I agree with some of the previous reviewers comments - particularly in relation to confusion over the main characters. However as with most of Clint Eastwoods films this has a depth to it that is missing from the majority of films. It is beautifully shot. Clint Eastwood has defintely watched John Ford films. There was one shot with a character framed in a doorway, which could have been straight out of the Searchers.
The battle scenes which are spread throughout the film are well done and the effect they have on the main characters is profound. I don't want to see 2 hours of continuous carnage, so the jump cuts to different time sequences were a welcome relief from the battles. The sequences where the 'heroes' are dragged round to raise money for the war effort seemed very authentic, but the book this film is based on does not place nearly as much emphasis on this. Nevertheless I could feel myself getting angrier as it went along. Having been traumatised by the war, when you return to the US it seems you don't get to be with your family, you are treated like a commodity to raise money.
Ultimately it is a rather depressing film, as it deals with not only the war, but also the long lasting after effects as well. See this and then watch Clint Eastwoods companian film 'Letters from Iwo Jima' which looks at the same battle from the Japanese point of view and is probably the better of the two films.