He promised to return to his young, pregnant wife, but Japanese ideals repeatedly compel him to suicide when the battle turns sour. Despite the fact that he fully understands the hopelessness of the cause Nishi abandons his dreams for his Japanese honor.Īnother key storyline involves Saigo (Kazunari Ninomiya), a humble baker forced into military service after the war effort bankrupted his business.
Despite these obstacles, Kuribayashi held off the Americans for more than 30 days down to nearly the last Japanese soldier.īaron Nishi (Tsuyoshi Ihara), a champion equestrian and another less than traditional Japanese man who spent time in the United States competing alongside Americans in the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles, joined Kuribayashi on Iwo Jima. Mistrustful of his Americanized Japanese ways, his efforts to change his staff’s defensive strategies are thwarted at every turn and during the battle disciplined officers who normally adhered to the letter of military law countermanded his orders. However, his subordinates do not see it that way. General Tadamichi Kuribayashi – played by Ken Watanabe (“Memoirs of a Geisha” and “The Last Samurai”) – arrives on the island of Iwo Jima with the imminent arrival of the American forces driving their defensive preparations to a frenzied pace.Įducated in America, Kuribayashi is uniquely suited to make Japan’s last stand against the American invaders. This companion film to “Flags of Our Fathers” tells the tale of the 1944 battle of Iwo Jima from the Japanese perspective.
No other film in Hollywood’s history imbeds itself so deeply and successfully in the enemy’s camp. It is passionate, reflective, dark and gritty with a thematic content unique to the American war drama. REDLANDS – “Letters from Iwo Jima” has all the stylistic elements of a classic war film in the making.