodyguard
Release Date 20 Jan 1945 Color/BW Black and White Sound Mono (RCA Sound System) Production Dates 29 Feb--10 May 1944 Duration (in mins) 100-101 Premiere Information New York opening: 11 Oct 1944 Distribution Company Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc. Production Company Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc. Company: Howard Hawks Country United States