For those unfamiliar with Clint Eastwood’s recent massive undertaking, Letters from Iwo Jima is the companion film to Flags of our Fathers (see my previous review). What Eastwood has done is taken two different perspectives on the same battle: one from the soldiers responsible for raising the famous flag on Mt Suribachi, the other from the Japanese soldiers as they prepare and enter the battle themselves. Letters is the latter and possibly stronger film of the two.

As Clint Eastwood was developing what would become Flags of our Fathers he read a book containing Japanese letters written to friends and families during a war. These letters had been found on a battlefield (not Iwo Jima) years later and expressed the soldiers? innermost thoughts during the battle. Eastwood decided that such a concept could be used as a second film surrounding the events of Iwo Jima. The idea was that while Americans are given hope that they will return home after the brave fight, the Japanese soldiers were never given such hope. In fact, when drafted, they were pretty much expected to die in battle for their country. This concept is presented masterfully in Letters as a semi-fictional dramatization of life and death during the war. This perfectly compliments the more historical documentary style of Flags, in which the American soldiers are looking back after the war.

The story is centered on General Kuribayashi (Ken Wantanabe), leader of the small group of soldiers defending the island, and Saigo (Kazunari Ninomiya), a simple baker who desires to return to his wife and newborn. It is interesting to see how different these two characters are, yet because of their honor, dignity, and love of their families, they are the same. Kuribayashi treats the inferior soldier Saigo with respect initially, and Saigo can later do the same for Kuribayashi. During the course of the film, as the title implies, the two men are writing letters to their families and remembering their lives as they once were.

Video

I found the VC-1 of this Blue-Ray disc to be simply stunning. While it does not have the cleanest picture I have ever seen, due to the light grain and muted colors used, the level of detail and the depths of the blacks against grays are excellent. Aside from some outdoor shots (which also look great) only muted blues and greens peek out of the caves and much of the battlefield. This makes for an interesting contrast with the bright oranges and reds of the explosions. A nice balance of realism and artistry presented in 2.35:1 widescreen format.

Audio

Thank you Warner Bros! We finally get a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track on BD and it?s a winner. Dialog is clear, albeit in Japanese only (no English dub), and the surround mix is far better than that of Flags (which was done by Paramount, not WB). Explosions are plenty bass heavy with good use of LFE. Sounds of firing guns put you in the middle of the action. The orchestrated score is effective and sets the mood nicely. Audio also comes in Dolby Digital 5.1 also Japanese only. Subtitles available in English, French, and Spanish. All in all a great audio presentation.

Special Features

Paramount gave us a pretty decent 2nd disc of high-def extras with Flags, but Warner Bros gives us only a few skimpy extras. (personally I?ll take the TrueHD track over the extras though). We get a photo montage, and a press conference, both of which are far from essential, and two featurettes. The featurettes are both worth watching. One is Red Sun, Black Sand which has Eastwood discussing making the movie and his thoughts and inspirations. The second is The Faces of Combat where various actors discuss their roles. They are both insightful and adequate as bonus features go, but a commentary track really should have been included.

Final Thoughts

Clint Eastwood?s vision is clear and well realized in Letters from Iwo Jima. While some may be turned off by the use of Japanese dialog only, they shouldn?t be. This is an excellent film and an excellent BD. Even if Flags wasn?t your thing, this is a very different film and you may find much to appreciate.

Special Features List

• Red Sun, Black Sand
• The Faces of Combat
• Photo/Audio Montage
• Press Conference