a boy in the life

Letters from Iwo Jima is a foreign film made by a non-foreigner. The story follows General Tadamichi Kuribayashi (Ken Watanabe) and his men during the battle for the island of Iwo Jima.

The story should not surprise anyone. If you don’t already know what happens at the end, let me tell you know. The Japanese loose the Island.  Even the soldiers and the generals know that the battle is lost before it has started.  However, they fight on; loyal to their country and their families to the end.

One thing I did not like about the film was the length. I think Mr. Eastwood has a habit of making long films.

That acting was good. Honorable mention should go to Kazunari Ninomiya.  He provided the emotional impact of the story and the person with whom the audience could sympathize and relate to.

What I got from the movie was that even though all who are involved in wars do not necessarily wish to be there all the participants will fight for what they believe in.  Hopefully it will result in a quick end to the war.

If you are a move/film goer you will enjoy the movie.  It is a little long for the average joe and being in Japanese will be tough for some people to watch.  Nonetheless, it is still a great movie experience.