Delayed Reaction: From Here to Eternity

Premise: Three army soldiers deal with personal romances and struggles in the months leading up to Pearl Harbor.

 

I've seen most of the great Best Picture winners already. I found an excuse to see Gone with the Wind, Casablanca, All About Eve, The Godfather, and all the other stone-cold classics earlier because they've stood the test of time. My current project, filling in the gaps, has meant tracking down a lot of Best Picture winners that haven't remained as evergreen. In 50 years, that would mean I'm watching the Green Books and Crashes. It also means I'm watching the American Beauties and English Patients: movies that were critically adored and reflective of the values of the Academy at the time. That's what From Here to Eternity is. These days, it's almost exclusively remembered for that shot on the beach as Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr kiss as the tide comes in. Otherwise, you may recall Frank Sinatra and Donna Reed winning Oscars. I get why the movie was a hit at the time. I also didn't really care for it now.

 

I mean, I didn't not like it. I just wasn't blown away by it the way people were in 1953. I like the idea of this story taking place with the Pearl Harbor attack looming. It's fun knowing that all these interpersonal dramas can become moot whenever that attack happens. The cast is stacked, even though, if I'm being honest, I'm still not sure which character is Burt Lancaster and which is Montgomery Clift. I immediately recognized Frank Sinatra. Apparently, this was surprising casting at the time and people went wild for the performance. Umm, sure. He's fine. I prefer a more natural performance, but Sinatra fits with the style of the era. I'll think of this as a Monique type of win.

 

This is what I'd imagine if you asked me to describe a Best Picture winner in 1953. It's exists in the shadow of WWII. It has romance that's chaste with a hint of scandal. It features a lot of studio players and comes out very pro-America. This is a Hollywood Blacklist Best Picture winner if I ever saw one, so even if I'm not wild about the movie, I'm happy to have it as a signifier of where the industry was at the time.

 

Verdict: Weakly Don't Recommend