From Here to Eternity (1953)

From Here to a Classic

From Here to Eternity is more than the classic scene of Deborah Kerr and Burt Lancaster rolling around on a beach, covered in ocean waves. It's a story about America during World War II. It's about human beings trying to live normal lives during an abnormal time. Taking place just before the bombing of Pearl Harbor, this is more than a war movie. It's a human story of love, honor, humor, and hope. Anyone who enjoys real-life drama will appreciate this well-written and well-acted story.From Here to Eternity (Superbit Collection) August 22, 2008

Doesn't hold up well with time

Seeing this movie again after 50 years I felt a certain disappointment. There were just too many difficulties to overcome when this was made, all owing to the strict censorship of the time.

(1) The realistic, if very profane, language spoken by soldiers could not be used in the 1950s. The language of the novel was a big departure in popular American fiction, and the movies had not caught up with readers.

(2) The extra-marital affairs were treated somewhat mysteriously. Sex scenes are either eliminated or indicated by crashing waves. If the movie goer didn't know the "code," some scenes were lost.

(3) The Donna Reed character was a prostitute in the book, but in the movie she was like a USO hostess who never ever went upstairs with the boys. This takes away from the angst Prewitt feels about her.

(4) The violence was substantially downplayed, especially in the alley knife fight and in the long fistfight, where the men land haymakers and no one has so much as a bloody nose or a fat lip. Hollywood has never staged a realistic fight.

(5) The captain is forced to resign for his evil doing, but in the book he is praised by his superiors. The Army wouldn't allow the use of their facilities without this "correction."

This is a brief overview of the problems. If this were to be remade today, it would be much grittier and much more realistic. There are some good moments, such as the Pearl Harbor attack, but they are not enough to erase the flaws. August 13, 2008

An All-Time Great but Too Bad About the DVD!

This is an all-time great film for many reasons and should be in any film buff's dvd library. The screenplay is excellent and in a rarity for the time, there is really no happy ending at all and what I really liked about the film is that it came across as sincere and true to life; it hit home that in life, we don't always get the happy ending that we want at least not in the short term. The acting is also very, very good even for the often underrated Montgomery Clift who never got his due as a great actor not only for this brilliant role but also for his work in "The Misfits" and "A Place In the Sun". I thought Donna Reed was even better here than in "It's a Wonderful Life". Frank Sinatra thoroughly deserved his Oscar too.

One thing that is regrettable though is that this film wasn't made in colour which is a real waste of a wonderful setting. Having lived in Honolulu for a few years I can tell you that black and white doesn't do justice to what must be among the most beautiful settings that you can find in the world for any film let alone this masterpiece. In fact, among the special features is a clip of director Fred Zinnemann's home movies from the set and even that was in colour! The featurette "The Making of From Here To Eternity" was very good as well as the excerpt from "Fred Zinnemann: As I See It" which is where we get to see his home movies.

Too bad the dvd hasn't been restored well and so the picture and sound quality is poor. The good news is that with the advent of Blu-ray, the powers that be have the opportunity to do a much better restoration job on this great classic. Let's hope they clean up the picture frame-by-frame and provide at least Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound options of a superiorly remastered sound.

Great movie but you may want to wait for a better dvd version. May 8, 2008

Fine Film about Military Life on the Cusp of WWII

Wow. I saw this last night on TCM for the first time. I really wish I'd taken the time to see this movie earlier. This film is so much more than the classic beach scene they play constantly on greatest movie moments clip shows. Burt Lancaster gives a strong performance as Sgt. Warden, the first sergeant to an incompetent, philandering captain. Warden begins an affair with the captain's wife, Karen, played with aplomb by Deborah Kerr. The romantic beach scene is nice, but the real fireworks come right after, when Warden demands to know how many men she's been with. Deborah Kerr's performance when she answers makes watching the film worthwhile and it's barely begun!

The other main plot follows Montgomery Clift as Pruitt, a private and his buddy, Maggio, played by a charismatic Frank Sinatra, who almost steals the whole film. He's a confident, funny drunkard of a solider, an absolute delight to watch. Pruitt has his own problems, in that Captain Holmes wants him to box, which he cannot do after an incident from his past. Consequently, (with the exception of Maggio), he is made a pariah within the unit. Soon, his work ethic and love for the Army forge a bond between him and Warden. Pruitt also is in love, with Lorene, played by Donna Reed, a social club girl. Meanwhile, Maggio runs afoul of the stockade sergeant, a brilliantly nasty Ernest Borgdine.

The depiction of military life and the bond between the men in this movie was really well done. All three of the main male characters face conflict, but they never buckle, sticking to their convictions, no matter the cost. The relationships between the men and women were never facile, but multi-layered, as complex as any in real life. The actors all give amazing performances in this movie, never falling to soap opera hysterics. The ending came as a complete shock to me. I never expected the film to end as it did, and it was a nice change from most of the current Hollywood schlock that's out there. It's been quite some time since a movie surprised me. Little wonder that it took a film from 1953 to do so.

I have to say, there are so many fine moments in this film, it really surprises me that the kiss in the water is the one most deeply associated with this movie. In my opinion, the scene in which Montgomery Clift plays "Taps" is a much more striking scene, much more symbolic of the film as a whole. I had goosebumps during that whole segment, and at the end, where Lorene/Alma meets Karen on the ship. This is a romantic film, but it is so much more than that. A classic truly deserving of the label. January 18, 2008

The best movie I ever saw

All I can remember of the movie from 1954/1955 was that it was the best movie I had ever seen. Well, being about 13 years old, what did I have to measure it by? At that age, I hadn't been allowed to go to movies, even with my girlfriends. We sneaked off to see "From Here To Eternity". We probably told our parents that we were going to see Bob Hope/Bing Crosby or Gene Autry. (Just a few that I can remember from back then.) Oh, but I remember From Here To Eternity very well. The only other thing was that I fell instantly in love with Montgomery Clift. But, as all young lovers do, I dropped him a year or so later for James Dean in Rebel Without A Cause. Turns out, I wouldn't have stood a chance with either one of them since they had those sexual hangups. Oh well. Shortly after that my future and still husband dropped in. I wouldn't have traded him for either one of them. Oh, I'm suppose to be reviewing the movie. All of those stars, producers, writers, everyone involved, from the movie made it a great movie. I've seen it many times over the years on TV and still loved it and so I'm positive that I will enjoy having this DVD just as soon as I can get it ordered. And then I can watch it over and over and reminisce December 18, 2007

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