Synopsis
An American war film adapted by William Broyles, Jr. and
Paul Haggis from the book of the same title by James Bradley and Ron Powers
(2000), Flags of Our Fathers recounts the story of the five Marines and one
Navy Corpsman who raised the American flag on Mount Suribachi during the World
War II Battle of Iwo Jima. Directed, co-produced, and scored by Clint Eastwood,
the film examines how the event changed the lives of the surviving flag raisers.
Background
On 23 February 1945 Associated Press photographer Joe
Rosenthal took a hasty snapshot of five U.S. Marines and a sailor raising the
American flag on the summit of Iwo Jima’s Mount Suribachi, signaling a key
moment in wresting the island from the Japanese (though the flag-raising
photographed by Rosenthal was actually the second one with a larger flag, not
the first, and the Battle of Iwo Jima would rage on for another 31 days).
Published in the New York Times two days later and then picked up by hundreds
of U.S. newspapers, the photograph won Rosenthal a Pulitzer Prize and quickly
became, for Americans, the most iconic image of World War II—reproduced on 150
million 3¢ postage stamps, 1.2 million war bond drive posters, and 5,000
billboards in 1945 and later immortalized by the Marine Corps War Memorial in
Arlington Ridge Park, Virginia: a colossal sculpture by Felix de Weldon
dedicated in 1954 that features bronze figures of the six flag raisers 32 feet
tall. Almost 49 years after the battle, James Bradley, son of John “Doc”
Bradley (1923–1994), a medic on Iwo Jima, discovered a letter postmarked 26
February 1945 that his father wrote mentioning his own involvement in the flag
raising: a startling revelation that inspired Bradley to co-author, with Ron
Powers, Flags of Our Fathers (Bantam, 2000), a compelling account of the battle
and how the three surviving flag raisers fared afterwards. The book spent 46
weeks on the New York Times nonfiction bestseller list, 6 weeks at the
number-one spot. A month after its publication, Steven Spielberg acquired the
option on the film rights for DreamWorks Pictures and hired screenwriter
William Broyles, Jr. (Jarhead) to write a screen adaptation. Actor-director
Clint Eastwood read the book in 2003, liked it, and wanted to make a movie
version. On 26 February 2004, at the Academy Awards Governors Ball, Eastwood
and Spielberg conversed with each other about Flags of Our Fathers and
Spielberg suggested that he produce and Eastwood direct, an arrangement formalized
that July. Thereafter, Eastwood brought in Paul Haggis (Million Dollar Baby) to
do a rewrite that was completed in late October 2004. Reading about the Battle
of Iwo Jima from the Japanese perspective—especially that of the island’s
garrison commander, Lt. Gen. Tadamichi Kuribayashi—Eastwood decided to film
Letters from Iwo Jima, a companion film shot entirely in Japanese.
Production
Jared Leto was originally cast as Rene Gagnon but dropped
out due to scheduling issues. With the exception of Barry Pepper, Paul Walker,
and Harve Presnell, the large cast—nearly 100 speaking parts—was composed of
unknowns. Filming took place over a 58-day period in far-flung locations in the
winter of 2005–2006. Eastwood made a scouting trip to Iwo Jima in April 2005
but determined it was too remote for a large-scale film production. Instead,
the battle scenes were shot on Reykjanes, a volcanic peninsula in Iceland that
featured black sand beaches and craters almost identical in appearance to Iwo
Jima. A couple of scenes were shot at Universal Studios’ backlot, but most of
the stateside scenes were shot at various locations in Pasadena, Los Angeles,
Chicago, and at the USMC War Memorial in Arlington, Virginia. A bond drive
scene supposedly taking place at Soldier Field in Chicago was actually filmed
at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, using lots of computer-generated imagery (CGI)
(though exterior shots of the real stadium were also used). Shooting ended
early in 2006. The shoot for the movie’s companion piece, Letters from Iwo Jima,
began in March 2006.
Plot Summary
The three surviving US servicemen who were the flag raisers
at Iwo Jima—Marine Pfcs. Ira Hayes (Adam Beach) and Rene Gagnon (Jesse
Bradford) and Navy Corpsman John “Doc” Bradley (Ryan Phillippe)—are celebrated
as heroes in a U.S. war bond drive. They reflect on their experiences during
and after the war via a series of flashbacks. After training at Camp Tarawa in
Hawaii (October 1944), the 28th Marine Regiment (5th Marine Division) joins an
invading armada headed for Iwo Jima, a small island off Japan’s mainland. To
soften Japanese resistance, the Navy shells Iwo Jima for three days. Sgt. Mike
Strank (Barry Pepper) is put in charge of Second Platoon. On the fourth day of
the battle—19 February 1945—the Marines land on Iwo Jima in Higgins boats. They
meet no immediate resistance but then, all at once, Japanese heavy artillery
and machine guns open fire on the advancing Marines. The beaches are secured,
but casualties are heavy. After two days of fierce fighting, the Marines mount
an assault on Mount Suribachi. Doc saves the lives of several Marines under
fire, earning the Navy Cross in the process. After a dogged fight, the mountain
is secured. On 23 February Sgt. Hank Hansen (Paul Walker) is ordered to scale
Mount Suribachi. His squad reaches the summit and hoists the American flag atop
Suribachi. Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal (Michael Cumpsty) sees the
flag as he reaches the beach and asks to keep the flag himself. However, Col.
Chandler Johnson (Robert Patrick) counters that his own 2nd Battalion is more
deserving of the flag than Forrestal. Rene Gagnon is sent up with Second
Platoon to replace the first (smaller) flag with a second one intended for
Forrestal. Mike, Doc, Ira, Rene, and two other marines—Cpl. Harlon Block
(Benjamin Walker) and Pfc. Franklin Sousley (Joseph Cross) are photographed by
Joe Rosenthal as they send up the second flag. On 1 March Mike is hit by
“friendly fire” and dies from his wounds. Later that day Hank and Harlon are
also killed in action. Two nights later (4 March), while Doc tends to an
injured soldier, Ralph “Iggy” Ignatowski (Jamie Bell) is kidnapped by the
Japanese and pulled through an underground tunnel. Doc finds his mutilated body
a few days later. On 21 March a mortally wounded Franklin Sousley dies in Ira
Hayes’ arms. Three squad members remain: Doc Bradley, Ira Hayes, and Rene
Gagnon. A few days after Sousley’s death, Doc is injured and returns home. On
26 March the Battle of Iwo Jima ends in American victory (but at a grave price:
6,700 dead and 19,000 wounded). Joe Rosenthal’s photograph appears in
newspapers throughout the country. Rene Gagnon is asked to name the six men in
the photo: he identifies himself, Mike Strank, Doc Bradley, and Franklin
Sousley, but misidentifies Harlon Block as Hank Hansen. Gagnon identifies Ira
Hayes as the final man in the photograph, but Hayes says that it isn’t him, but
Harlon Block in the photo. Gagnon asks Hayes to re-evaluate, mentioning that,
as flag raisers, this denial will send them both home, but Gagnon refuses to
give in and threatens Gagnon’s life if he dares to name Hayes in the
photograph. Gagnon does eventually name Ira Hayes as the sixth man in the
photograph. Bradley, Hayes, and Gagnon are then sent stateside to raise money
for the war effort. Hayes calls the bond drive a joke, but Bud Gerber (John
Slattery) of the Treasury Department disciplines them and admits that the U.S.
government is nearly bankrupt; if the bond drive fails, the United States will
be forced to abandon the Pacific and all their sacrifices will be in vain. The
three agree not to tell anyone that Hank Hansen was not in the photograph. As
the trio is sent around the country on their fundraising tour, Ira Hayes
suffers from survivor’s guilt and the lingering effects of battle fatigue and
also faces blatant bigotry as a Pima Indian. In the throes of alcoholism, Hayes
vomits one night in front of Gen. Vandegrift (Chris Bauer), commandant of the
Marine Corps; Vandegrift orders him sent back to his unit. After the war, the three
survivors return home. Ira Hayes hitchhikes to Texas to see Harlon Block’s
family and tell Harlon’s father that his son was indeed in the famous
photograph. At the dedication of the USMC War Memorial in 1954 the three
surviving flag raisers see each other one last time. The next year Ira Hayes
dies of exposure after a night of heavy drinking. That same year Doc Bradley
visits Iggy Ignatowski’s mother to tell her how her son died. Rene Gagnon
attempts to begin a professional life in the business sector, but finds that
the offers he received during the bond drive have been rescinded and spends the
rest of his life as a janitor. Doc, however, finds success as the owner and
director of a funeral home. In 1994, close to death, Doc relays his vivid tale
to his son, James.
Reception
Released 20 October 2006, Flags of Our Fathers ran for eight
weeks (widest release: 1,876 theaters) and earned $33.6 million in gross
domestic box office receipts. Exhibition in foreign markets (November
2006–March 2007) earned another $32.3 million, for a grand total of $65.9
million: disappointing results but probably inevitable because (a) the film
lacked star power and (b) it presented a dishearteningly revisionist depiction
of “The Good War,” showing the U.S. government cynically exploiting military
heroism for propaganda and fundraising purposes. After theaters took their
percentage of the gross and P&A (promotion and advertising) expenses were
deducted, both co-producing studios—Paramount and DreamWorks—ended up in the
red. Originally budgeted at $80 million, Flags would have lost far more money
had Clint Eastwood not completed the film well ahead of schedule and under
budget, bringing it in for only $55 million. Though it flopped at the box
office, Flags enjoyed strong sales on the U.S. home video market, grossing $45
million. Reviews were mostly affirmative, some adulatory. Roger Ebert gave the
film four out of four stars and praised Eastwood’s two-film project as “one of
the most visionary of all efforts to depict the reality and meaning of battle.
The battle scenes, alternating between close-up combat and awesome aerial shots
of the bombardment and landing, are lean, violent, horrifying. His
cinematographer, Tom Stern, wisely bleeds his palette of bright colors and
creates a dry, hot, desolate feeling; there should be nothing scenic about the
film’s look” (Ebert, 2007). Philip French found Flags of Our Fathers to be
“touched by greatness. It argues that soldiers may go into battle for country
and glory but they always end up fighting for the survival of themselves and
their comrades” (French, 2006).
Reel History Versus Real History
Historians concur that Bradley and Powers’ book is a
well-researched and accurate rendition of the Battle of Iwo Jima; the 7th War
Loan Drive (aka “Iwo Jima Tour,” May–July 1945); and the postwar lives of Ira
Hayes, Rene Gagnon, and Doc Bradley. Likewise, Eastwood’s film version is a
faithful adaptation of its source material. Interviewed by Robert Siegel on
National Public Radio on 19 October 2006 regarding the film’s historical
accuracy, Charles D. “Chuck” Melson, Chief Historian of the U.S. Marine Corps,
found the film to be quite true to life, describing the war bond drive, the
ships coming to Iwo Jima, the beachside invasion and resulting chaos, and the
flag raising. Asked by Siegel if the movie was accurate or exaggerating when it
dramatized Rosenthal’s photograph as “the very fulcrum on which public support
for the war effort in 1945 rested,” Melson answered, “I think it would take a
social historian to really pin that one down” (Siegel, 2006). Melson’s
judicious answer notwithstanding, the movie does exaggerate the importance of
the Rosenthal photograph in winning the war in the Pacific. The United States
would have prosecuted the war to its conclusion, whatever the success or
failure of the 7th War Loan Drive. Fortunately, the Drive far exceeded
expectations by raising over $26 billion ($353 billion in 2017 dollars)—an
astonishing sum of money.
