00s Movie Review - Letters from Iwo Jima

Director: Clint Eastwood
Genre: Drama/ Action/ Adventure
Runtime: 141 minutes
Year: 2006
Starring: Ken Watanabe, Kazunari Ninomiya, Tsuyoshi Ihara, Ryô Kase, Shidô Nakamura, Hiroshi Watanabe, Takumi Bando, Yuki Matsuzaki

Description: The story of the battle of Iwo Jima between the United Stated and Imperial Japan during World War II, as told from the perspective of the Japanese who fought it.

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2025 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 4: A FILM FROM 2006
 
Review: Several decades ago, hundreds of letters were unearthed from the hard groun of Iwo Jima. These letters were from Japanese soldiers and officers who perished on the island in February and March of 1945. They gave the men a voice posthumously. Knowing that their chances of survival were very slim, they were sent to Iwo Jima long ago. Dying honorably was the best they could do. A very different attitude from that with which their American enemies went into battle.

General Tadamichi Kuribayashi was sent to the island to lead the troops there and defent the island, the last line of defense between the Americans and the Japanese mainland for as long as possible. With his cunning strategies, unprecedented in Japan, he and his army managed to hold our forty days against the American troops, who had expected an easy and quick win. In the end, this cost many lives on both sides: seven thousand Americans and as many as twenty thousand Japanese died before the battle was over.

Clint Eastwood wanted his film to pay tribute to the fallen from both sides. “Flags of Our Fathers” came out first, telling the story from the American’s point of view. And a few months later “Letters from Iwo Jima” was released. This last film hits harder and is the better of the two.

While one of the main characters, a soldier who would prefer to just be at home with his family and has no desire at all to sacrifice himself for his country, is a character we have seen before in war films, the other main characters offer something more original. The Japanese battle mentality is especially fascinating at times.

If you have seen “Flags of Our Fathers” and liked it, it might be interesting to see the other side of the same story. Because, even though “Letters of Iwo Jima” is following the same events, this one is way more interesting and captivating.

Rating: 4/ 5