From Here to Eternity 4K 1953

The title of the film was taken from Kipling's poem 'Gentlemen-Rankers' about the soldiers of the British Empire who 'lost their way' and are 'damned from now and forever. Although the criticism of the American army in the adaptation of James Jones' novel is greatly mitigated (otherwise the military would not have agreed to help in the shooting), what the soldiers are 'damned' for is still clear. At the end, the guilty are punished in one way or another, but... it doesn't make it any easier. However, the sense of despair that reeks from the plot of the film. And the war in the finale is not so terrible after that. The war in the film, however, is not particularly horrible at all. There are no deliberately tear-jerking shots as in 'Pearl Harbor'.

The film is generally very restrained. And the director's choice of black-and-white film over color served exactly that purpose. So as not to make a bright Hawaiian postcard. And all the actors work in that vein - everything is serious. Frank Sinatra's character contributes a little humor, but what happens to him overrides that.

In 'Pearl Harbor' everything is so contrived and exaggerated that it is hard to believe in even the minimum level of American heroism. It is also clear that some of the characters are exaggeratedly good and some are completely bad, and the fact that the brothel is called a club does not add credibility, but this version of events is much easier to believe than the one in 'Pearl Harbor'.