To Have and Have Not

To Have and Have Not began as a conversation between director Howard Hawks and Ernest Hemingway that a great film could be made out of Hemingway’s worst book. In order to make that happen, Hawks, along with screenwriters William Faulkner and Jules Furthman, jettisoned the vast majority or the original book, retaining several characters but altering the setting, timeline and most of the plot. The lead character, Captain Harry Morgan was retooled, too, to lighten his character to more align him with the era’s image of Humphrey Bogart, an image that had started to shift just two years prior with the release of Casablanca. The original novel was set in Cuba during the depression. This was also altered to accommodate a more timely subject and setting, Martinique during the Second World War. What was left after all these changes is a film that basically shares a title only with the original novel, a title that no longer fits the story the film is telling.

The film opens with Harry Morgan (Humphrey Bogart), a ship captain for hire, who hires out to wealthy fishermen out of Martinique during the early days of WWII. He is partners with Eddie (Walter Brennan), an alcoholic whose ties to Harry are never really explored. On one such trip wannabe fisherman Johnson (Walter Sande) owes him a significant amount of money for one such trip and intends to skip out on the bill. Harry discovers this when he spots a woman, Marie, an American drifter, pickpocket Johnson. Upon confronting her he finds evidence in Johnson’s wallet that the man was planning on skipping out on the bill. When Morgan confronts Johnson a shootout involving freedom fighters breaks out and Johnson is killed before he can pay up. This forces Harry, now strapped for cash, into agreeing to smuggle into Martinique a married couple involved in the resistance that the local government is on the lookout for. Harry states he is only interested in the money, yet he risks his own freedom to insure their safety even after he has been paid for the job.

Juxtaposed with this story is a blossoming romance between Harry and Marie, neither of whom refer to each other by their real names but instead use the names “Steve” and “Slim” (This no doubt stems from the real life nicknames director Howard Hawks and his wife used for each other). This romance doesn’t ring with the same level of credulity that we saw with Rick and Elsa in Casablanca, yet there is a certain steaminess to it absent from the earlier film. This can probably be chalked up to the real life romance blossoming between the two actors. Bacall is new to pictures here, having been hired by Hawks out of a desire to romance the young model, something that was stymied by the romance that developed between her and Bogart. He instead had to settle for an affair with the second lady, Dolores Moran. This Bogart/Bacall romance behind the scenes translates well to the screen. 

There is plenty of steamy dialogue between the two leads that barely gets by the censors enforcing the Hayes Code. “You don’t have to say anything and you don’t have to do anything. Not a thing. Oh, maybe just whistle. You know how to whistle, don’t you, Steve? You just put your lips together... and blow.” The line is delivered with a level of sultriness that raises the temperature in the room by several degrees. While not all the lines Bacall delivers land like this one, many do despite her lack of experience on screen. The chemistry between Bogart and Bacall overcomes much of this inexperience, softening the more harsh edges, making her performance all the more memorable for it. 

The original novel was about a smuggler who took advantage of desperate people during the Great Depression, abandoning people in Cuba and making off with their money. This film wants to paint the picture of a reluctant hero who, in spite of not wanting to get involved in the politics of the war going on around him, finds his better nature prevents him from remaining neutral. This is the same dilemma Rick faced in Casablanca when tasked with aiding Victor Laslo and Elsa’s escape from the Nazis. This film, however, isn’t quite as compelling. There is no love triangle history between Harry and the woman he is smuggling to Martinique. There is no painful history involved here. Neither of the two fugitives, Paul and Hélène, developed much at all. Paul spends most of his screen time injured and lying in bed and Hélène’s character is diminished to standing by her man and expressing a lot of self doubt about why she is even there. Paul get’s one scene explaining his lack of belief in himself and his ability to complete his mission, yet determination to go through with it anyway. Hélène serves more as source of jealousy, albeit misplaced, from Maria. Hélène’s role was meant to be a secondary love interest for Harry in the early drafts of the script but was unfortunately cut to near nothing once the heat between Bogart and Bacall ramped up.

Aside from Bogart and Bacall there are a few other things that keep the film from being rote. One of those is the delightfully over-the-top performance by Walter Brennan as Eddie. Eddie is woefully underdeveloped as a character relegated to being an alcoholic who may or may not be persuaded to betray his friends if you withhold the alcohol. However that doesn’t matter as every time he is on screen he lightens the tone. He is a welcome addition to the film adding a levity that no other character can provide. Likewise, relative newcomer Dan Seymour, a character actor who primarily appeared in bit roles uncredited until the year prior to this, is delightfully cocky and smarmy as Captain Renard, the local authority who is certain Harry has smuggled in resistance members but lacks enough evidence to pounce. 

There is a lot going for To Have and Have Not. Fans of the book will not recognize much in it but that is to the film’s benefit. The story is definitely one of Hemingway’s lesser books and reading it, one would be hard pressed to find much that is cinematic. Yet Hawks and his script writers managed to make a good picture out of it anyway. It’s no Casablanca but it is a great showcase for Bogart and the callow Bacall. The story is a little obvious but never veers off track and Walter Brennan smooths out many a scene with his scene stealing performance. Hoagy Carmichael lends his screen presence and several songs to the mix as well, providing much of the lyrical and background music to the picture. To Have and Have Not is no Casablanca, but it is still a bonafide classic in its own right.  

Release Date: October 11, 1944

Running Time: 100 Minutes

Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Walter Brennan, Dolores Moran, and Walter Surovy

Directed By: Howard Hawks