Two war dramas directed by Clint Eastwood. 'Flags of Our Fathers' (2006) is
based on the book by James Bradley and Ron Powers. In February 1945, even as
victory in Europe was finally within reach, the war in the Pacific raged on.
One of the most crucial and bloodiest battles of the war was the struggle for
the island of Iwo Jima, which culminated with what would become one of the
most iconic images in history: five Marines and a Navy corpsman raising the
American flag on Mount Suribachi. But the surviving flag raisers had no
interest in being held up as symbols and did not consider themselves heroes;
they wanted only to stay on the front with their brothers in arms who were
fighting and dying without fanfare or glory. 'Letters from Iwo Jima' (2006) is
based on the book 'Picture Letters from Commander in Chief' by Tadamichi
Kuribayashi. 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 (Ken
Watanabe) is given command of the forces on the island and sets out to prepare
for the imminent attack. General Kuribayashi, however, does not favour the
rigid traditional approach recommended by his subordinates, and resentment and
resistance fester among his staff.