The Breaking Point (1950)

Michael Curtiz brings a master skipper’s hand to the helm of this thriller, Hollywood’s second crack at Ernest Hemingway’s To Have and Have Not. John Garfield stars as Harry Morgan, an honest charter-boat captain who, facing hard times, takes on dangerous cargo to save his boat, support his family, and preserve his dignity. Left in the lurch by a freeloading passenger, Harry starts to enter­tain the criminal propositions of a sleazy lawyer (Wallace Ford), as well as the playful come-ons of a cheeky blonde (Patricia Neal), making a series of compromises that stretch his morality—and his marriage—further than he’ll admit. Hewing closer to Hemingway’s novel than Howard Hawks’s Bogart-Bacall vehicle does, The Breaking Point charts a course through daylight noir and working-class tragedy, guided by Curtiz’s effortless visual fluency and a stoic, career-capping performance from Garfield.

BREAKING POINT, THE Movie Poster (1950)

The Breaking Point Blu-ray - John Garfield

Michael Curtiz's THE BREAKING - The Criterion Collection

The Breaking Point (1950)

Original Film Title: THE BREAKING POINT. English Title: THE

The Breaking Point (1950): Updating Hemingway and Hawks

The Breaking Point (1950) - IMDb

The Movie Projector: The Breaking Point (1950)

Home viewing: 'The Breaking Point' - Boulder Weekly

DVD Savant Review: The Breaking Point

The Breaking Point (1950) - IMDb

The Breaking Point - Rotten Tomatoes