Flags of Our Fathers Movie Review

Flags of Our Fathers isn’t the gung-ho American war film that might be expected to come out of a collaboration between director Clint Eastwood and producer Steven Spielberg (Band of Brothers, Saving Private Ryan). The story Eastwood brings to the screen is based on true events, but unless you’re familiar with the real story of the film's source material (the book by James Bradley) you might be taken aback.

The movie’s approach to the American government’s handling of the soldiers shown erecting a flag atop Mt Suribachi in the famous photo entitled "Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima" is unflinchingly honest. Flags of Our Fathers pulls no punches in showing how the government’s public relations machine manipulated and nearly destroyed the lives of three decent American servicemen during World War II.

The Story

In 1945 America needed money to continue to finance their involvement in WWII (pay the troops, purchase supplies, etc), but the public’s support of government-sponsored fundraising campaigns was seriously waning. When efforts to raise the funds were at their most bleak, an Associated Press photographer named Joe Rosenthal raised his camera and snapped off a shot which turned the sagging War Bonds drive around.

One photo did what no amount of hand-wringing or public pleading had managed to do. One photo of six American servicemen driving a flagpole into the ground high atop a hill on Iwo Jima became the rallying point for a new War Bonds campaign the American public couldn't help but embrace and support.

The three surviving American soldiers captured for eternity in that photo were transported off the battlefield and paraded around America as the heroes of Iwo Jima. But there was a big problem with the photograph. The American government and military officials chose to ignore the fact that the photo wasn’t a spontaneous act captured in the midst of battle. No, this particular snapshot was actually of the second flag-raising done after an officer demanded the first flag be removed (he didn’t want it hanging in some politician’s office) and a second flag be erected in its place. Six soldiers - five U.S. Marines and a Navy Corpsman - were ordered by their superior officer to take down the original flag and put up a new one. Rosenthal went along hoping he could get a good shot of the area and wound up shooting one of the most recognizable images of war in history.

Flags of Our Fathers follows James Bradley’s book, telling the story of what happened to the three men who were used – and it would be fair to say abused – in a publicity campaign in which all those intimately involved understood to be based on a misleading photograph. The film also shows how the men were treated like movie stars only to be discarded and ignored after they’d served their purpose.

The Real Heroes and Those Who Portray Them in Flags of Our Fathers

Of the young group of actors, Ryan Phillippe’s the most recognizable face of the lot. Excellent in last year’s awards darling, Crash, Phillippe follows up that critically acclaimed role with yet another solid performance. Phillippe’s matured into an actor to be reckoned with and delivers an inspired performance in Flags of Our Fathers. Playing Navy medic John ‘Doc’ Bradley, Phillippe’s pretty much the heart and soul of the film. Reluctantly thrust into the spotlight, Doc Bradley was a calming influence on his fellow flag-raising heroes, keeping things steady even under a great deal of stress – both on the battlefield and on stages across America.

Playing flag-raiser U.S. Marine Rene Gagnon is Jesse Bradford, best known for roles in teen movies such as Bring It On and Swimfan. Gagnon was the most accepting of the group, and took advantage of opportunities afforded him during the publicity campaign. Bradford plays Gagnon as someone totally at ease in the spotlight, a charismatic schmoozer who did whatever was needed of him in the campaign to raise funds for the troops.

While Gagnon accepted his 15 minutes of fame, American Indian and U.S. Marine Ira Hayes (played by Adam Beach) couldn’t deal with being labeled a hero while his fellow Marines were losing their lives in battle. Hayes felt so guilty about being pulled off of Iwo Jima that he drowned his sorrows in booze, acted out against his ‘handlers’, and ultimately was shipped back to fight some more. As the conflicted Hayes, Adam Beach completely transforms into a man struggling to understand the events which thrust him into the national spotlight. Beach did an impressive amount of research and it shows with the way the character’s inner struggle play out across his face.

Page 2: Summing It Up and the Final Grade