Jo Botting on From Here to Eternity

An extended run of the classic film From Here To Eternity forms part of the BFI's Deborah Kerr Season at BFI Southbank from 21 September - 7 October 2010. Jo Botting, Fiction Curator at the BFI National Archive, speaks here about this most iconic 1950s Hollywood film and the impact that it had on Kerr's career. Zinnermann's 8 Oscar winning picture - including Best Film and Best Director - reflects on the tempestuous lives of young soldiers in Hawaiian barracks just before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Deborah Kerr's appearance as a neglected army wife - and her part in in the infamous beach scene with Burt Lancaster - led to a profound professional shift. Montgomery Clift, Donna Reed, Ernest Borgnine and Frank Sinatra - who took a significant pay cut to play the role - complete the outstanding cast of the film.