Every so often the best looking man in the Retired Orangemen
Fantasy Football League goes to the movies (yes, just like the
rest of you). Sometimes I go with one of my many lady friends.
Still other times I go with fellow ROFFL members. After viewing
these movies, I form an opinion. Here in a new column, exclusive
to retiredorangemen.com, is Five Second Stare at the Movies.
There are 5 ratings:
HANDSOME
GOOD-LOOKING
DECENT
IF I HAD A FEW DRINKS IN ME
GROSS
Fantasy Football League goes to the movies (yes, just like the
rest of you). Sometimes I go with one of my many lady friends.
Still other times I go with fellow ROFFL members. After viewing
these movies, I form an opinion. Here in a new column, exclusive
to retiredorangemen.com, is Five Second Stare at the Movies.
There are 5 ratings:
HANDSOME
GOOD-LOOKING
DECENT
IF I HAD A FEW DRINKS IN ME
GROSS
 |
Clint Eastwood has been the most consistent filmmaker in Hollywood the
last 4 years. Consider his work: 2003’s “Mystic River,” 2004’s “Million
Dollar Baby,” and now 2006’s “Flags of our Fathers” and “Letters from
Iwo Jima.” Not to say that Eastwood’s directing abilities have just
sprouted. In 1976 he directed the great western, “The Outlaw Josey
Wales” and in 1992 he cleaned house at the Oscars with “Unforgiven,”
one of my favorite 15 movies of all-time.
“Letters from Iwo Jima” starts in the present as excavators are digging for
remains on the island. We are soon taken back to 1944 where we find
soldiers digging trenches for the upcoming invasion. The soldiers are
tired and already feel like they are fighting a lost cause; the technology
and numbers the Americans have seem insurmountable. So, the
Japanese bring in General Kuribayashi (Ken Watanabe) to lead the
troops into their final battle. Kuribayashi seems a bit eccentric and his
decisions and past divide the troops based on their opinions of him.
Some, like the former baker Saigo (Kazunari Ninomiya, who was fantastic
in this film and should have been nominated for an Oscar) seem to
gravitate towards the new general, while others like General Hayashi
(Ken Kensei) see Kuribayashi as an American sympathizer and choose
not to follow his lead.
Watanabe and Ninomiya’s character’s carry the film, which lasts over two
hours and twenty minutes, with their fantastic performances; but the film’s
pace is perfect and a lot of the credit belongs to editors Joel Cox and
Gary Roach. This movie is not just about the anarchy of war, though the
second half of the film shows plenty of it. The first half of this film takes a
long look at how one would feel when one is about to fight in a battle one
knows it will die in.
The real star of the movie is Eastwood though, who (despite my love for
Martin Scorsese) should win the Oscar for best direction in a film.
Consider a scene in which several troops, hiding in a cave, feel that it is
time to kill themselves. I’m sure there are several ways you can show a
man blowing themselves up with a grenade, but Eastwood actually does it
with some poignancy.
Another memorable scene is when an American named Sam is captured
and cared for by Baron Nishi (Tsuyoshi Ihara, another great
performance). The Baron and Sam share a special conversation, and
when a letter that Sam’s mother writes is read to the remaining Japanese
troops, the entire movie takes a new turn.
What’s most interesting about “Letters” is that it is unafraid of making the
Americans look like villains (a couple of American troops are not nearly
as nice to the Japanese P.O.W’s). Make no mistake; the Japanese are
the good guys in this picture.
Another topic “Iwo Jima” delves into is the love of country. If you know
you’re going to die in war, is it more honorable to kill yourself or try to
survive by running? I’m not so sure, but then again, this is one of the
million reasons I am not a soldier.
“Letters from Iwo Jima” is one of the best movies of the year, and the best
war film since “Saving Private Ryan.”
last 4 years. Consider his work: 2003’s “Mystic River,” 2004’s “Million
Dollar Baby,” and now 2006’s “Flags of our Fathers” and “Letters from
Iwo Jima.” Not to say that Eastwood’s directing abilities have just
sprouted. In 1976 he directed the great western, “The Outlaw Josey
Wales” and in 1992 he cleaned house at the Oscars with “Unforgiven,”
one of my favorite 15 movies of all-time.
“Letters from Iwo Jima” starts in the present as excavators are digging for
remains on the island. We are soon taken back to 1944 where we find
soldiers digging trenches for the upcoming invasion. The soldiers are
tired and already feel like they are fighting a lost cause; the technology
and numbers the Americans have seem insurmountable. So, the
Japanese bring in General Kuribayashi (Ken Watanabe) to lead the
troops into their final battle. Kuribayashi seems a bit eccentric and his
decisions and past divide the troops based on their opinions of him.
Some, like the former baker Saigo (Kazunari Ninomiya, who was fantastic
in this film and should have been nominated for an Oscar) seem to
gravitate towards the new general, while others like General Hayashi
(Ken Kensei) see Kuribayashi as an American sympathizer and choose
not to follow his lead.
Watanabe and Ninomiya’s character’s carry the film, which lasts over two
hours and twenty minutes, with their fantastic performances; but the film’s
pace is perfect and a lot of the credit belongs to editors Joel Cox and
Gary Roach. This movie is not just about the anarchy of war, though the
second half of the film shows plenty of it. The first half of this film takes a
long look at how one would feel when one is about to fight in a battle one
knows it will die in.
The real star of the movie is Eastwood though, who (despite my love for
Martin Scorsese) should win the Oscar for best direction in a film.
Consider a scene in which several troops, hiding in a cave, feel that it is
time to kill themselves. I’m sure there are several ways you can show a
man blowing themselves up with a grenade, but Eastwood actually does it
with some poignancy.
Another memorable scene is when an American named Sam is captured
and cared for by Baron Nishi (Tsuyoshi Ihara, another great
performance). The Baron and Sam share a special conversation, and
when a letter that Sam’s mother writes is read to the remaining Japanese
troops, the entire movie takes a new turn.
What’s most interesting about “Letters” is that it is unafraid of making the
Americans look like villains (a couple of American troops are not nearly
as nice to the Japanese P.O.W’s). Make no mistake; the Japanese are
the good guys in this picture.
Another topic “Iwo Jima” delves into is the love of country. If you know
you’re going to die in war, is it more honorable to kill yourself or try to
survive by running? I’m not so sure, but then again, this is one of the
million reasons I am not a soldier.
“Letters from Iwo Jima” is one of the best movies of the year, and the best
war film since “Saving Private Ryan.”
 |
