Set in the days just before the historic attack on Pearl Harbor, From Here to Eternity is an army-barracks soap opera of the highest order. Based on the well-received novel of the same name, it was deemed un-filmable by many studios in the early 1950s, due to the controversial storylines, provocative characters, and profanity used throughout—all of which is toned down for the Oscar-winning screenplay by Daniel Taradash. It’s to his credit that the movie still retains much of its impact, however, with a plot revolving around the lives of three soldiers and two women on the island of Oahu.

Private Robert E. Lee Prewitt (Montgomery Clift) arrives at Schofield Barracks, having requested a transfer to Company G. His reputations as both an outstanding bugler and middleweight boxer precede him, but Prewitt makes it clear from the start he has no intention of fighting. He clashes with Captain Holmes (Philip Ober), who plans to persuade his new transfer to join the company’s boxing team in time for the upcoming championships. When Prewitt declines, Holmes has the other soldiers in the company give him “the treatment,” which includes all forms of abuse in training, daily duties, and any other random harassments they can drum up. After Prewitt is insulted by a bullying sergeant who then gives him an unreasonable order, Prewitt refuses to obey it. Holmes has Sgt. Milton Warden (Burt Lancaster) draw up court-martial papers, but Warden convinces Holmes to refrain from such drastic measures, suggesting instead that he should go harder on Prewitt with even more punishments. I have to admit I was pretty disgusted by the characters in this storyline and the horrible, corrupt portrayal of the U.S. Army company. The only soldier brave enough to object on behalf of Prewitt during his “hazing” is his buddy Pvt. Angelo Maggio (Frank Sinatra in an Oscar-winning performance). But even with his heart in the right place, Maggio is a hothead, which later leads to his demise.

Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr.

Meanwhile, Warden begins a secret affair with Holmes’s wife Karen (Deborah Kerr). She has the reputation of playing around, but Warden discovers the truth. Karen learned of Holmes’s own affairs two years after they were married. She was pregnant at the time and miscarried when Holmes staggered home drunk one night following one of his flings. He was too intoxicated to take his wife to a doctor. Karen required surgery after that and was never able to bear children again. That’s when she started messing around herself. Warden and Karen confess that they’re miserable together but can’t live without each other. Their torrid tryst includes the iconic scene on a rocky beach while they embrace as ocean waves crash over them.

On leave, Prewitt falls hard for a “dance hall hostess” called Lorene (Oscar-winner Donna Reed). Yes, she is a prostitute in the novel, and the New Congress Club is a brothel, not just a bar or “gentlemen’s club” with paid hostesses. But Prewitt isn’t the only one getting in over his head while he’s out painting the town. Sinatra is both charming and tragic as Maggio, a guy without a filter on his mouth or emotions. After he goes AWOL from his weekend post, he is sentenced to six months in the stockade, run by Sgt. James “Fatso” Judson (Ernest Borgnine). Maggio and Judson had a previous run-in at the club, and, seeking revenge, Judson beats Maggio mercilessly and frequently while he’s in the stockade—all of which occurs off-screen.

These various storylines lead to the fateful morning of December 7, 1941, and the attack on Pearl Harbor. Schofield Barracks is targeted as well, and we witness soldiers being gunned down by Japanese planes overhead. The final 15 minutes shifts from soap opera to war picture, but more than anything, it’s the performances that make this film special. Deborah Kerr and Donna Reed play against type. Kerr loses her British accent and refinement to play a sexually charged American army wife. Not only is she gorgeous on screen, but after this, Kerr’s career changed course to include more romantic leading roles. Reed, best known as James Stewart’s wife in It’s a Wonderful Life, is a paid companion. She conveys both the charm required as well as the jaded edge, at least as far as she could go with it, given the constraints of censorship in 1953.

Montgomery Clift and Frank Sinatra.

I find Clift’s work in the film to be the best and most powerful among this strong cast. Full confession: I’m related to Montgomery Clift by marriage. To be specific, my mother’s second husband was his older brother Brooks. That makes Monty my step-uncle, at least retroactively, although I never met him. He died when I was three years old, and Mom and Brooks weren’t married until 1985. Still, it’s a personal connection worth acknowledging. Call me biased if you want, but he captures the complex layers of Prewitt beautifully. A simple soldier who isn’t too smart but leads by example with passion, conviction, and dedication to the army and to his friends.

From Here to Eternity isn’t a message picture or cautionary tale. It doesn’t offer grand, sweeping observations about its characters, the army, or human nature. By the end, Maggio, Judson, and Prewitt are all dead. Warden stays where he is, refusing to submit his planned request for commissioned officers training in order to stay with Karen. Her husband Captain Holmes is forced to resign when his mistreatment of Prewitt is discovered by the base commander. And Karen and Alma (aka “Lorene”) are on a boat heading back to the mainland as our country enters World War II. The enduring strength of From Here to Eternity is found in the performances of these flawed but memorable characters at an unexpected turning point in our nation’s history.

From Here to Eternity