HLJ's Movie Blog

Flags of our Fathers

Maybe it's okay to watch a lot of bad movies. I think it helps you to recognize the really good ones. Flags of our Fathers is one of the good ones. I've always been fascinated by war movies, so I was looking forward to seeing this one. This isn't just a war movie, but also an exploration of that famous photo and what the word "hero" can mean.

Why is this a good movie? I'll give you three examples. There are more, but these are the ones that stood out for me. First, when the Marines first land on the island, it all seems quiet. They march up the beach and take their positions. They start to move inland and the camera shot switches to the view out of a fox hole. The muzzle of a gun is aimed out the fox hole at the approaching soldiers. The shooting doesn't start right away. Instead, the shots cut back and forth between the soldiers point of view as they move forward and the fox hole's. I had to close my eyes a few times because I just couldn't watch and wait for those soldiers to get shot. You instantly feel a little of the fear they they did as they waited for the bullets to fly.

The second example is the many moments in the movie that the camera doesn't show you everything. When Doc goes to view Iggy's body and when the corpsman dies of the bullet wound to his neck, the camera doesn't show you everything. We don't see what made the other soldier sick when he saw Iggy's body. We just see Doc's blank stare. When the corpsman dies, we don't see the blood spurt out of his neck as he gives his final breath. Instead, we see his hand drop listlessly to the black sand. Sometimes it's what you don't show that can make a scene more powerful. You are left to imagine what is inferred.

And finally as the end credits play, there is a series of photos. Many are from the battle, but you also get to see a picture of some of the men portrayed in the film. If you pay close attention, many of the combat photos shown are recreated in the movie (e.g. the gun in the sand, Doc walking the man with the head wound). I thought that it was an incredible way to remind us that this movie is about real people, who fought in a real situation. Sometimes it is easy to forget that after the credits roll.