Letters from Iwo Jima

Letters from Iwo Jima (2006) tells the battle of Iwo Jima from the Japanese side, almost entirely in Japanese. Eastwood made two films about the same battle. Flags of Our Fathers covers the American side; this one covers the same island and the same days through the soldiers on the other side. Together they are one structure. Two people are at the centre: General Kuribayashi, charged with defending the island, and a baker named Saigo. Kuribayashi has lived in America, knows the people there, and knows the battle is lost. Saigo wants to go home and has no other purpose. The title comes from a real source: letters sent from the island, most of which never arrived. Eastwood shot it very quickly and cheaply, preparing it while Flags was being made. The colour is almost entirely drained; the island is grey and the sand is black. That is not a stylistic choice but the island's actual volcanic colour. American soldiers appear in only a few scenes and mostly at a distance; here the enemy is the side not being told. The best section is the waiting in the caves: less a battle picture than a siege drama. It was nominated for best picture. It runs 141 minutes. Good for: war films, history, and Eastwood. Less good for: it is long, dark, and contains suicides.