Flags of Our Fathers (film)

Infobox Film
name = Flags of Our Fathers

---

caption =
director = Clint Eastwood
producer = Clint Eastwood
Steven Spielberg
Robert Lorenz
writer = Book:
James Bradley
Screenplay:
William Broyles, Jr.
Paul Haggis
narrator =
starring = Ryan Phillippe
Adam Beach
Jesse Bradford
Neal McDonough
Barry Pepper
Robert Patrick
Paul Walker
Jamie Bell
John Benjamin Hickey
John Slattery
music = Clint Eastwood
cinematography =
editing = Joel Cox
distributor = USA:
DreamWorks
Paramount
non-USA:
Warner Bros.
released = October 20, 2006 (USA)
runtime = 132 min
country = flagicon|USA United States
language = English
budget = $55,000,000 ( [http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601088&sid=a6HTME8ybzJQ&refer=muse] )
gross = $65,900,249
preceded_by =
followed_by = "Letters from Iwo Jima"
website =http://www.flagsofourfathers.com/
amg_id = 1:331335
imdb_id = 0418689

"Flags of Our Fathers" is a 2006 American war film directed by Clint Eastwood and written by William Broyles, Jr. and Paul Haggis. It is based on the book of the same name (see "Flags of Our Fathers") written by James Bradley and Ron Powers about the Battle of Iwo Jima and the six men who were involved in Raising the flag on Iwo Jima. Eastwood also directed a complementary film on the battle from the Japanese viewpoint entitled "Letters from Iwo Jima". It was released in Japan on December 9, 2006 and in the United States on December 20, 2006, two months after the release of "Flags of Our Fathers" on October 20, 2006.

ynopsis

"Flags of Our Fathers" depicts how the three surviving flag-raisers at the Battle of Iwo Jima were used as propaganda tools by the United States government to lift the morale of the American people, and raise money for the war effort. It also shows the effects of war on the veterans, and how they suffered from memories of the war for the rest of their lives.

Production

Instead of a linear storyline like the book, the film is shown through a series of flashbacks. Paul Haggis, the screenwriter of the film, has stated that it could not be told as a straightforward movie because the book was "too big and too good".Fact|date=February 2007 "The ambitious script...jumps back and forth in time in ways that could have been a jumble if Eastwood wasn't so adept at cutting a path to what counts. Eastwood's film [is] a fierce attack on wartime hypocrisy and profiteering, is also an indelibly moving salute to the soldiers who don’t deserve to walk alone for following their own sense of duty. [ [http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/movie/12045984/review/12045987/flags_of_our_fathers Flags of Our Fathers : Review : Rolling Stone ] ]

Critical reception and box office

The film received positive reviews with the review tallying website Rotten Tomatoes reporting that 125 out of the 170 reviews they tallied were positive for a score of 74% and a certification of "fresh." [rottentomatoes.com, [http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/flags_of_our_fathers/ Flags of Our Fathers entry] , accessed January 21, 2007.]

The film made the top ten list of the National Board of Review. Eastwood also earned a Golden Globe nomination for Directing. The film was nominated for two Academy Awards - for Best Sound and Sound Editing. Film critic Richard Roeper said "Clint Eastwood's "Flags of Our Fathers" stands with the Oscar-winning "Unforgiven" and "Million Dollar Baby" as an American masterpiece. It is a searing and powerful work from a seventy-six-year-old artist who remains at the top of his game." and "Flags of Our Fathers" is a patriotic film in that it honors those who fought in the Pacific, but it is also patriotic because it questions the official version of the truth, and reminds us that superheroes exist only in comic books and cartoon movies." [ [http://www.suntimes.com/entertainment/movies/104399,WKP-News-flags20.article Grand old 'Flags' :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Movies ] ]

Despite critical acclaim, the movie underperformed at the box office, earning just $65,898,991 worldwide on an estimated $55,000,000 production budget.

The movie has been criticized for omitting black Marines and drawn the ire of a small number of veterans groups. [ [http://film.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/Guardian/0,,1928009,00.html Where have all the black soldiers gone?] , The Guardian 2006-10-16] At the 2008 Cannes Film Festival, director Spike Lee, who is making "Miracle at St. Anna", about an all-black U.S. division fighting in Italy during World War II, criticized director Clint Eastwood for not depicting black Marines in "Flags of Our Fathers". Citing historical accuracy, Eastwood responded that his film was specifically about the soldiers who raised the flag on Mount Suribachi at Iwo Jima, pointing out that while black soldiers did fight at Iwo Jima, the U.S. military was segregated during WWII, and none of the men who raised the flag were black. Eastwood angrily said that Lee should "shut his face". Lee responded that Eastwood was acting like an "angry old man", and argued that despite making two Iwo Jima films back to back, "Letters from Iwo Jima" and "Flags of Our Fathers", "there was not one black soldier in both of those films". [ [http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/story?id=5015524&page=1 Marikar, Sheila; "Spike Strikes Back: Clint's 'an Angry Old Man'"; abcnews; June 6, 2008] ] [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7439371.stm BBC News: Eastwood hits back at Lee claims] ] cite journal
last = Lyman
first = Eric J.
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Lee calls out Eastwood, Coens over casting
journal = The Hollywood Reporter, The Daily from Cannes
volume =
issue = 8
pages = pp.3,24
publisher =
location = Cannes
date = 2008-05-21
url = http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3if545c66bc7e57054b34aaa6cd2b36458
format =
issn =
accessdate = ] In fact, black Marines are seen in scenes during which the mission is outlined, as well as during the initial landings, when a wounded black Marine is carried away. During the end credits, historical photographs taken during the Battle of Iwo Jima show black Marines. Although black Marines fought in the battle, they were restricted to auxiliary roles such as ammunition supply, and were not involved in the battle's major assaults, but took part in defensive actions. [ [http://www.mpma28.com/page/page/2271596.htm Black Marines Were ] ]

Cast

References

DVD release

The DVD was released in the US by Paramount Home Entertainment on February 6, 2007. It is devoid of any special features.

A Two-Disc Special Collector's Edition DVD (with special features) was released on May 22, 2007. It was also released on HD DVD and Blu-ray formats.

The Two-Disc Special Collector's Edition DVD is also available in a Five-Disc Commemorative Set which also includes the Two-Disc Special Collector's Edition of "Letters from Iwo Jima" and a bonus fifth disc containing History Channel's "Heroes of Iwo Jima" documentary and "To the Shores of Iwo Jima", a documentary produced by the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps.

External links

* [http://www.flagsofourfathers.com/ Flags of Our Fathers] Official Movie Site.
* [http://www.metacritic.com/film/titles/flagsofourfathers Flags of Our Fathers Reviews] at Metacritic.com
*imdb title|id=0418689|title=Flags of Our Fathers
* [http://www.apple.com/trailers/dreamworks/flagsofourfathers/ "Flags of Our Fathers" Trailer]
* [http://star-talk-live-interview-archive.blogspot.com/2006/10/interview-clint-eastwood-flags-of-our.html Interview: Clint Eastwood "Flags Of Our Fathers"]
* [http://www.efilmcritic.com/feature.php?feature=2004 eFilmCritic.com interview with James Bradley about "Flags of Our Fathers"]
* [http://www.efilmcritic.com/feature.php?feature=2005 eFilmCritic.com interview with Barry Pepper about "Flags of Our Fathers"]
*rotten-tomatoes|id=flags_of_our_fathers|title= Flags of Our Fathers