Letters From Iwo Jima

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Letters From Iwo Jima

R

2007

2h 21m

War

History

Drama

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Popcornmeter

91%

Tomatometer

202 Reviews

86%

Popcornmeter

250,000+ Ratings

Long-buried missives from the island reveal the stories of the Japanese troops who fought and died there during World War II. Among them are Saigo (Kazunari Ninomiya), a baker; Baron Nishi (Tsuyoshi Ihara), an Olympic champion; and Shimizu (Ryô Kase), an idealistic soldier. Though Lt. Gen. Tadamichi Kuribayashi (Ken Watanabe) knows he and his men have virtually no chance of survival, he uses his extraordinary military skills to hold off American troops as long as possible.

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Critics Consensus

A powerfully humanistic portrayal of the perils of war, this companion piece to Flags of our Fathers is potent and thought-provoking, and it demonstrates Clint Eastwood's maturity as a director.

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Brian Tallerico

UGO

03/24/2007

Instead of showing us the differences between the three men, Eastwood chooses to illustrate how much they were alike and, more importantly, how much they resemble you and me.

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Derek Malcolm

London Evening Standard

02/23/2007

4/5

The whole is a more satisfactory entity than Flags of Our Fathers - and the final scene, which has veterans and relatives scouring the tunnels and caves for the buried letters, is a suitably moving coda.

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Anthony Quinn

Independent (UK)

02/23/2007

3/5

Eastwood and his cinematographer Tom Stern have done a superb and possibly unique job in showing both sides of this dreadful battle, and the pair of films together already look monumental.

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Sean Axmaker

Stream on Demand

6d

It’s almost a mirror to 'Flags of Our Fathers,' putting the audience into the suffocating caves with the [Japanese] soldiers and officers of a doomed army charged with fighting to the death and certain defeat.

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David Walsh

World Socialist Web Site

02/14/2021

One must give Eastwood a good deal of credit ... To make a film about the suffering "your" soldiers endure is one thing, to make one about the horrors inflicted on the "enemy" is something else again.

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Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

11/21/2020

6/10

Infinitely more compelling than its predecessor, yet equally lengthy and ill-paced.

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Garrett B

@gmoney637 May 17

A visually emotional war film that delivers with great cinematic effect.

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Pedro O

@pedrohob91 Feb 27

Clint Eastwood masterfully explores a rarely portrayed perspective of war, handling the material with restraint and sensitivity. His direction highlights both the human dimension of the conflict and the strength of Ken Watanabe’s performance.

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Leprechaun K

@LeprechaunKing 06/26/2025

Another wonderfully directed gem from Eastwood. Similar to some of his other classics (i.e. Unforgiven and Million Dollar Baby), it was magical in a very subtle yet profound way that is unique to his directing style.

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Isaiah Y

@zayman2 06/12/2025

One of Clint Eastwood's best films and best war films of the century so far

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El Queso G

@RT98151722 02/09/2025

This may be the best war movie ever made.

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thiago s

@Thiagostone 01/22/2025

Filme bacaninha, o roteiro é bacaninha, o filme tem cenas de ação de guerra boas, mas os personagens japoneses e os diálogos não ajudam a melhorar o filme, só as cenas de guerra salvam o filme, e nem essas cenas que salvaram o filme, não foram tão boas assim.

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Clint Eastwood

Director

Ken Watanabe

Gen. Tadamichi Kuribayashi

Kazunari Ninomiya

Saigo

Tsuyoshi Ihara

Baron Nishi

Ryô Kase

Shimizu

Shido Nakamura

Lt. Ito

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76%

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Synopsis

Long-buried missives from the island reveal the stories of the Japanese troops who fought and died there during World War II. Among them are Saigo (Kazunari Ninomiya), a baker; Baron Nishi (Tsuyoshi Ihara), an Olympic champion; and Shimizu (Ryô Kase), an idealistic soldier. Though Lt. Gen. Tadamichi Kuribayashi (Ken Watanabe) knows he and his men have virtually no chance of survival, he uses his extraordinary military skills to hold off American troops as long as possible.

Director: Clint Eastwood
Producer: Steven Spielberg, Robert Lorenz
Screenwriter: Iris Yamashita
Distributor: Warner Bros.
Production Co: Amblin Entertainment, Warner Bros., Malpaso Company, DreamWorks SKG
Rating: R (Graphic War Violence)
Genre: War, History, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 9, 2007, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 1, 2008
Box Office (Gross USA): $13.8M
Runtime: 2h 21m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital, DTS, SDDS
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)