Film Fetish: "Letters From Iwo Jima"

Letters From Iwo Jima (2006)
- directed by Clint Eastwood

Set in the World War II Pacific Theater, the battle for the Japanese island of Iwo Jima is recounted through the eyes of a lowly farmer and the legendary General Tadamichi Kuribayashi.

This is the companion piece to Flags Of Our Fathers, and much like that film, this film more or less disappointed on the same level. I enjoyed all the elements of the film on some level, except for the editing. It all seemed very jumbled. And again, I'll repeat that I'm not one to get obsessed over the technicality of something like jump cuts, etc. But when they're done in such a way as to confuse the viewer... well I'm gonna notice, and I'm gonna harp on it. Sadly, it really detracted from the overall experience. Given that I have somewhat of a Japanese fetish... I'd always imagined I'd fall in love with this film. While I enjoyed it more than Flags Of Our Fathers, I wouldn't exactly say I loved the movie. It was okay, for all the same reasons the other movie got a passing grade. The majority of both films deal with the same material, and so I more or less feel the same about both.

7/10 On par with Flags Of Our Fathers, if not, it was certainly better. Worth a viewing if you're in the mood for a wartime film.

DS333, confused.