To Have and Have Not Blu-ray

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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r

directed by Howard Hawks
USA 1944

Help the Free French? Not world-weary gunrunner Harry Morgan (Humphrey Bogart). But he changes his mind when a sultry siren-in-distress named Marie asks, "Anybody got a match?" That red-hot match is Bogart and 19-year-old first-time film actress Lauren Bacall. Full of intrigue and racy banter (including Bacall's legendary whistling instructions), this thriller excites further interest for what it has and has not. Cannily directed by Howard Hawks and smartly written by William Faulkner and Jules Furthman, it doesn't have much similarity to the Ernest Hemingway novel that inspired it. And it strongly resembles Casablanca: French resistance fighters, a piano-playing bluesman (Hoagy Carmichael) and a Martinique bar much like Rick's Cafe Americaine. But first and foremost, it showcases Bogart and Bacall, carrying on with a passion that smolders from the tips of their cigarettes clear through to their souls.

Posters

Theatrical Release: 11 October 1944 (New York City, New York)

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Comparison:

Warner Home Video - Region 1,4 - NTSC vs. Warner Archive - Region FREE - Blu-ray

Big thanks to Gregory Meshman for the DVD Review!

1) Warner - Region 1, 4 - NTSC - LEFT

2) Warner Archive - Region FREE - Blu-ray - RIGHT

Box Covers
Distribution	Warner Home Video Region 1,4 - NTSC	Warner Archive Region FREE - Blu-ray
Runtime	1:39:57	1:40:04.248
Video	1.33:1 Original Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 5.54 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s	Disc Size: 32,678,335,721 bytes Feature Size: 29,364,056,064 bytes Total Bitrate: 34.99 Mbps Dual-layered Blu-ray MPEG4 - AVC
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate
Bitrate Blu-ray
Audio	Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono (English)	DTS-HD Master Audio English 1780 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1780 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit) Dolby Digital Audio Polish 192 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps / DN -4dB
Subtitles	English, Spanish, French, None	English, Japanese, French, Spanish, Polish, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Warner Home Video Aspect Ratio: Fullscreen - 1.33:1 Edition Details: • 'A Love Story: The Story of To Have and Have Not' featurette (11:16) • 'Bacall to Arms' Cartoon (6:12) • 10/14/1946 Lux Radio Broadcast (Audio) • Theatrical Trailer (2:49) DVD Release Date: November 4, 2003 Snap case or Keep case Chapters 27	Release Information: Studio: Warner Disc Size: 32,678,335,721 bytes Feature Size: 29,364,056,064 bytes Total Bitrate: 34.99 Mbps Dual-layered Blu-ray MPEG4 - AVC Edition Details: • 'A Love Story: The Story of To Have and Have Not' featurette (11:17) • 'Bacall to Arms' Cartoon (6:13) • 10/14/1946 Lux Radio Broadcast (Audio only 58:58) • Theatrical Trailer (2:49) Blu-ray Release Date: July 17th, 2016 Standard Blu-ray case Chapters: 27

Comments

NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were obtained directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Warner Archive - Region FREE - Blu-ray July 16':

The SD transfer was strong but the Blu-ray gives a richer, more film-like presentation. the 1080P, naturally, has more layered contrast - supports grain textures to a higher degree and just simply, look much better. When you look at Lauren Bacall - you should be seeing her in this higher resolution.

Warner use a DTS-HD Master transfer and it sounds perfect. The powerful Franz Waxman (Rebecca, Bride of Frankenstein, Rear Window, Sunset Boulevard) score adds a further edge to the Martinique atmosphere. There is a Polish DUB and optional subtitles on the region FREE Blu-ray disc.

Extras duplicate the DVD including a featurette about the making of the film, a Merrie Melodies cartoon Bacall to Arms that references some of the film and its dialogue, a Lux Radio Broadcast from 1946 that features Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, and a theatrical trailer.

Casablanca-esque but with Lauren and in 1080P. Some classic lines here and a great Bogie/Bacall adventure. Strongly recommended!

***

ON THE DVD: With a scheduled release of Warner's Humphrey Bogart: The Essential Collection, we decided to revisit some of the titles now being released as part of that mega-set that we haven't yet covered at DVDBeaver. One of the titles is Howard Hawks classic To Have and Have Not. The film was released on DVD back in November of 2003 in a snapper case. In 2006, Warner repackaged the disc is a keep case, but the disc's contents remain the same. Despite the film's importance being the first collaboration between Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall (it was also her movie debut), the Howard Hawks wartime thriller didn't go the same extensive restoration as Bogie's other highlights like Casablanca, The Maltese Falcon and The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (In fact, To Have and Have Not received more votes in 2002's Sight and Sound list than The Maltese Falcon.)

The progressive transfer is still very good, with very minimal damage visible on the print. The English mono soundtrack is decent and there are English, Spanish and French optional subtitles available. Extras consist of a brief featurette about the making of the film, a Merrie Melodies cartoon Bacall to Arms that references the movie, a Lux Radio Broadcast from 1946 that features Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, and a theatrical trailer. Overall, it's a very good disc from Warner Home Video and comes highly recommended, either in snapper case, a keep case, or as part of the mega set which is carrying the same transfer and all the extras.

- Gregory Meshman