Watered Down and Diluted Version of "Hot" Novel.

Rating: 10/10 (22 May 2012)

BY THE YEAR of 1953, when this blockbuster hit the movie houses, we were able to step back and take a much more objective collective look at many of the happenings of World War II, and to the years immediately preceding it. Through the use of adult fiction in the form of the novel, we are given a multi-tiered presentation of, what many would consider, a much more innocent America.
BEING SET IN the U.S. Territory of Hawaii, and more specifically, right at Pearl Harbor, our story follows the story of several widely divergent people; telling their various stories through some loosely connected events. The story is knit together only by the membership by those in the U.S. Army; which function as a sort of cohesive literary glue.
STRICTLY SPEAKING, THIS film is not a War Movie; but rather a study of people coexisting and managing to live out their lives in the presence of and even in spite of some very difficult happenings. Surely, we would have to take into account the fact that this was an Amderica at the tail end of the Great Depression. The characters in the story would be hardened and already weary of life itself.
IN RESPECT TO the times in which the movie was made, its style is highly representative of the early '50's; which in a small way, dates it. The manner with which many of the contradictory happenings are dealt with are much more subtly dealt with. There is no area more indicative of this than in the matter of S-E-X.
THE PORTRAYAL OF Master Sergeant (Burt Lancaster) 'dating' his Commanding Officer's wife (Deborah Kerr) is done up rather casually and highly watered down from the print page counterpart in the novel. For Example; the two of them both just happen to have bathing suits on under their evening clothes; allowing for an on screen moonlight swim, but no skinny dipping here. This was the '50's and the censor wouldn't allow it!
WITH REGARD TO the relationship between the Montgomery Clift character and Donna Reed's, she has been described as a "Call Girl". In the portrayal, she works at a "hostess" at a "club". In reality, the establishment is a brothel and Miss Reed a prostitute.
THERE IS SOMETHING to recommend this to all; even with old fashioned 'cleaned up' version that it is. Being contrasted with today's, 'anything goes', butt naked, explicit sex laden methods, we prefer some subtlety and use of the power of suggestion. After all, it requires some higher degree of brain power (thinking) and is suitable for younger viewers. We can testify to the veracity of this; as we (that is I) were a very innocent 7 year old when we saw it at the old Ogden Theater, kin Chicago, and it all went strictly TWA (over my head).
BEFORE WE SIGN off, we must give proper praise and tribute to the performances by Ernest Borgnine and Frank Sinatra in rendering this as being a sort of "Noir goes to War" offering.