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| An expertly balanced, dramatic poster for Fred Zinnemann's From Here to Eternity |
Oahu, Hawaii, 1941: A sergeant, who is tough but good at heart, falls for his captain's miserable wife, and they begin a secret romance. Meanwhile a newly arrived private gets put down forcefully, because he refuses to use his boxing skills in a match against anymore.
From Here to Eternity is a marvelously charming film, which simply has it all; it is one of those kind of films that just isn't done anymore. Furthermore, it must be among the best instances of love captured on film as well as one of the sexiest films of all time.
Burt Lancaster (The Leopard/Il Gattopardo (1963)) is young, strong and cuttingly handsome as the romantic sergeant; Deborah Kerr (The Journey (1959)) is beautiful as his torn love. Montgomery Clift (Freud (1962)) is phenomenal as the stubborn and loyal foot soldier; and Frank Sinatra (Tony Rome (1967)) is both funny and touching as the group's Italian-American drunkard. Donna Reed (The Far Horizons (1955), Clift's love interest, is beautiful and lovely, and Ernest Borgnine (Murder, She Wrote (1987), TV-series) is tremendous as the sadistic staff sergeant 'Fatso'.
The film blooms with Hawaiian flavor and runs on conflicts that to some degree come across as relatively small peace-time problems on a paradisaical, Pacific island, - although it is also clear why they are nevertheless considerable for the characters involved in them. SPOILER But all of that changes with the Pearl Harbor attack by the Japanese towards the film's end, which is staged impressively.
SPOILER The very end is heartbreaking, adding additional weight to an already beautifully acted, directed and photographed (by Burnett Guffey (Some Kind of A Nut (1969)) and Floyd Crosby (Beach Blanket Bingo (1965))), absolutely unique pearl in cinema history. It was written by Daniel Taradash (Hawaii (1966)), based on the same-titled 1951 novel by James Jones (The Thin Red Line (1962)), and directed by Austrian-Hungarian master filmmaker Fred Zinnemann (Oklahoma! (1955)).
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Watch a teaser trailer for the film here
Cost: 2.5 mil. $
Box office: 30.5 mil. $
= Mega-hit
[From Here to Eternity premiered 5 August (New York) and runs 118 minutes. Shooting took place from March - May 1953 on Oahu; on Waikiki Beach, the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, Halona Cove (for the iconic beach love scene), Diamond Head and the Schofield Barracks, among other places. It was rumored for years that Sinatra got his part as result of mob ties, a legend that gained momentum from the plot string in The Godfather (1972) that culminates with the severed horse's head found in a film producer's bed, said to be inspired by this, although the rumors have been denied by many, including Zinnemann. Kerr and Lancaster reportedly had an affair during filming. The film had to relinquish many things from the novel due to the strict censorship at the time, as well as to get the army's cooperation: Plot points related to homosexuality, venereal disease, prostitution and the army's discipline and image were honed away or changed for the film. It debuted to rave reviews and changed Sinatra into a respected actor as well as singer. It was one of the highest-grossing films of the year and of the decade overall, but the US Army and Navy were ultimately unhappy with it. In France, nearly 6.5 mil. people paid admission to it. It was nominated for 13 Oscars, winning for Best Picture, Supporting Actor (Sinatra), Supporting Actress (Reed), Director, Screenplay, Cinematography, Sound and Editing. It lost two Best Actor nominations (Clift and Lancaster) to William Holden for Stalag 17, Best Actress (Kerr) to Audrey Hepburn for Roman Holiday, Costumes to Roman Holiday and Score to Bronislau Kaper for Lili. The film also won 2 Golden Globes, a National Board of Review award, a special award at Cannes and a BAFTA nomination. From Here to Eternity is certified fresh at 92 % with an 8.2 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]
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