Letters From Iwo Jima

Letters From Iwo Jima is an good war film. It isn't fantastic. I'm not sure what all the critical praise is about. I think Thin Red Line (1998) is far superior. It tales the story of the Battle of Iwo Jima from a side as Americans we don't often think of. I've heard a lot of critics say that perhaps as a student of history I've always been interested in the other narrative so I always thought war movies that were all patriotic were missing something. Recall that Thin Red Line does in fact have a few words from a Japanese soldier and I would suspect more were disposed on the editing room floor.

Letters does have one very vivid and memorable and also shocking scene involving honorable suicide. The acting is strong, especially Ken Watanabe and the direction solid but I was underwhelmed by this film. I would have enjoyed a deeper delving into the war culture of Japan that caused the men to fight as they did.