Letters from Iwo Jima

Sixty-one years ago, us and japanese armies met on Iwo Jima. Decades later, several hundred letters are unearthed from that stark island's soil. The letters give faces and voices to the men who fought there, as well as the extraordinary general who led them.

The japanese soldiers are sent to Iwo Jima knowing that in all probability they will not come back among them are Sajgo (Kazunari ninomiya), a baker who wants only to live to see the face of his newborn daughter: Baron Nishi (Tuyoshi Ihara). An olympic equestrian champion known around the world for his skill and his honor; Shimizu (Ryo Kase), a young former military policeman whose idealism has not yet been tested by war; and lieutenant Nakamura, a strict military man who would rather accept suicide than surrender.

Leading the defense is lt. general Tadamichi Kurjbayashi (Ken Watanabe), whose travels in america have revealed to him the hopeless nature of the war but also given him strategic insight into how to take on the vast american armada streaming in from across the pacific.

With battle defense other than sheer will and the volcanic rock of the island itself, gen. Kuribayashi’s unprecedented tactics transform what was predicted to be a quick and bloody defeat into n early 40 days of h eroic and resource ful combat.

Almost 7000 american soldiers were killed on Iwo Jima; more than 20,000 japanese troops perished. The black sands of Iwo Jima are stained with their blood, but their sacrifices, their struggles, their courage and their compassion live on in the letters they sent home.

From academy award winner Clint Eastwood (“Million dollar baby” and "Unforgiven") comes the untold story of the japanese soldiers and their general who 61 years ago defended against the invading american forces on the island of Iwo Jima.
In an effort to explore an event that continues to resonate with both cultures, Clint Eastwood was haunted by the sense that making-only one film – “Flags of our fathers" - would be telling only half the story. With this unprecedented dual film project, shot back-to-back to be released in sequence, Eastwood seeks to reveal the battle of Iwo Jima - and, by implication, the war in the pacific - as a clash not only of arms but of cultures.

While they tell separate stories from different perspectives and in different languages, “Letters from Iwo Jima" and “Flags of our fathers" ar Eastwood’s tribute to those who lost lives on both sides of the conflict. The director hopes to tell both sides of the story and with any luck, collectively reveal a new way of looking at his profoundly affecting moment in our shared history.

Directed by
Clint Eastwood

Cast
Ken Watanabe - General Tadamichi Kuribayashi
Kazunari Ninomiya - Saigo
Tsuyoshi Ihara - Baron Nishi
Ryo Kase - Shimizu
Shido Nakamura - Lieutenant Ito
Hiroshi Watanabe - Lieutenant Fujita
Takumi Bando - Captain Tanida
Yuki Matsuzaki - Nozaki
Takashi Yamaguchi - Kashiwara
Eijiro Ozaki - Lieutenant Okubo
Nae Yuuki - Hanako
Nobumasa Sakagami - Admiral Ohsugi
Akiko Shima - Lead Woman
Lucas Elliott - Sam