Iwo Jima, deserto di fuoco

I don't know about currently, but some years ago this film was being shown at the Marine Corps Basic School where second lieutenants are hatched. It's an unexcelled example of military life imitating art: a symbiotic relationship between the Corps' timeless self image and, by extension, that image reinforcing the reality of the Corps itself.

SOIJ is still one of the better WW II combat films, even 55 years after its release. The one factual glitch is the impossibility of a Tarawa unit (2nd Marine Division) being ashore on Iwo (3rd, 4th, and 5th Divisions.) Otherwise, I don't think I've never known a marine who had serious reservations about it.

John Wayne did a bunch of war movies, always playing the heroic soldier. It is ironic then that he was considered medically unfit for service in WWII. Nonetheless, "Sands of Iwo Jima" is certainly the definitive John Wayne war movie. He got his first Oscar nomination for this movie which is enough to make it important just for that (he was only nominated one other time, winning for "True Grit").

The movie plot is just straight formula and has the same collection of ethnic types that you find in every war movie ever made---the fast-talking big city guy, the farm boy, the wisecracking Italian, etc. The battle scenes had to be sanitized for audiences back then and the treatment of the Japanese as the enemy in this movie is outrageously stereotyped by today's standards. Every time the Japanese come on camera the background music turns sinister and the little Japanese actors have an appropriate villainous and fanatical look to them. The only war movie I can think of where the Japanese are humanized in any way is "Bridge on the River Kwai" while there are many movies where the German soldiers and especially General Rommel, are portrayed if not sympathetically, at least respectfully.

Catch the last scene where the three real-life survivors of the Iwo Jima flag raising are given the flag by the Duke to raise on Suribachi. One of the flag-raisers, John Bradley, was so modest about his exploits afterwards that he didn't even have a copy of the famous flag-raising photo hanging up in his home. It wasn't until after he died that his children learned that he had won the Navy Cross for his heroism in the war. The book written by his son, "Flags of Our Fathers" is being made into a movie by Steven Spielberg and is sure to be sensational. No doubt that it will be immediately compared to "Sands of Iwo Jima" which, until "Flags" comes out, is the definitive movie about that battle.

This is a flag-waging and patriotic tribute to US marines .Very decent war scenes along with documentary footage that convey us the assault troops establish on the Pacific islands, but like the navy, the US army fought its way from island to island in the Pacific. Striker(Wayne) and his squad(Forrest Tucker, John Agar,James Brown,Richard Jaeckel,James Brown,Richard Webb, among others) are responsible for the capture of the Pacific islands. And, of course, the picture brings to life one of the most famous images of the Second World war- Joe Rosenthal's photograph of US marines raising the flag at Iwo Jima, on the morning of February 23, 1945 and with special appearance of the three living survivors of the historic flag raising of Mount Suribachi. John Wayne is top-notch as valiant but deranged sergeant Striker training rebellious recruits and soldiers in this believable war film . Wayne won his only Oscar nomination, before his obtaining in ¨True grit¨. Supporting cast is frankly magnificent. The motion picture is well directed by Allan Dawn.

The film is based correctly on Iwo Jima battle in a hard-fought US operation, one of the most difficult campaigns of the Pacific theater . US capture of Japanese-held island in the Bonin group , about 1450 km south of Tokyo after intense fighting Feb-March 1945. Fortified by the Japanese, it held two airfields, with a third under construction, and was a valuable strategic target for US forces as it would provide a base for land-based bombers to raid the mainland of Japan. It was assaulted by US Marines 19 Feb 1945 after a prolonged air and naval bombardment. The 22000 Japanese troops put up a fanatical resistance but the island was finally secured 16 March. US casualties came to 6891 killed and 18700 wounded, while only 212 of the Japanese garrison survived.The film is dedicated to the United States Marine Corps whose exploits and valor have left a lasting impression on the world and in the hearts of their countrymen . Appreciation is gratefully acknowledged for their assistance and participation which made this picture possible.

Sgt John M. Stryker is a battle hardened Marine who's job it is to prepare his new charges for the realities of war. With no care for making friends, Stryker does what ever it takes to make these men tough and ready for the Pacific conflicts to come.

Sands Of Iwo Jima is unashamedly proud in its jingoistic fervour, and rightly so. Iwo Jima, and the now immortal portrait of weary American soldiers hoisting the flag atop Mt. Suribachi, has become a bastion of bravery, a beacon of triumph if you will. So it's no surprise to find Allan Dwan's film has no intention if deviating from boasting its colours, and hooray to that. Here as Stryker we find John Wayne giving a bit more to his character portrayal than merely some beefcake winning the war. Wayne puts depth and sincerity into Stryker, an air of believability shines through as he shows vulnerability, we believe he can win this war with his men, but we also see tenderness and it lifts Sands higher than your average war picture.

Wise old director Dwan (432 directing credits to his name), weaves the picture together with admirable restraint. Fusing actual newsreel footage with his own tightly handled action sequences, Sands plays out as the tribute and rally call that it has every right to be, even finding place in the film for three of the soldiers who hoisted that now famous flag. Ira Hayes, Rene Gagnon and John Bradley are the three gentlemen to look out for. The rest of the cast don't really have to do much outside of respond to Wayne's two fold performance, but keep an eye out for a fresh faced Richard Jaeckel as Pfc. Frank Flynn, while I personally enjoyed the brief, but important contribution from Julie Bishop as Mary.

Wayne received a nomination for Best Actor at the Academy Awards (too bad for him that 49 contained brilliant shows from the winner Broderick Crawford & a blunderbuss turn from Gregory Peck), with other nominations going to the Best Story, Editing and Sound categories. Ironically it was a role Wayne didn't fancy doing, but some encouragements from war veterans humbled him into starring.

Lock and load and saddle up for a top entry in the WWII pantheon. 8/10

Rip-roaring re-creation of WWII in the Pacific. It's more a tribute to Marine Corps fighting spirit than a traditional flag waver, even though it duplicates probably the greatest flag raising scene in US history. Wayne's perfect as the veteran Sgt. Stryker who must ready his squad for combat. At this career stage, Wayne is not yet an icon. Thus he shows his under-stated acting skills that were largely replaced by his sheer iconic presence later on. As a result, his thespic talent is too often under-rated by critics. The storyline, aside from combat, involves Stryker's difficulties with two of his men, played by Agar and Tucker. Tucker is something of a physical rival, while Agar does his duty to a Marine Corps father while rejecting the Corp's spirit. There's also brief time with girls while the guys are on leave, and I especially like the sensitive way Julie Bishop's status as a reluctant hooker is insinuated along with a lot of subtle heart.

Of course, the film's dramatic centerpiece is the lengthy combat footage. Budget-minded Republic went all out here. They blend effectively real war footage along with well done studio set-ups and location re-creations. The latter is largely thanks to the Corps cooperation which involves hundreds of real marine troopers. In fact, that beach-head footage of the assault on Tarawa may be the most intense of any post-war combat film. It's truly scary, as it should be.

Anyway, after seven decades the film may have lost some of its topicality, but the human elements remain, along with a fine turn by America's favorite cowboy, this time as a steadfast and heroic soldier.