Flags Of Our Fathers/Letters From Iwo Jima [2 Film Collection] [2007] [Region Free]

Excellent films, both of them. Flags of Our Fathers is about the raising of the Stars & Stripes on the top of Mount Suribachi on the island of Iwo Jima during World War II and how the iconic photograph was used in the United States to raise money for the war effort. It is a gritty, powerful, and often very moving film. I have just two criticisms: (I) I was frustrated at the film not being clear who was who of the men on Mount Suribachi and the photo, and (ii) people did go to church, especially at that time. Whilst I don't like it overdone, going to church was, and still is, a fact of life.Letters from Iwo Jima is the same battle seen from the Japanese side. The film covers very well the Death Cult aspect of Imperial Japan. It fails to cover adequately the sheer brutality of life in the Imperial Japanese Army at that time. There is none of the face slapping and physical violence that went with being in the Imperial Japanese Army. Also the film fails to cover the endless playing with their equivalent of the Ouija Board that the Japanese soldier indulged in, or, indeed, the more sordid aspect of the comfort women.Whilst I very much appreciated the absence of nudity and / or sex, I have to wonder if Clint Eastwood, Steven Spielberg, the scriptwriter(s) and others didn't sanitise the Imperial Japanese Army just a bit too much in leaving out the face slapping, the Comfort Women, and what is actually the animist beliefs of the average Japanese soldier at the time. Add in the lack of clarity on who was who in the famous picture of the flag raising on Mount Suribachi and maybe the films are only worth four stars, but, firstly, I have watched both films more than once, so somewhere along the line they were very good films, and, secondly, I am feeling generous, so five stars it is.

First the good bits - Letters From Iwo Jima is a beautifilly done film, you get drawn in by the characters, and it’s a cracking story, enjoyable to watch and thought provoking. Having said that, I wonder if it’s overly sympathetic to the Japanese army at that point in history. The soldiers are portrayed as everyday innocent boys, waiting for the bloody US war machine to inevitably destroy them on their home soil. No real hint that Japan at that time was a militaristic society, who had previously invaded mainland China in an attempt at local empire building, and commited atrocities such as the Rape of Nanking. Or the so-called “comfort women”, essentially young japanese girls enslaved to provide “comfort” to soldiers (you can guess what this involved). Or the basic fact that it was Japan who struck first by bombing Pearl Harbour and thus dragging the US into a war it never wanted to fight. And finally, when all was lost, and they were threatened with an atomic bomb, still refused to surrender. And after the first bomb, still refused, so a second had to be dropped. The alternative for the US being a land invasion of Japan, with a likely cost of millions of American lives. Anyway, if you park all of that history, and appreciate that neither side were angels, as I say it is actually a very good film, and it perfectly captures the sheer misery, intense fear, and ultimately barbarism of war.Flags Of Our Fathers, on the other hand, I found quite pedestrian and boring, and the acting decidedly hammy (unlike the actors in Letters From Iwo Jima, who were all fantastic). The central thrust is of the film is really a dig at the cynicism of wartime propaganda. Of course propaganda is shallow, one dimensional, and cynical, but I think you just have to realise that sometimes propaganda is entirely reasonable, if it serves a desirable outcome, such as mobilising a war effort to rid the world of evil, e.g. Hitler’s Nazis, or, at that time in history, Imperial Japan, who were after all allied with Hitler. In other words, WWII in my view was a just war, and the propaganda was justified as a means to an end. At the end of the day, the flag raising on Iwo Jima was a powerful symbol of freedom and democracy, and the power of the US as a champion of this in the world. And critically, it did actually happen as a fact, and brave young men gave their lives for it. The fact that the propaganda photo was a staged reconstruction of the actual flag raising, does not really change the meaning in my view, and it was still a rallying call for freedom, and ultimated helped to galvanize a US victory. So I think this is the main reason the film was a bit cliched, predictable, and a disappointment for me.I hasten to add that today, Japan is a lovely country, one of the best in the world probably, and another great example of the benefits of freedom, democracy, and capitalism. The people are wonderful, so respectful, peace-loving, and kind, and the country appears very stable and entirely at peace with itself. Maybe the US isn’t quite so at peace with itself, but its always had its ups and downs, and always come through in the end. Never bet against America, as Warren Buffett always says.Like I said above WWII was a just war in my opinion, if it never happened then Western Europe would currently be a Nazi fascist empire. Obviously though, not all wars are just, and some of them look just at first, then turn out to be a monumental mistake. Arguably the Vietnam War would be one, or the last Iraq War, both of which might have been high in the public consciousness at the time these films were made. Which might explain the underlying message of the films. But in the context of WWII I don’t think it completely works. Just my opinion. Although maybe it does work in the sense of provoking thought, as I’ve ended up writing a massive review here, which I never normally do.

Two films about one battle in WW2 will have the viewer questioning their own beliefs about heroism in war. In 'Flags of our Fathers' the true story of the surviving soldiers who raised the US flag on the important island of Iwo Jima is beautifully told. Plucked from the on-going battle, 3 ordinary soldiers find themselves touring a US that is losing interest in the war. Their mission is to sell war bonds, to whip up patriotism and convince the public that victory is just weeks away. But removed from their comrades and paraded at football matches, rallies and political meetings takes its toll on the men - none more than the Native American soldier who takes consolation in drink as the tour continues. The battle scenes on the sulplur coated island are as memorable as those in 'Saving Private Ryan' as the US forces find themselves fighting an enemy dug into a cave and trench system which gives them many opportunities to pick off the advancing troops. The story is told from the view point of one of the flag raisers and is based on a book with the same title.'Letters from Iwo Jima' will turn the viewer on their head. The same war, the same desperate battle - soldiers from a different side of the conflict. Young Japanese troops, on a 'suicide' mission and knowing that there is no help coming, face impossible odds as they fight to keep the strategic island in Japanese hands. We learn about these young men in flashbacks as they are taken from civilian life - and from wives and children - and landed on a desolute landscape which they are told must be defended. The battle rages through tunnels and caves, the tradition of "Honour" amongst Japanese soldiers is tested as their General - a man who lived some time in the US before the war - tries to give his men the best chance he can.Clint Eastwood has proved himself as a director before, but these 2 pictures secure his place among the greats. Moving, tragic, inspiring - 'Flags of our Fathers' and 'Letters from Iwo Jima' are a must for fans of war films and also for those who are not always comfortable with the genre.