"To Have and Have Not" (1944)

Tens Items or Less

A new writing segment, "Ten Items or Less" is an attempt to consciously cutback and restrict how much I write. I get ten sentences or less to discuss a movie. That's it. Let's see if some genius comes out of working around my self-made obstacle.  

There's a moment early on in To Have and Have Not where Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, in her debut role, are within inches of kissing and yet they don't, and it almost feels anticlimactic but the simple fact is that they didn't need to kiss. Bogart and Bacall were as successful as a pairing as they were because their chemistry was so astoundingly palpable that studios could, and did, build entire films just around their presence together, and To Have and Have Not does exactly that, playing down the Ernest Hemingway elements of the narrative in favor of watching the two actors play off eachother with fantastic interplay and charm. They would later marry in real life and you can witness that in their interactions; there are side glances and smirks arrived at that feel completely organic and that's likely because the two, at time, weren't acting but simply having such a good time playing off one another. They appear to be in on some great inside joke that we are being let in on as well. It helps that they were given dialogue as sharp as this, written by William Faulkner and Jules Furthman, and which only serves to make their scenes all the more charming and entertaining. The plot is a dark, dangerous story about revolutionaries in Martinique, and Bogart's Harry Morgan getting reluctantly caught up in the intrigue and excitement. Howard Hawks is great at efficient direction; he tells as much as he needs to in the non-Bogart and Bacall scenes and even finds ways to let the romance dovetail with the ensuing drama. This efficiency is also great at establishing and creating immediately recognizable characters, including the great character actor Walter Brennan as the lovable drunk Eddie. But ultimately it all comes back to Bogie and Bacall and their invaluable life lessons about whistling.

Grade: ★★★★