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Amazon.co.uk Review
Thematically ambitious and emotionally complex, Clint Eastwood's Flags of Our Fathers is an intimate epic with much to say about war and the nature of heroism in America. Based on the non-fiction bestseller by James Bradley (with Ron Powers), and adapted by Million Dollar Baby screenwriter Paul Haggis (Jarhead screenwriter William Broyles Jr. wrote an earlier draft that was abandoned when Eastwood signed on to direct), this isn't so much a conventional war movie as it is a thought-provoking meditation on our collective need for heroes, even at the expense of those we deem heroic. In telling the story of the six men (five Marines, one Navy medic) who raised the American flag of victory on the battle-ravaged Japanese island of Iwo Jima on February 23rd, 1945, Eastwood takes us deep into the horror of war (in painstakingly authentic Iwo Jima battle scenes) while emphasizing how three of the surviving flag-raisers (played by Adam Beach, Ryan Phillippe, and Jesse Bradford) became reluctant celebrities – and resentful pawns in a wartime publicity campaign – after their flag-raising was immortalized by Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal in the most famous photograph in military history.
As the surviving flag-raisers reluctantly play their public roles as "the heroes of Iwo Jima" during an exhausting (but clearly necessary) wartime bond rally tour, Flags of Our Fathers evolves into a pointed study of battlefield valor and misplaced idolatry, incorporating subtle comment on the bogus nature of celebrity, the trauma of battle, and the true meaning of heroism in wartime. Wisely avoiding any direct parallels to contemporary history, Eastwood allows us to draw our own conclusions about the Iwo Jima flag-raisers and how their postwar histories (both noble and tragic) simultaneously illustrate the hazards of exploited celebrity and society's genuine need for admirable role models during times of national crisis. Flags of Our Fathers defies the expectations of those seeking a more straightforward war-action drama, but it's richly satisfying, impeccably crafted film that manages to be genuinely patriotic (in celebrating the camaraderie of soldiers in battle) while dramatising the ultimate futility of war. Eastwood's follow-up film, Letters from Iwo Jima, examines the Iwo Jima conflict from the Japanese perspective.
Critically hailed as an instant classic, Clint Eastwood's Letters from Iwo Jima is a masterwork of uncommon humanity and a harrowing, unforgettable indictment of the horrors of war. In an unprecedented demonstration of worldly citizenship, Eastwood (from a spare, tightly focused screenplay by first-time screenwriter Iris Yamashita) has crafted a truly Japanese film, with Japanese dialogue (with subtitles) and filmed in a contemplative Japanese style, serving as both complement and counterpoint to Eastwood's previously released companion film Flags of Our Fathers. Where the earlier film employed a complex non-linear structure and epic-scale production values to dramatise one of the bloodiest battles of World War II and its traumatic impact on American soldiers, Letters reveals the battle of Iwo Jima from the tunnel- and cave-dwelling perspective of the Japanese, hopelessly outnumbered, deprived of reinforcements, and doomed to die in inevitable defeat.
While maintaining many of the traditions of the conventional war drama, Eastwood extends his sympathetic touch to humanise "the enemy," revealing the internal and external conflicts of soldiers and officers alike, forced by circumstance to sacrifice themselves or defend their honour against insurmountable odds. From the weary reluctance of a young recruit named Saigo (Kazunari Ninomiya) to the dignified yet desperately anguished strategy of Japanese commander Tadamichi Kuribayashi (played by Oscar-nominated The Last Samurai costar Ken Watanabe), whose letters home inspired the film's title and present-day framing device, Letters from Iwo Jima (which conveys the bleakness of battle through a near-total absence of colour) steadfastly avoids the glorification of war while paying honorable tribute to ill-fated men who can only dream of the comforts of home. --Jeff Shannon
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48 of 51 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Two films, two perspectives, one battle. And what is a hero?,
This review is from: Flags of our Fathers & Letters from Iwo Jima (2 Disc Special Edition) [DVD] [2007] (DVD)
The Iwo Jima double film pack is an absolute bargain and is only one of a very few war films that will show you the battle from the perspectives of the two opposing countries.
Flags Of Our Fathers has been compared to Saving Private Ryan, for good or bad, in truth the film is actually aimed at showing how the "heroes" of Iwo Jima were used by the American government to fund the war effort. The action is merely a backdrop to the story of Doc's son finding out about his father, and the history of the symbolic flag raising. My personal favourite was Letters From Iwo Jima, the film telling the Japanese side of events, it's a harrowing story of how the Japanese garrison were left to wither on the vine by their country. Of how the old Samurai ways of the officers still remained in the twentieth centuries bloodiest conflict, and how even in this hell humanity shines through. These are not "easy to watch films", at times they are uncomfortable, not because of poor story or direction, but becasue of the content within, because of the pointless waste of life shown. Worth one watch at least, and a fine addition to anyone's DVD collection.
32 of 34 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Eastwood's best films - one about the battle, one about the postwar,
By Rob (Oxford, UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Flags of our Fathers & Letters from Iwo Jima (4 Disc Special Edition) [DVD] (DVD)
Flags of Our Fathers took some undeserved flak from a few teenage blowhards & armchair generals because it wasn't the straightforward recounting of the battle of Iwo Jima they imagined. Well it's their loss because seen back to back with its brilliant companion piece, the Japanese language Letters from Iwo Jima, it becomes clear what a twin masterpiece the 77 year old Eastwood has made.
In Fathers the three American flag-raisers come back to the States to be hailed as heroes for having done nothing more than raising a pole. Haunted by horrific memories of combat, surrounded by Government spin that excludes one man who was there & falsely credits another, the Marines just have to bear it as best they can. Eastwood's thoughtful, reflective, melancholy rumination about the gap between combat reality & combat glory is complemented by Letters from Iwo Jima. Evoking amazing emotional power the film takes us deep into the lives of men ranging from a lowly private to a noble General. If Flags was haunted by the sad memories of old men then Letters is all about giving voice to the unknown soldiers sent to their death in a futile cause & denied by their culture even the possibility of surrender. Both movies are immaculately crafted with memorable performances, beautiful burnished photography that is almost, but not quite, black & white, filled with great scenes both on & off the battlefield & memorable music scores, principally by Eastwood & his son Kyle. Letters is about the battle & the more emotional of the two as well being the more conventionally told, whilst Flags is about the postwar, is non-linear in it structure & the more intellectual. Both films are less interested in overwhelming the viewer with scenes of battle (although there are astonishingly well done battle scenes in both) than they are in exploring the demands each culture made of its men. Each is impressive on its own but what is so fascinating is that seen back to back they fill in the gaps in the others story & together constitute one of the great cinematic portraits of men in war.
14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Steelbook Edition,
By
This review is from: Flags of our Fathers & Letters from Iwo Jima (4 Disc Special Edition) [DVD] (DVD)
Just to let everyone know that this edition is indeed the 4 Disc Steelbook Edition and that it is at a bargin price. You will not find this cheaper anywhere else.......
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