Housman, misquoted

The television was on for “warmth.” Dr. Arnold Vincent (Jeffrey Lynn) was pouring himself a drink. From Whiplash (dir. Lewis Seiler, 1948):

“‘This does more than mortals can, to justify God’s ways to man.’ I think that’s misquoted, but it’s a rousing sentiment.”

The source, of course, is A.E. Housman, A Shropshire Lad, LXII (1896):

Oh many a peer of England brews
Livelier liquor than the Muse,
And malt does more than Milton can
To justify God’s ways to man.

I wonder whether the misquotation, announced as such, is a way to avoid complications with copyright. Or maybe it’s a way to signal that the doctor is sloppy in all things.