To Have and Have Not is based on Ernest Hemingway’s novel and directed by Howard Hawks and tells the story of Harry Morgan (Humphrey Bogart) and his alcoholic sidekick, Eddie (Walter Brennan), who operate a boat for hire based on the island of Martinique During World War II.
However,
because the war is going on all around them business is not what it could be
and after a customer who owes them a large sum of money fails to pay up they
are forced against their better judgment to violate their preferred neutrality
and to take a job transporting a French Resistance leader, Paul de Bursac
(Walter Szurovy) a fugitive on the run from the Nazis to Martinique along with
his wife Hellene (Dolores Moran).
His
life is further complicated by the presence of Marie "Slim" Browning
(Lauren Bacall), a sassy singer in the club where Morgan spends most of his
days where pianist Cricket (Hoagy Carmichael) normally provides the
entertainment.
The
enjoyable screen adaption of Hemingway's Novel is a classic stands the test of
time in its own right but it also enjoys its place in cinematic history because
it is the first screen teaming of Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall.
