Clint Eastwood is known to many as Dirty Harry or Blondie from The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. He is known to some as one of the greatest action heroes of the twentieth century. What many often seem to forget about Eastwood is his impeccable storytelling ability. He has the ability to take simple stories and turn them into tales of grandeur that transcend the world and leave a taste of satisfaction in the mouths of his viewers.
Flags of Our Fathers follows six young men, and their band of brothers, through the trenches of World War II. As they prepare for and traverse the bloodbath known as Iwo Jima, one of the deadliest battles in American history, Eastwood was able to capture more than just the difficulties that befell the heroes of the story. Brotherhood, camaraderie and the fight for freedom all made their way to the front of the story, and Eastwood found himself telling an epic tale of perseverance as much as one of devastation and loss.
For those of us who were not there (or who were not even alive at the time), understanding the sacrifice and the loss that played a role in WWII is beyond possibility. It is important that those who were not there have the ability to, one day, be able to truly appreciate the dedication and the effort behind what young men were doing to protect the rights and the freedoms of the American people and others around the globe. The visuals present in this film were enough to capture the harsh realities of the people who lived not only during the war, but physically through the war. These visuals are often difficult to look at as they depict trauma, torture and death. The best comparison--for those of you who understand--would be Steven Spielberg’s Saving Private Ryan (1998). The images were real; they did not appear fabricated or altered for Hollywood. Each scene drove audiences deeper and deeper into the fractured minds of the survivors of Iwo Jima.
The screenwriters, William Broyles Jr. and Paul Haggis, managed to create a script that not only depicts the harsh realities of war, but the troublesome aftermath for the people who experienced it firsthand and their loved ones. Eastwood, Broyles and Haggis were able to group the thoughts and feelings of everyone affected by WWII into one, cohesive story, as to make sure audiences felt the full effect that true military personnel would have.
Eastwood’s ability to beautifully tell stories of camaraderie and tragedy coupled with the intense visuals, prepared, in large part, by production designer Henry Bumstead, presented audiences with vivid and realistic tales of the flag raising at Iwo Jima. The cast and crew delivered inspiring performances that will be held onto for years to come, and, through them, the heroism of those men will live on.
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