Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has announced the 60th Anniversary Blu-ray release of Fred Zinnemann's
From Here to Eternity, starring Burt Lancaster, Montgomery Clift, Deborah Kerr, Frank Sinatra and Donna Reed. Restored from a 4K scan, the 1953 classic arrives on Blu-ray on October 1st.
Synopsis: Passion and tragedy collide on a military base as a fateful day in December of 1941 draws near. Private Prewitt (Clift) is newly arrived at the base, and has already fallen foul of his superiors due to his refusal to box on the company team. Given the worst duties as a result, Prewitt is befriended by Angelo Maggio (Sinatra), a young soldier who is himself persecuted by the Italian-hating Sergeant Fatso (Ernest Borgnine). Meanwhile, Sergeant Warden (Lancaster), Prewitt's superior, treads on dangerous ground when he allows himself to get caught up in affair with an officer's wife (Kerr).
From Here to Eternity was nominated for 13 Academy Awards and took home eight statuettes, including Best Picture, Best Director, Adapted Screenplay, Supporting Actor (Sinatra), Supporting Actress (Reed), Black-and-White Cinematography, Film Editing, Sound Recording and Best Screenplay. In addition, the film received two Best Actor nominations (Clift and Lancaster) and nominations for Best Actress (Kerr), Black-and-White Costume Design and Scoring. At the time, the film became one of the 10 highest-grossing films of the decade. In 2005, the film came in at #52 on the American Film Institute's list of "Top 100 films of All Time."
Special features include:
- Eternal History: Graphics-in-Picture Track: The complete story of how 1953's Best Picture winner came to be, as told through new interviews, exclusive photos and other rare material. New interviews include Tina Sinatra (Daughter of Frank Sinatra), Tim Zinnemann (Son of Fred Zinnemann), Jack Larson (Actor / Friend of Montgomery Clift), Robert Osborne (Author, 80 Years of the Oscar), Kate Buford (Author, Burt Lancaster – An American Life), Film Critic Kim Morgan, Author / Film Historian Alan K. Rode and Journalist/Film Historian Virginia Campbell.
- Audio Commentary with Tim Zinnemann and actor Alvin Sargent, a collaborator with Fred Zinnemann
- Two Vintage Featurettes: "The Making of From Here to Eternity," a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the film, and "Fred Zinnemann: As I See It," a look at the film's director.