Letters from Iwo Jima (2006)
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The film portrays the Battle of Iwo Jima from the perspective of the Japanese soldiers.
The story
In 1944, Private First Class Saigo, a conscripted baker who misses his family, is digging beach defence trenches with his platoon when Lieutenant General Tadamichi Kuribayashi arrives to take command of the garrison. Kuribayashi orders the garrison to tunnel underground defenses throughout the island, believing they stand a better chance of holding out than relying entirely on beach defenses. As U.S. Marines land on the island after several days of bombardment, the Japanese forces face poor nutrition, unsanitary conditions, and heavy casualties. Saigo finds himself caught in the middle of the brutal conflict as the defense of the island intensifies.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In 1944, Private First Class Saigo, a conscripted baker, is digging beach defense trenches when Lieutenant General Tadamichi Kuribayashi takes command. Kuribayashi implements a defense in depth strategy using underground tunnels and mountain bunkers. Despite internal clashes with other officers and poor conditions, the Japanese forces hold out against U.S. Marines who secure a beachhead and attack Mount Suribachi. Saigo overhears Kuribayashi's retreat orders and convinces a fellow soldier, Shimizu, to disobey a suicide order from Colonel Adachi. After surviving a Marine ambush, they are confronted by Lieutenant Ito, who is later reprimanded by Lieutenant Colonel Baron Takeichi Nishi for insubordination. Nishi eventually commits suicide after being blinded by shrapnel. Saigo and Shimizu decide to surrender, but Shimizu is captured and executed. Kuribayashi orders a final counter-attack, and Saigo is tasked with destroying vital documents. Kuribayashi is critically wounded and eventually commits suicide with a M1911 pistol. Saigo buries him. In the present day, 2005, archaeologists find the bag of letters Saigo buried, and the voices of the soldiers who wrote them are heard.
- First release year
- 2006
- Runtime (minutes)
- 140
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- Japanese; English
- Directors
- Clint Eastwood
- Writers
- Iris Yamashita · screenplay; Iris Yamashita · story; Paul Haggis · story
- Cast and characters
- Ken Watanabe · Lieutenant General Tadamichi Kuribayashi; Kazunari Ninomiya; Tsuyoshi Ihara; Ryō Kase; Shidō Nakamura
- Genres
- war; drama
- Themes
- perils of war; humanism; sacrifice
- Tone and mood
- sensitive; respectful; thought-provoking
- Premise and plot tags
- war; historical; biographical elements
- Source material / true-story basis
- non-fiction books "Gyokusai sōshikikan" no etegami ("Picture letters from the Commander in Chief") by General Tadamichi Kuribayashi and So Sad To Fall In Battle: An Account of War by Kumiko Kakehashi
- Franchise connections
- Flags of Our Fathers
- Reception
- The film was critically acclaimed, particularly for its humanistic portrayal of the war and its research into Japanese society. It was a significant commercial success in Japan, ranking number 1 for five weeks, though it had a more limited release in the United States.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 91% · scale: 100% · review count: 202; Metacritic · score: 89 · scale: 100 · review count: 37
- Awards and nominations
- Academy Award · Best Sound Editing · win; Academy Award · Best Picture · nomination; Academy Award · Best Original Screenplay · nomination
- Production trivia
- The film was shot back to back with Flags of Our Fathers.; Most of the battle scenes were filmed in Iceland.; The battleship used in close-up shots of the fleet participated in the actual attack on Iwo Jima for five days.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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