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Letters From Iwo Jima

R Released Feb 9, 2007 2h 21m War History Drama List
91% Tomatometer 204 Reviews 86% Audience Score 250,000+ Ratings
Long-buried missives from the island reveal the stories of the Japanese troops who fought and died there during World War II. Among them are Saigo (Kazunari Ninomiya), a baker; Baron Nishi (Tsuyoshi Ihara), an Olympic champion; and Shimizu (Ryô Kase), an idealistic soldier. Though Lt. Gen. Tadamichi Kuribayashi (Ken Watanabe) knows he and his men have virtually no chance of survival, he uses his extraordinary military skills to hold off American troops as long as possible. Read More Read Less
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Letters From Iwo Jima

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Critics Consensus

A powerfully humanistic portrayal of the perils of war, this companion piece to Flags of our Fathers is potent and thought-provoking, and it demonstrates Clint Eastwood's maturity as a director.

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Critics Reviews

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Brian Tallerico UGO Instead of showing us the differences between the three men, Eastwood chooses to illustrate how much they were alike and, more importantly, how much they resemble you and me. Mar 24, 2007 Full Review Derek Malcolm London Evening Standard The whole is a more satisfactory entity than Flags of Our Fathers - and the final scene, which has veterans and relatives scouring the tunnels and caves for the buried letters, is a suitably moving coda. Rated: 4/5 Feb 23, 2007 Full Review Anthony Quinn Independent (UK) Eastwood and his cinematographer Tom Stern have done a superb and possibly unique job in showing both sides of this dreadful battle, and the pair of films together already look monumental. Rated: 3/5 Feb 23, 2007 Full Review David Walsh World Socialist Web Site One must give Eastwood a good deal of credit ... To make a film about the suffering "your" soldiers endure is one thing, to make one about the horrors inflicted on the "enemy" is something else again. Feb 14, 2021 Full Review Mike Massie Gone With The Twins Infinitely more compelling than its predecessor, yet equally lengthy and ill-paced. Rated: 6/10 Nov 21, 2020 Full Review Micheal Compton Bowling Green Daily News A subdued masterpiece with a unique perspective on war. Rated: A- Nov 21, 2019 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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NEON 1 I know this movie gonna be sad but didn't expect it to be so sad. It's like i can feel the atmosphere in the film Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/16/24 Full Review Jordan M This was such a great movie, I love how human the characters feel! It does a really good job of letting you see and feel the mindset of a young overwhelmed Japanese soldier just trying to survive while also keeping his pride! Would highly recommend it to anyone interested in WW2 in the Pacific! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/15/24 Full Review Sergey B Absolutely amazing film - depicts the horrors of war and humanist moments in it from Japanese perspective, demonstrating the evilness and futility of war. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 04/20/24 Full Review John H Great movie about the Japanese perspective of Battle of Iwo Jima. A little slow paced but really shows the humanity of Japanese soldiers but also the devotion to Emperor and Country. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 03/11/24 Full Review Elvis D Después de Flags Of Our Fathers, Clint Eastwood presenta esta película orientada en la batalla de Iwo Jima desde la perspectiva de Japón. Flags Of Our Fathers narraba que significo esta guerra para Estados Unido, Letters From Iwo Jima narra que significo dicha guerra para Japón. Lo interesante es que Clint decidió hacer dos películas sobre la misma guerra, pero narrada desde dos perspectivas diferentes. Es algo que muchas películas bélicas no han hecho para conocer mejor lo que una guerra significo para cada país. Eso sirve para amplificar más la visión que el mundo ha tenido sobre las guerras mundiales viendo las dos caras de la moneda y rompiendo con el paradigma de quienes son los buenos y los malos. El cine de Hollywood ha tenido mayormente la costumbre de representar a los soldados de Estados Unidos como los verdaderos héroes de la historia, pero cada historia tiene más de una versión. Clint Eastwood estuvo incluso en el ejército, así que él tiene una visión clara sobre lo que es ser un soldado que debe seguir las órdenes de su patria. La película nos muestra a los soldados japoneses como seres humanos como cualquier otro que solo están cumpliendo una misión, pero se puede ver reflejado en ellos el miedo y la desesperación que experimentan en combate. Lo interesante es la integración de Tadamichi con un soldado estadounidense capturado, demostrando que los soldados de ambos no son diferentes porque al fin y al cabo son personas que anhelan sobrevivir al campo de batalla para regresar a sus hogares. La película deja una clara lección de que en la guerra no hay héroes o villanos, los soldados son solamente peones enviados a combatir para acabar siendo mártires. La película hace un muy buen trabajo en mostrar el lado humano de los soldados japoneses, haciendo que empaticemos con ellos y entendamos el temor que sienten. Se puede decir que Letters From Iwo Jima refleja bastante bien el dolor del ejército japonés en aquel combate y es bastante creíble. Hacerla incluso hablada en japonés fue un acierto para darle ese nivel de credibilidad porque se siente como una película japonesa y es sorprendente que Clint Eastwood haya podido hacer una película que se siente más humana y menos Hollywoodense. En conclusión, Letters From Iwo Jima es una de las mejores películas de Clint Eastwood y una de las mejores películas bélicas del cine por su digna representación del espíritu japonés siendo afectado por La Segunda Guerra Mundial. Mi calificación final para esta película es un 10/10. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/03/24 Full Review Gareth v The companion piece to Flags Of Our Fathers, this far superior movie is a poignant and thought provoking look at the brutality of war. One of the best WWII movies to be made. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/26/24 Full Review Read all reviews
Letters From Iwo Jima

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Cast & Crew

Flags of Our Fathers 76% 69% Flags of Our Fathers TRAILER for Flags of Our Fathers The Great Raid 38% 70% The Great Raid Saving Private Ryan 94% 95% Saving Private Ryan TRAILER for Saving Private Ryan The Thin Red Line 80% 80% The Thin Red Line To End All Wars 62% 85% To End All Wars Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis Long-buried missives from the island reveal the stories of the Japanese troops who fought and died there during World War II. Among them are Saigo (Kazunari Ninomiya), a baker; Baron Nishi (Tsuyoshi Ihara), an Olympic champion; and Shimizu (Ryô Kase), an idealistic soldier. Though Lt. Gen. Tadamichi Kuribayashi (Ken Watanabe) knows he and his men have virtually no chance of survival, he uses his extraordinary military skills to hold off American troops as long as possible.
Director
Clint Eastwood
Producer
Clint Eastwood, Steven Spielberg, Robert Lorenz
Screenwriter
Iris Yamashita
Distributor
Warner Bros.
Production Co
Amblin Entertainment, Malpaso Company, Warner Bros., DreamWorks SKG
Rating
R (Graphic War Violence)
Genre
War, History, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Feb 9, 2007, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Dec 1, 2008
Box Office (Gross USA)
$13.8M
Runtime
2h 21m
Sound Mix
Dolby Digital, DTS, SDDS
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)
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