 |
This film was superbly done and I agree that it was much better than 'Flags of Our Fathers.' It flowed much better and you actually get to know some of the characters. It's definitely a just tribute to those Japanese soldiers who defended that doomed island and did their duty just like our boys did theirs. Sure there's the significant cultural differences, and you can argue that they started the war, but once those bullets start flying, we all feel the same fear and bleed the same blood. Foot soldiers don't start wars, and only the hardest of hearts could watch this and not feel sympathy for these young men. Another reviewer called this an "anti-bushido" movie and I think there is some truth to that. One of the recurring themes seems to be the contrast between the common soldier who just wants to survive, and the hardcore bushido officers who believe in nothing less than death before dishonor. Personally, there's a part of me that sympathizes with the whole honor-driven samurai tradition, but I can see how many regard it as primitive and senseless. The cave scene with the grenades comes to mind. I also have to say that the score is one of the most touching I've heard in awhile also. The main theme is one of those pieces that tears at your heart. All in all, this will go down as one of Clint Eastwood's finest achievements.Read full review
Iwo Jima was the only place the Japanese had controlled before the War that the Americans had not yet seized. What should have been a one or two-day cakewalk turned into a forty-day ordeal. General Kuribayashi(Ken Watanabe), conceives the defense of the island against the traditional strategy employed up to that point. He orders his men to dig a series of tunnels into the depths of Mt. Suribachi. It is a doomed defense, as the Japanese forces are far inferior both in number and weaponry, but Kuribayashi tells his men that it is worth it to die defending the island if it means one more day of freedom for their loved ones back home. After Director Clint Eastwood completed filming Flags of Our Fathers, he decided to create the companion film telling the story from the Japanese side of the war.Read full review
Waited forever it seemed to get this from our local video store. However it was worth the wait! We saw 'Flags of Our Fathers' first, and then this film, as they were shot at the same time, from the two different warring sides. Ken Watanabe played a good role, as well as several others in the film. The subtitles are a little bit of work to read all the time in the privacy of your home, where there are more distractions than a theater. The film length was fine, and the bonus features worth at least renting this film to view. I don't know if I would re-watch this film unless I was a WWII buff.
Another well done film by Clint Eastwood. I watched the companion film Flags Of Our Fathers the week before viewing Letters From Iwo Jima, which was a great film also. In some ways though I found I liked Letters From Iwo Jima better. It may be because of the way Eastwood told the story, which presented the Japanese side of the battle for the Island. Most war films depict the Japanese as a faceless evil enemy, but here they are shown as individuals with the same human hopes, fears, and emotions as the men they are fighting. When viewed together these two films make up a complete telling of this horrible conflict in a way that only a director like Eastwood could tell. The extras on disk 2 are excellent and really shows how complex and impressive this production was.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
Great war film. Lots of action, drama, suspense, and gore. You get to see first hand, through the eyes of a low ranking soldier, how brutal most (not all) of the Japanese officers were, even to their own troops. The film takes away all stereotypes that every Japanese soldier was a monster. I was reluctant to see it because "Flags of our fathers" was such a god awful film, but Clint Eastwood got it right the second time around with "Letters from Iwo Jima". I highly recomend this film, it is probably the best WWII film about the pacific theatre.
Current slide {CURRENT_SLIDE} of {TOTAL_SLIDES}- Best Selling in DVDs & Blu-ray Discs
Current slide {CURRENT_SLIDE} of {TOTAL_SLIDES}- Save on DVDs & Blu-ray Discs
Current slide {CURRENT_SLIDE} of {TOTAL_SLIDES}- You may also like
