From Here to Eternity (1953)

From Here to Eternity (1953)

starring Burt Lancaster, Montgomery Clift

directed by Fred Zinnemann

118 minutes

Private Robert E. Lee Prewitt (Montgomery Clift) transfers to Company G in 1941 on the island of Oahu where First Sergeant Milton Warden (Burt Lancaster) is the senior staff NCO. Captain Dana Holmes, the company commander, wants Prewitt to join the company boxing team. The CO offers Prewitt a promotion and an easier life if he will do it. Prewitt declines the offer and explains that he gave up boxing after accidentally blinding an opponent. Holmes doesn’t take kindly to Prewitt’s attitude and gives the men on his boxing team orders to harass and bully Prewitt until he agrees to join the team.

Warden starts an affair with Karen Holmes, Captain Holmes’ wife. The Holmes’ marriage has been on the rocks ever since she miscarried years before. Dana wasn’t around to get her to the hospital because he was out with another woman. Now she is unable to have children. Milton and Karen continue their affair despite knowing how much they are risking.

Milton and Karen make plans for the future but ultimately those plans fall apart. Prewitt continues to resist Captain Holmes request that he join the boxing team, despite the bullying to which he is subjected.

Prewitt has a friend named Maggio who runs afoul of a staff sergeant nicknamed Fatso who works in the base prison. Maggio takes Prewitt to a club in town where he meets and falls for Lorene, one of the hostesses at the club. Prewitt confronts Fatso after Maggio turns up dead.

The Japanese attack Hawaii towards the end of the movie. Prewitt is off base at the time at Lorene’s home. He tries to sneak back on base a couple days later. He is shot dead by soldiers patrolling the area who are on the lookout for a Japanese invasion of the islands. 

Thoughts

There are a number of actors in this movie that I recognize including Donna Reed (Lorene), Deborah Kerr (Karen), Ernest Borgnine (Fatso), Frank Sinatra (Maggio), Jack Warden, Claude Akins, and George Reeves. Some of them have fairly small roles. 

From Here to Eternity won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Fred Zinnemann won the Academy Award for Best Director. Burt Lancaster and Montgomery Clift were both nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor but the award went to William Holden for his performance in Stalag 17 (1953). Deborah Kerr was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress but the award went to Audrey Hepburn for her performance in Roman Holiday (1953). Frank Sinatra won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Donna Reed won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. 

This was my first time watching From Here to Eternity. It is not perfect but it is damn good. I found it to be very moving. There are some things about this movie, some moments that felt a bit forced or rushed. There were also a lot of moments that really did work. Sometimes the forced moments were the ones that really worked. I think that a lot of the credit has to go to the actors and the director in those cases where the moment felt forced but the scene still hit home.