To Have and Have Not

To Have and Have Not is . . . about losers."—Bruce Kawin

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What Faulkner did . . . was to figure out the staging of the scenes—the evidence of the facing doorways, which made for the casualness as of these encounters

What Faulkner did . . . was to figure out the staging of the scenes—the evidence of the facing doorways, which made for the casualness of these encounters

To Have and Have Not (Blu-ray)
Review by Neil Lumbard | posted August 1, 2016
To Have and Have Not is a romantic adventure film from acclaimed filmmaker Howard Hawks (The Big Sleep). The film was based upon the novel written by Ernest Hemingway. Jack L. Warner (Casablanca, The Big Sleep, My Fair Lady), one of the original Brothers Warner, executive produced the film.

Set during World War II and taking place within the French colony of Martinique, Harry Morgan (Humphrey Bogart) is a small-time sailboat tourist guide (with only the aid of Eddie (Walter Brennan) as his help). Harry starts helping smuggle French resistance members to a nearby island while starting a romance with a lounge singer named Marie 'Slim' Browning (Lauren Bacall). Over the course of the film, Harry has a variety of misadventures with the resistance while falling head over heels in love. Harry can't seem to resist Marie's charm and her lovely voice.

As in the film itself, a romance was beginning. To Have and Have Not is an important film production for cinema's history books as the first collaboration between actors Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. The pair made many films together over the years and To Have and Have Not was the one that "started it all". It was also the start of Bogart and Bacall's romance on and off screen.

Bogart and Bacall began a romance during production which became famous in Hollywood lore. Though Bogart was married at the time, he divorced and later married Bacall. The relationship which brewed between Bogart and Bacall is regarded as one of the most famous Hollywood romances in history.

The music score by Franz Waxman (Sunset Boulevard, Rebecca, A Place in the Sun) adds a quality element to the production. The music fits the adventurous spirit of much of the film. Both the score and the song numbers (delivered splendidly by Bacall) elevate the material. Without any doubt, the music of the film adds a great deal to the stylistic flourishes of the filmmaking.

Featuring cinematography by Sidney Hickox (The Big Sleep, I Love Lucy, The Andy Griffith Show), To Have and Have Not impresses with its beautiful cinematography. The film is an incredibly beautiful looking film with exquisite black and white photography. The style is especially effective for the darker film-noir style elements sprinkled throughout the story. Hickox did terrific work with this production.

The costume designs by Milo Anderson (The Adventures of Robin Hood, Yankee Doodle Dandy) are stylish and effective. The gowns and costumes on lead stars Bogart and Bacall are especially noteworthy. The style was quite well-suited to these actors and it helped to create an effective atmosphere for the film.

The screenplay was written by Jules Furthman (The Big Sleep, Rio Bravo) and William Faulkner (The Big Sleep, Today We Live). Faulkner, who is better known for his novels, worked for a period in Hollywood. To Have and Have Not was one of the more renowned productions Faulkner worked on. The script explores the story through a multitude of genres: adventure with splashes of romance, film noir, and plenty of drama.

To Have and Have Not was also significantly different from the novel written by Hemingway. Hawks, who considered himself a fan of the novelist, didn't care as much for the novel that he was adapting (considering it to be one of the writer's "lesser" works). The film was meant to improve upon the novel's story. The story ended up being quite a bit different as a result.

Howard Hawks (The Big Sleep, His Girl Friday, Rio Bravo, Red River) certainly directed a impressive film with To Have and Have Not. It's an entertaining film which features solid performances from both Bogart and Bacall. The film noir element was also a huge aspect directorially. Hawk's direction is superb and the film oozes with style because of his effort directing it. To Have and Have Not is a well-made Hollywood classic which holds up well. Hawks fans and fans of classic Hollywood cinema should certainly make an effort to see it.

The Blu-ray:

Video:

To Have and Have Not arrives on Blu-ray (for the first time) from Warner Archive. The release is presented with a 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded presentation in the original aspect ratio of 1.37:1 full frame. The release also features a stunning 35 mbps bit-rate which allows for an incredibly robust picture.

This is a stunning presentation featuring excellent black and white cinematography. The film noir aspect of the photography looks excellent with this release. Black levels impress as well. The film is a beauty to behold with its new high-definition presentation. The presentation also appears naturally filmic. The release preserves the look of the film and no DNR or other issues are present. The film is also remarkably clean: dust and specks of dirt have been cleaned so that this is a nice and modern presentation.

Audio:

The release is presented with a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono audio presentation. This is an excellent reproduction of the original sound design of the film. The mono soundtrack has been well restored with excellent clarity and a decent sense of fidelity. The dialogue is clear and easy to understand. This is a superb lossless audio presentation of the film. While the fidelity of the audio isn't quite up to the quality of modern films this is an excellent restoration of the original audio.

Subtitles are provided in English SDH (for the deaf and hard of hearing), Spanish, and French.

Extras:

Bacall to Arms (HD, 6 min.) is a 1946 theatrical cartoon short featuring caricatured versions of Bogart and Bacall. The short spoofs To Have and Have Not and re-creates scenes from the film with animation.

A Love Story: The Story of To Have and Have Not (SD, 11 min.) is a featurette containing interviews with film critics and film historians about the production of To Have and Have Not. The famous Hollywood relationship between Bogart and Bacall which began with this film is also discussed.

Lux Radio Broadcast (1 Hr.) is an audio-only radio broadcast performance of To Have and Have Not featuring both Bogart and Bacall.

Theatrical Trailer (HD)

Final Thoughts:

To Have and Have Not is certainly a famous Hollywood production: it was the first of many films to star both Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. During the production of the film, the famous Bogart/Bacall romance began. The chemistry between the two actors is certainly a huge part of the reason why the film works so well. To Have and Have Not is also entertaining and well made. Director Howard Hawks crafted an excellent film with adventure, romance, and drama.

The Warner Archive Blu-ray release presents the film in high-definition with a stunning presentation, quality lossless audio, and a decent assortment of supplements. It's worth purchasing for fans of the film.

Excerpt from A Real American Character: The Life of Walter Brennan

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A far more important role than Thunder, but one that again explored Brennan’s character’s triumph over his own frailties, is the “rummy,” Eddie, in To Have and Have Not (October 11, 1944), starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. In December, 1943, Howard Hawks met with Brennan for a pre-production conference, a sign of the director’s keen desire to get the supporting role exactly right. Brennan’s name in the credits would appear in type 60 percent the size of that used for Bogart, and Goldwyn would get $2,500 a week for the actor’s services during nearly a three-month period that stretched from March to May of 1944. This was now the standard agreement for a Brennan loan out. A month before production began, the Breen office signaled its discomfort with the film’s lack of moral hygiene:

The general unacceptability of this story is emphasized by its overall low tone and by the suggestion that your sympathetic lead, Morgan, is a murderer, who is permitted to go off unpunished. The characters of Morgan, Eddy [sic], Marie, Helen and Amelia should be softened in order to get away from the present “scummy” flavor which their activities throw forth. The scene of the battle between Renardo, Coyo, Morgan and Eddy [sic] should be shot in such a way as to make certain there be no unnecessary brutality or gruesomeness about it. Please omit the words “God-forsaken.”

Surprisingly, the sexually suggestive scene between Bogart and Bacall aroused no objections—except in Ohio. The censor there saw the finished print and was disturbed when Bacall’s comments, “It’s even better when you help,” after Bogart finally kisses her back (her first effort does not seem to stimulate him). Alongside Humphrey Bogart, playing Harry Morgan in Casablanca mode, Eddie behaves as if the self-contained star needs him, even though, as “Slim” (Bacall) tells Morgan, “You wouldn’t take anything from anybody.” What Eddie has to give is affection and loyalty, qualities in short supply in Vichy-controlled Martinique. When Mr. Johnson, who has hired Harry’s fishing boat for a day, says he does not see why Harry keeps “that rummy around.” Harry replies, “Eddie was a good man on a boat before he got to be a rummy.” But why does Harry look after Eddie? Johnson asks. “Is he related to you, or somethin’?” Harry replies, “He thinks he’s looking after me.” In fact, Eddie does think of himself as Harry’s protector, and when Harry kicks Eddie off his boat, Eddie senses Harry is in trouble and stows away. “You can’t fool me,” Eddie tells Harry, who has been trying to keep Eddie—who talks too much—out of trouble. Eddie doesn’t want anything from Harry except some acknowledgment of their bond and another drink, which Morgan carefully rations so that Eddie remains sober enough to do his job aboard Morgan’s boat. Harry at first reluctantly puts the boat at the disposal of a French resistance leader seeking a way out of Nazi-patrolled waters. But Harry does not have much in common with the character in the Hemingway novel the picture is supposedly based on and wants no part of politics. He would prefer to stick to his business as a hired fisherman. But as soon as the Vichy authorities begin to get in Harry’s way, he sides with the Resistance, just as the disaffected Rick does in Casablanca. The shambling walk Brennan perfected for his role suggests a man always on the verge of the shakes. Gerald Mast observes, “Walter Brennan’s quirky, jumpy, jittery performance as Eddie—one of the very best of his very distinguished career—took its cue from a single descriptive sentence in the Hemingway novel: ‘He walked with his joints all slung wrong.’” No other actor in Hollywood could shuffle himself into greatness. The unsteady Eddie seems the last person in the world that Harry should rely on, and yet, in one of the film’s key scenes, Eddie steers the boat straight through the night, enabling Harry to concentrate on outwitting a Vichy patrol boat. Filmed on location, it was not an easy scene to finesse. Walter had trouble with his lines, trying to perfect both his delivery and his jitters. Hawks stopped shooting and conferred with Brennan for about ten minutes before rehearsing the scene again. Still not satisfied, actor and director talked some more about the scene, and then did a take. Brennan, still shaking after Hawks called cut and said it was “fine,” said, “I’ve got ‘em, and not from rum.” Everyone except Slim treats Eddie like a pathetic hanger-on. What she sees is Eddie’s endearing humanity and loyalty to Morgan, whom Slim has, of course, fallen in love with. Eddie, too, loves Morgan, who safeguards his fragile sidekick (Brennan is almost as gaunt here as he was as Old Atrocity), and by doing so makes Eddie strong enough to collaborate in a plot to save the lives of a French Resistance fighter (Walter Szurovy) and his wife (Dolores Moran). Brennan, steering Harry’s boat out of trouble during a shoot-out with Vichy authorities, remains in stride with Bogart and Bacall—memorably so in the film’s last scene, which shows him hobbling in tune to the music heralding the romantic couple’s successful escape from Martinque. Critic Nicholas Spencer observes just how central Brennan’s Eddie is to the ideology of To Have and Have Not, a film that heralds and sanctions America’s entry into World War II: “Harry’s loyalty to Eddie highlights the importance of being true to one’s allies when they are in trouble.” Eddie turns out to be good with a gun and transforms himself, as Spencer notes, from “incompetent alcoholic to freedom fighter.” No other character actor in Hollywood history rivals Brennan in the pivotal roles he played in so many films. In retrospect, at least, Brennan’s role here seems even richer than later critics like Spencer suppose. During a world war, when fascist ideology idealizes strength and ruthlessness, Eddie represents an entirely different worldview and moral code. He is not an example of the survival of the fittest, but instead is a weak man who overcomes the overwhelming odds set against him. A greater failure than any other character Brennan ever played, Eddie draws strength from Harry and is redeemed. He is the common man, the little man, the derelict, the hanger-on, the socially marginal—in short, everything the Nazis deemed worthy of extermination. He is a fool attached to a wise man. Eddie is the underside of society that fascist ideology dismissed as unworthy to exist. He is unhealthy and dependent on charity, and yet he is an indispensable part of the humanity that Harry Morgan cannot detach himself from. Eddie is not beautiful like Bacall, who plays her important part in treating Eddie with decency and even affection, turning Eddie’s querulous refrain, “Was you ever stung by a dead bee?” on Eddie, who then realizes she is on his side. And why not? Bacall, after all, plays a woman who cons men (she is a pickpocket), until she meets a man like Harry who cannot be conned. With her throaty low-pitched voice, Bacall seems, in fact, a feminine Bogart, “tough and taciturn,” as Otis L. Guernsey described the actor in his New York Herald Tribune review (October 12, 1944). Slim loves Harry, in part, because of his attachment to Eddie, not despite it. The scenes between Bacall and Brennan are tender and perhaps influenced by their friendship. In reminiscing about his work, Brennan said little about Bogart, except that he was “all right . . . a nice guy.” They apparently got on well in a joking sort of way. Bogart made fun of Brennan’s drinker’s nose reminiscent of W. C. Fields, and Walter retorted: “There’s a difference. He had fun getting his.” But Walter knew Bacall before Bogart did. When Hawks saw the teenage model Betty Joan Perske on a magazine cover, he wanted to do a screen test with her and Brennan, who explained what happened:
I said, “Why don’t you get one of these guys to take it?” He says, “Well, you’d make her feel at ease.” I said, “Gee, Howard, I don’t know whether Goldwyn

will let me do this.” And Bob McIntyre [Goldwyn’s casting director] called me up, and he had this deep voice, he said, “You can’t do that. We got to pay you.” I said, “Well, I’m going to do it for nothing. I’ll do it for Howard Hawks.” And so I did it. She really shook. If you ever get to talk to her, she’ll tell you how she shook.

It is not hard to imagine why the newly-named Lauren Bacall treats the shaky Eddie with so much sensitivity. As John T. McManus put it in his review (PM, October 12, 1944), “To Have and Have Not has a healthy, democratic flesh tone, and it is not only skin deep.” But so entranced were the reviewers with Bogart and Bacall that Brennan’s superlative achievement was given only glancing recognition, as in Alton’s Cook’s salute to the actor’s drawing on his “endless variety of resources,” and, in New York Times critic Bosley Crowther’s remark that Brennan’s work is “affecting” but “pointless”! This powerful film about redemption is as good as any film Brennan appeared in, and his performance here outranks all his others, except for his tour de force role as Judge Roy Bean.

I said, “Why don’t you get one of these guys to take it?” He says, “Well, you’d make her feel at ease.” I said, “Gee, Howard, I don’t know whether Goldwyn

will let me do this.” And Bob McIntyre [Goldwyn’s casting director] called me up, and he had this deep voice, he said, “You can’t do that. We got to pay you.” I said, “Well, I’m going to do it for nothing. I’ll do it for Howard Hawks.” And so I did it. She really shook. If you ever get to talk to her, she’ll tell you how she shook.

A far more important role than Thunder, but one that again explored Brennan’s character’s triumph over his own frailties, is the “rummy,” Eddie, in To Have and Have Not (October 11, 1944), starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. In December, 1943, Howard Hawks met with Brennan for a pre-production conference, a sign of the director’s keen desire to get the supporting role exactly right. Brennan’s name in the credits would appear in type 60 percent the size of that used for Bogart, and Goldwyn would get $2,500 a week for the actor’s services during nearly a three-month period that stretched from March to May of 1944. This was now the standard agreement for a Brennan loan out. A month before production began, the Breen office signaled its discomfort with the film’s lack of moral hygiene:

Surprisingly, the sexually suggestive scene between Bogart and Bacall aroused no objections—except in Ohio. The censor there saw the finished print and was disturbed when Bacall’s comments, “It’s even better when you help,” after Bogart finally kisses her back (her first effort does not seem to stimulate him). Alongside Humphrey Bogart, playing Harry Morgan in Casablanca mode, Eddie behaves as if the self-contained star needs him, even though, as “Slim” (Bacall) tells Morgan, “You wouldn’t take anything from anybody.” What Eddie has to give is affection and loyalty, qualities in short supply in Vichy-controlled Martinique. When Mr. Johnson, who has hired Harry’s fishing boat for a day, says he does not see why Harry keeps “that rummy around.” Harry replies, “Eddie was a good man on a boat before he got to be a rummy.” But why does Harry look after Eddie? Johnson asks. “Is he related to you, or somethin’?” Harry replies, “He thinks he’s looking after me.” In fact, Eddie does think of himself as Harry’s protector, and when Harry kicks Eddie off his boat, Eddie senses Harry is in trouble and stows away. “You can’t fool me,” Eddie tells Harry, who has been trying to keep Eddie—who talks too much—out of trouble. Eddie doesn’t want anything from Harry except some acknowledgment of their bond and another drink, which Morgan carefully rations so that Eddie remains sober enough to do his job aboard Morgan’s boat. Harry at first reluctantly puts the boat at the disposal of a French resistance leader seeking a way out of Nazi-patrolled waters. But Harry does not have much in common with the character in the Hemingway novel the picture is supposedly based on and wants no part of politics. He would prefer to stick to his business as a hired fisherman. But as soon as the Vichy authorities begin to get in Harry’s way, he sides with the Resistance, just as the disaffected Rick does in Casablanca. The shambling walk Brennan perfected for his role suggests a man always on the verge of the shakes. Gerald Mast observes, “Walter Brennan’s quirky, jumpy, jittery performance as Eddie—one of the very best of his very distinguished career—took its cue from a single descriptive sentence in the Hemingway novel: ‘He walked with his joints all slung wrong.’” No other actor in Hollywood could shuffle himself into greatness. The unsteady Eddie seems the last person in the world that Harry should rely on, and yet, in one of the film’s key scenes, Eddie steers the boat straight through the night, enabling Harry to concentrate on outwitting a Vichy patrol boat. Filmed on location, it was not an easy scene to finesse. Walter had trouble with his lines, trying to perfect both his delivery and his jitters. Hawks stopped shooting and conferred with Brennan for about ten minutes before rehearsing the scene again. Still not satisfied, actor and director talked some more about the scene, and then did a take. Brennan, still shaking after Hawks called cut and said it was “fine,” said, “I’ve got ‘em, and not from rum.” Everyone except Slim treats Eddie like a pathetic hanger-on. What she sees is Eddie’s endearing humanity and loyalty to Morgan, whom Slim has, of course, fallen in love with. Eddie, too, loves Morgan, who safeguards his fragile sidekick (Brennan is almost as gaunt here as he was as Old Atrocity), and by doing so makes Eddie strong enough to collaborate in a plot to save the lives of a French Resistance fighter (Walter Szurovy) and his wife (Dolores Moran). Brennan, steering Harry’s boat out of trouble during a shoot-out with Vichy authorities, remains in stride with Bogart and Bacall—memorably so in the film’s last scene, which shows him hobbling in tune to the music heralding the romantic couple’s successful escape from Martinque. Critic Nicholas Spencer observes just how central Brennan’s Eddie is to the ideology of To Have and Have Not, a film that heralds and sanctions America’s entry into World War II: “Harry’s loyalty to Eddie highlights the importance of being true to one’s allies when they are in trouble.” Eddie turns out to be good with a gun and transforms himself, as Spencer notes, from “incompetent alcoholic to freedom fighter.” No other character actor in Hollywood history rivals Brennan in the pivotal roles he played in so many films. In retrospect, at least, Brennan’s role here seems even richer than later critics like Spencer suppose. During a world war, when fascist ideology idealizes strength and ruthlessness, Eddie represents an entirely different worldview and moral code. He is not an example of the survival of the fittest, but instead is a weak man who overcomes the overwhelming odds set against him. A greater failure than any other character Brennan ever played, Eddie draws strength from Harry and is redeemed. He is the common man, the little man, the derelict, the hanger-on, the socially marginal—in short, everything the Nazis deemed worthy of extermination. He is a fool attached to a wise man. Eddie is the underside of society that fascist ideology dismissed as unworthy to exist. He is unhealthy and dependent on charity, and yet he is an indispensable part of the humanity that Harry Morgan cannot detach himself from. Eddie is not beautiful like Bacall, who plays her important part in treating Eddie with decency and even affection, turning Eddie’s querulous refrain, “Was you ever stung by a dead bee?” on Eddie, who then realizes she is on his side. And why not? Bacall, after all, plays a woman who cons men (she is a pickpocket), until she meets a man like Harry who cannot be conned. With her throaty low-pitched voice, Bacall seems, in fact, a feminine Bogart, “tough and taciturn,” as Otis L. Guernsey described the actor in his New York Herald Tribune review (October 12, 1944). Slim loves Harry, in part, because of his attachment to Eddie, not despite it. The scenes between Bacall and Brennan are tender and perhaps influenced by their friendship. In reminiscing about his work, Brennan said little about Bogart, except that he was “all right . . . a nice guy.” They apparently got on well in a joking sort of way. Bogart made fun of Brennan’s drinker’s nose reminiscent of W. C. Fields, and Walter retorted: “There’s a difference. He had fun getting his.” But Walter knew Bacall before Bogart did. When Hawks saw the teenage model Betty Joan Perske on a magazine cover, he wanted to do a screen test with her and Brennan, who explained what happened:
It is not hard to imagine why the newly-named Lauren Bacall treats the shaky Eddie with so much sensitivity. As John T. McManus put it in his review (PM, October 12, 1944), “To Have and Have Not has a healthy, democratic flesh tone, and it is not only skin deep.” But so entranced were the reviewers with Bogart and Bacall that Brennan’s superlative achievement was given only glancing recognition, as in Alton’s Cook’s salute to the actor’s drawing on his “endless variety of resources,” and, in New York Times critic Bosley Crowther’s remark that Brennan’s work is “affecting” but “pointless”! This powerful film about redemption is as good as any film Brennan appeared in, and his performance here outranks all his others, except for his tour de force role as Judge Roy Bean.

DMU Timestamp: August 05, 2016 15:53