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From Here to Eternity Overview:

From Here to Eternity (1953) was a Drama - Romance Film directed by Fred Zinnemann and produced by Buddy Adler.

The film was based on the novel of the same name written by James Jones published in 1951.

SYNOPSIS

Landmark example of Hollywood melodrama at its finest. An all-star cast brought what was considered an unfilmable novel to the screen with skill and grace. The story portrays the loves, hopes, and dreams of those in a close-knit army barracks in Hawaii shortly before the attack on Pearl Harbor. Clift plays a former boxer who refuses to fight after blinding a friend in the ring and is sent to the remote outpost as punishment for his insubordination. Reed plays spectacularly against type as a bar girl who comforts Clift. Lancaster and Kerr have their illicit sprawl in the surf, and Sinatra makes a remarkable movie-career rebound. A big story with performances to match.

(Source: available at Amazon AMC Classic Movie Companion).

From Here to Eternity was inducted into the National Film Registry in 2002.

Academy Awards 1953 --- Ceremony Number 26 (source: AMPAS)

AwardRecipientResult
Best ActorMontgomery CliftNominated
Best ActorBurt LancasterNominated
Best Supporting ActorFrank SinatraWon
Best ActressDeborah KerrNominated
Best Supporting ActressDonna ReedWon
Best CinematographyBurnett GuffeyWon
Best Costume DesignJean LouisNominated
Best DirectorFred ZinnemannWon
Best Film EditingWilliam LyonWon
Best Music - ScoringMorris Stoloff, George DuningNominated
Best PictureBuddy Adler, ProducerWon
Best WritingDaniel TaradashWon
See More Oscar Winners

From Here to Eternity BlogHub Articles:

“TCM Big Screen Classics: From Here to Eternity” Movie Event Ticket Giveaway (November 18 – December 3)

By Annmarie Gatti on Nov 18, 2016 From Classic Movie Hub Blog

Win Tickets to see “From Here to Eternity” on the Big Screen! in Select Cinemas Nationwide December 11 & December  14! CMH is thrilled to announce the next round of our monthly movie ticket giveaways this year, courtesy of Fathom Events! That said, this month, we’ll be giving away SIX PAI... Read full article

Sinatra Centennial: From Here to Eternity

By Virginie Pronovost on Dec 11, 2015 From The Wonderful World of Cinema

Frank Sinatra, who was one of the most acclaimed crooner of music history, would have been 100 on December 12, 2015. The man wasn’t only a great singer, but also a swell actor. One of his most acclaimed performances was the one in From Here to Eternity for which he won an Oscar for Best Suppor... Read full article

From Here to Eternity (1953)

By Beatrice on Oct 13, 2015 From Flickers in Time

From Here to Eternity Directed by Fred Zinnemann Written by Daniel Taradash from the novel by James Jones 1953/USA Columbia Pictures Corporation Repeat viewing/Netflix rental #273 of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die This sure deserved to win a bunch of Oscars. The story is set on Oahu in ... Read full article

Holy Moly Discovery: From Here To Eternity (1953)

By Vanessa Buttino on Aug 13, 2013 From Stardust

Holy Moly Discovery: From Here To Eternity (1953) A sweaty Montgomery Clift digs for his dinner. Welcome to the very first "Holy Moly Discovery" post! I created this tag line to introduce you to films that have really had an OMG!-impact on me. The first of which is one of the films I watche... Read full article

From Here to Eternity (1)

By RBuccicone on Jun 24, 2013 From MacGuffin Movies

From Here to Eternity (1953) There’s a reason From Here to Eternity won eight Academy Awards and was nominated for five others. The stellar cast is in large part responsible as two leading men and several supporting characters of almost leading caliber delivery hard-hitting performances. The ... Read full article

See More From Here to Eternity Articles

From Here to Eternity Quotes:

Sgt. Pete Karelsen: I'm getting sick and tired watching you being a stooge for Holmes.
Sergeant Milton Warden: You won't see it much longer. I'm getting sick and tired of it myself. I'm through, Pete. Any day now. And I mean it.
Sgt. Pete Karelsen: [laughing]
Sergeant Milton Warden: Listen, if Holmes let me, I'd transfer out of here tomorrow. Half a dozen companies in this regiment would grab me, and in grade, too.
Sgt. Pete Karelsen: Oh, sure. I could be Chief of Staff, too. Only I just can't think of leaving my old buddies.
Sergeant Milton Warden: Where're you going, Little Sir Echo?
Sgt. Pete Karelsen: To take my shower, if the stinking First Sergeant has no objections. Where do you think? To the movies in this towel?
Sergeant Milton Warden: Hurry up. We'll get some beer.
Sgt. Pete Karelsen: I wouldn't drink with you if it was the last beer in the world.
Sergeant Milton Warden: I'm buying.
Sgt. Pete Karelsen: That's different.
Karen Holmes: [to Sgt. Warden standing outside her porch in the pouring rain] Well, you'd better come inside... you'll get wet.
Angelo Maggio: I just hate to see a good guy get it in the gut.
Cpl. Buckley: You better get used to it, kid. You'll probably see a lot of it before you die.
Annette: That'll be four bucks, babyface. Two for initiation fee, two for this month's dues.
Robert E. Lee "Prew' Prewitt: What do I get for it?
Annette: Members are entitled to all privileges of the club, which includes dancing, snack bar, soft drink bar, and gentlemanly relaxation with the opposite gender - so long as they ARE gentlemen, and no liquor is permitted, got it?
Karen Holmes: I never knew it could be like this! Nobody ever kissed me the way you do.
Sergeant Milton Warden: Nobody?
Karen Holmes: No, nobody.

Sergeant Milton Warden: Not even one? Out of all the men you've been kissed by?
Karen Holmes: Now that'd take some figuring. How many men do you think there've been?
Sergeant Milton Warden: I wouldn't know. Can't you give me a rough estimate?
Karen Holmes: Not without an adding machine. Do you have the adding machine with you?
Sergeant Milton Warden: I forgot to bring it.
See More Quotes from From Here to Eternity
From Here to Eternity Facts
Original novelist James Jones was not happy with the film, as he considered it to be too sanitized.
A false rumor has been circulating for years that George Reeves, who played Sgt. Maylon Stark, had his role drastically edited after preview audiences recognized him as TV's Adventures of Superman. According to director Fred Zinnemann, screenwriter Daniel Taradash and assistant director Earl Bellamy, the rumor is false. Every scene written for Reeves' character was filmed, and each of those scenes is still present in its entirety in the film as released. This rumor is nonetheless repeated as truth in Hollywoodland, a movie about the investigation into Reeves' death.
The novel was deemed unfilmable for a long time because of its negative portrayal of the US army (which would prevent the army from supporting the film with people and hardware/logistics) and the profanity. To get army support and pass the censorship of the time crucial details had to be changed. The brothel became a night club, the whores hostesses. The profanity was removed, the brutal treatment in the stockade toned down and Captain Holmes removed from the army instead of promoted.
Future screenwriter Alvin Sargent has a bit part in the film. He was paid $400 for a week's work in Hawaii. Sargent would later go on to win an Oscar for Julia, also directed by Fred Zinnemann.
An urban myth regarding the casting of Frank Sinatra was that the Mafia made Columbia Pictures an offer they couldn't refuse. This of course was fictionalized in Mario Puzo's novel The Godfather and its subsequent film adaptation. The real reason for Sinatra's casting was mainly his then-wife Ava Gardner, who was shooting a film for Columbia head Harry Cohn and suggested to him that he use Sinatra. Although initially reluctant, Cohn eventually saw this as being a good idea, as Sinatra's stock was so low at the time that he would sign for a very low salary. Sinatra had been lobbying hard for the role,even suggesting he would do it for nothing, but he was eventually hired for the token amount of $8,000.
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