DVD `FLAGS' RAISES AWARENESS OF WWII.Byline: Rob Lowman Entertainment Editor Clint Eastwood's ``Flags of Our Fathers'' -- the first of his two looks at the epic World War II battle of Iwo Jima The Battle of Iwo Jima was fought between the United States and Japan in February and March 1945, during the Pacific Campaign of World War II. The U.S. invasion, known as Operation Detachment, was aimed at capturing the airfields on Iwo Jima. -- may seem like merely another salute to the ``greatest generation,'' but the filmmaker has slyly dug deeper, deconstructing and showing us the disconnect and toll of war. In February 1945, when the battle began, the Allies were wrapping up the conflict in Europe. Looming ahead was the invasion of Japan, with taking the volcanic island of Iwo Jima Iwo Jima (ē`wō jē`mə, ē`wô), Jap. Io-jima, volcanic island, c.8 sq mi (21 sq km), W Pacific, largest and most important of the Volcano Islands. Mt. -- considered by the Japanese to be sacred soil -- the first step. Dug in were some 20,000 Japanese soldiers (their story is told in the companion film, ``Letters From Iwo Jima'') with essentially a suicide order to hold the island till death. The first objective of the Allies was to take the island's high point, which they did in five days at a great cost. An American flag was planted atop the mountain. A second one was later planted when an officer wanted the first flag. That second planting was immortalized by Associated Press Associated Press: see news agency. Associated Press (AP) Cooperative news agency, the oldest and largest in the U.S. and long the largest in the world. photographer Joe Rosenthal Joe Rosenthal (October 9 1911 – August 20 2006) was an American photographer who received the Pulitzer Prize for his iconic World War II photograph Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima, taken during the Battle of Iwo Jima. . When the Army and U.S. politicians saw the photo, they seized on it, seeing a way to build up flagging support for a war that had already gone on for more than three years and cost thousands of lives and billions of dollars. An invasion of Japan would cost more. A campaign to sell war bonds was mounted using the three surviving members of the flag team -- John Bradley John Bradley may refer to:
or Native American or Amerindian or indigenous American Any member of the various aboriginal peoples of the Western Hemisphere, with the exception of the Eskimos (Inuit) and the Aleuts. played heartbreakingly by Adam Beach Adam Ruebin Beach (born November 11, 1972 in Ashern, Manitoba) is a Canadian actor of Saulteaux descent. He is best known for his roles as Marine Private First Class Ira Hayes in Flags of Our Fathers, Private Ben Yahzee in Windtalkers and Dr. ) and Rene Gagnon Rene Arthur Gagnon (March 7, 1925 – October 12, 1979) was one of the U.S. Marines immortalized by Joe Rosenthal's famous World War II photograph Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima. (Jesse Bradford). Never mind that they didn't consider themselves heroes -- not that they hadn't been in battle -- or that they, particularly Hayes, felt survivors' guilt. Eastwood opens with the rockets' red glare. It's not the battle, but fireworks fireworks: see pyrotechnics. fireworks Explosives or combustibles used for display. Of ancient Chinese origin, fireworks evidently developed out of military rockets and explosive missiles and accompanied the spread of military explosives westward to over a stadium in Chicago, where the three men were re-creating the scene, planting a flag into a papier-mache mountain before a huge crowd on a star-spangled night. Iwo Jima, by contrast, is nearly colorless, as if the battle itself had drained the life out of the island. Only the explosions and blood stand out against the stark landscape. Eastwood deftly cuts between the horrors of the battle and hollow spectacle of the war-bond campaign. In America, they are cheering for a PR ploy that has taken their minds off the reality of the war. Meanwhile, the soldiers in the battle grow more disconnected from their own humanity as they watch their buddies maimed maim tr.v. maimed, maim·ing, maims 1. To disable or disfigure, usually by depriving of the use of a limb or other part of the body. See Synonyms at batter1. 2. and killed, knowing they may be next. If any of this seems to echo current events, it's no surprise. Eastwood -- no stranger to violent films -- isn't making a political statement, but he's casting a cold eye on the toll taken by violence and war. ``Hollywoodland,'' a film about the 1959 murder/suicide of George Reeves -- TV's Superman, tries to be a mystery, but the filmmakers seem lost in the shadows, trying to make something out of another tawdry Tinseltown tale. Despite a reasonable start with a role in the 1939 ``Gone With the Wind,'' the hunky hun·ky 1 n. pl. hun·kies Offensive Slang Used as a disparaging term for a person, especially a laborer, from east-central Europe. Reeves (Ben Affleck) never made it out of Saturday afternoon serials. When one -- ``Superman'' -- becomes a TV hit in the '50s, Reeves, instead of taking the money and running, feels trapped, longing for respect in a real role. The show eventually folds, and a couple of years later, Reeves is found dead with a bullet in his head. Did he kill himself? Was it his new girlfriend (Robin Tunney) who pulled the trigger, or did a studio exec (Bob Hoskins) have a hit man take care of him because of Reeves' mistreatment mis·treat tr.v. mis·treat·ed, mis·treat·ing, mis·treats To treat roughly or wrongly. See Synonyms at abuse. mis·treat of the executive's wife (Diane Lane). We only supposedly care about this because a detective (Adrien Brody) with problems of his own has been hired by Reeves' strange mother (Lois Smith) to find out the truth. Revelations pile up, but what do they mean? Not much. Augusten Burroughs' best-selling memoir, ``Running With Scissors scissors Cutting instrument or tool consisting of a pair of opposed metal blades that meet and cut when the handles at their ends are brought together. Modern scissors are of two types: the more usual pivoted blades have a rivet or screw connection between the cutting ends ,'' is the dysfunctional-family movie of the week. Director/writer Ryan Murphy, a creator of ``Nip/Tuck,'' is obviously no stranger to weirdness. Annette Bening as Augusten's mother, Deirdre, is splendid as your classic crazy mom, except her delusion is she thinks she a great writer. Being an alcoholic, her husband (Alec Baldwin) doesn't notice her craziness. Augusten seems to believe her, but maybe he just wants love from his often-neglectful mom, who spends much of her time at the house of her therapist (Brian Cox), which is something of a looney bin. ``Running With Scissors'' is amusing at times, but the little comic horror pieces never connect into a bigger picture. You'll find Michael Gondry's ``The Science of Sleep'' either charming or odd -- or charmingly odd. Its hero, a fretful young man named Stephane (Gael Garcia Bernal), is a graphic artist with a vivid imagination and little worldly confidence. Nevertheless, after returning to Paris from Mexico, where his mother has gotten a job, Stephane develops an attraction for neighbor Stephanie (Charlotte Gainsbourg). But reality isn't his strong suit. ``Since he was 6, he's inverted inverted reverse in position, direction or order. inverted L block a pattern of local filtration anesthesia commonly used in laparotomy in the ox. dreams and reality,'' his mom notes. Writer-director Gondry, who fomerly paired up with Charlie Kaufman on ``Human Nature'' and ``Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,'' then heads into an ``Alice in Wonderland'' world of whimsy whim·sy also whim·sey n. pl. whim·sies also whim·seys 1. An odd or fanciful idea; a whim. 2. A quaint or fanciful quality: stories full of whimsy. , where the laws of physics need not apply. ``Science of Sleep'' ends up being like a pleasant daydream. It may not mean much but that daydreams are their own reward. Other titles to keep in mind: ``Eddie Murphy -- Delirious de·lir·i·ous adj. Of, suffering from, or characteristic of delirium. ,'' his very funny 1983 concert film; Paul Mazursky's odd 1973 romantic-comedy ``Blume in Love''; ``The Alfred Hitchcock Box Set'' of the great director's early works; and the charming family animated film ``The Last Unicorn.'' Rob Lowman (818) 713-3687 robert.lowman(at)dailynews.com NEW FILMS ``Flags of Our Fathers'' (Paramount; $29.99) ``Hollywoodland'' (Universal; $29.98) ``Flicka'' (Fox; $29.99) ``Running With Scissors'' (Columbia; $26.96) ``The Science of Sleep'' (Warner; $27.98) ``The Grudge 2 -- Unrated Director's Cut'' (Columbia; $28.95) Boynton Beach Club (Columbia; $26.96) ``Trust the Man'' (Fox; $27.98) OLDER FILMS ``Eddie Murphy -- Delirious'' (Entertainment; $19.98) ``Blume in Love'' (Warner; $19.98) ``The Alfred Hitchcock Box Set'' (``The Ring,'' ``The Manxman,'' ``Murder!'' ``The Skin Game,'' ``Rich and Strange'') (Lionsgate; $39.98) ``A Summer Place'' (Warner; $19.98) ``The Heiress'' (Universal; $14.98) ``Crossing Delancey'' (Warner; $19.98) ``Here Comes Mr. Jordan'' (Columbia; $19.94) ``The Clock'' (Warner; $19.98) ``Romeo & Juliet -- The Music Edition'' ($19.98) ``All Quiet on the Western Front'' (Universal; $14.98) ``Miracle in the Rain'' (Warner; $19.98) ``Going My Way'' (Universal; $14.98) ``Arabian Nights'' (Universal; $14.98) TELEVISION ``Charmed -- The Complete Seventh Season'' (Paramount; $49.99) ``Mad About You -- The Complete Third Season'' (Columbia; $39.95) ``Anything but Love -- Season 1'' (Fox; $39.98) OF SPECIAL INTEREST ``Joseph Campbell -- The Hero's Journey'' (Acacia; $19.98) ``Joseph Campbell ) Sukhavati (Acacia; $19.98) KIDS/FAMILY ``Last Unicorn'' ($19.98) ``Cinderella III -- A Twist in Time'' (Disney; $29.99) ``Hellboy -- Sword of Storms'' (Anchor Bay; $19.98) ``Strawberry Shortcake -- The Sweet Dreams Movie'' (Fox; $19.98) ``My Little Pony -- A Very Pony Place'' (Paramount; $16.99) ``Charlie and Lola, Vol. 3: My Little Town'' (BBC/Warner; $14.98) ``Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown'' / ``A Charlie Brown Valentine'' (Paramount; $19.99) CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Sgt. Mike Strank (Barry Pepper) leads the men who would raise the famous flag on Iwo Jima. |
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