Letters From Iwo Jima
Rated R
Running time - 142 minutes

Directed by Clint Eastwood
Produced by Clint Eastwood, Robert Lorenz, and Steven Spielberg
Written by Iris Yamash1ta (screenplay)
Tadamichi Kuribayashi (book "Picture Letters from Commander in Chief")
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Cast -

Ken Watanabe .... General Tadamichi Kuribayashi
Kazunari Ninomiya .... Saigo
Tsuyoshi Ihara .... Baron Nishi
Ryo Kase .... Shimizu
Shido Nakamura .... Lieutenant Ito
Hiroshi Watanabe .... Lieutenant Fujita
Takumi Bando .... Captain Tanida
Yuki Matsuzaki .... Nozaki
Takashi Yamaguchi .... Kashiwara
Eijiro Ozaki .... Lieutenant Okubo
Nae Yuuki .... Hanako
Nobumasa Sakagami .... Admiral Ohsugi
Lucas Elliott .... Sam
Sonny Saito .... Medic Endo
Steve Santa Sekiyoshi .... Kanda
Hiro Abe .... Lt. Colonel Oiso
Toshiya Agata .... Captain Iwasaki
Yoshi Ishii .... Private Yamazaki
Toshi Toda .... Colonel Adachi
Ken Kensei .... Maj. General Hayashi
Ikuma Ando .... Ozawa
Masashi Nagadoi .... Admiral Ichimaru

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The island of Iwo Jima stands between the American military force and the home islands of Japan. Therefore the Imperial Japanese Army is desperate to prevent it from falling into American hands and providing a launching point for an invasion of Japan. General Tadamichi Kuribayashi is given command of the forces on the island and sets out to prepare for the imminent attack. General Kuribayashi, however, does not favor the rigid traditional approach recommended by his subordinates, and resentment and resistance fester among his staff. In the lower echelons, a young soldier, Saigo, a poor baker in civilian life, strives with his friends to survive the harsh regime of the Japanese army itself, all the while knowing that a fierce battle looms. When the American invasion begins, both Kuribayashi and Saigo find strength, honor, courage, and horrors beyond imagination.

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Ok, this movie started out better than I could have imagined. When I got to the theater, their computer was down, so the kid at the box office gave me a slip of paper that said, "Let this guy in". So I saw this one for free. Not too shabby for a movie that's only in limited release right now.

I was looking forward to this one, after watching Flags Of Our Fathers. However, don't go to this one expecting to see anything like the other one. And first and foremost, this is not an action war film.

This film does something that no other film that I can think of has done. Examine a war solely from the enemy's point of view. The entire film is subtitled and most Americans in this movie are faceless and nameless. You are, in essence, on the Japanese side of the lines.

Ken Watanabe is brilliant as the real life Lt. General. He treads the line of wanting to serve his country and wanting to protect his men perfectly. Unfortunately, there are plenty of zealots who will blindly die for their emperor. Kazunari Ninomiya is equally good as Saigo, a enlisted man who wants to do his duty, but would also like to get home to his family.

The title comes from the letters found on the island that many of the soldiers wrote to their loved ones before and during the battle. It humanizes an enemy like never before.

Although it was slow at times, I was completely engrossed in this one. It makes you realize that no matter what kind of politics are involved, that the ones who are asked to pay the price are just people like you and me, who just want to live their life. And as much as they want to do what is asked of them, they have the urge to survive and return to those they love.

I know my parents and grandparents used to tell me stories of how the Japanese were always thought of as barbaric during WW II and to some extent, that's probably true. But after watching this, I've also come to realize that they were human, like the rest of us. With the same hopes and dreams. There were indeed zealots on the Japanese side (especially in POW camps and in the oficers' ranks), but the average everyday foot soldier was probably just like anyone else. They were thrust into a war not of their choosing. And their story deserved to be told, too.



8/10