More than a War Movie

I just watched Flags Of Our Fathers, directed by Clint Eastwood. It's a recently released film, showing the story of the flag raisers at Iwo Jima for WWII, and how the American govt used, no, exploited the flag raisers to promote a money drive for the war effort.

But you probably already know that.

This is not just a typical war movie. It's not some war movie based on fictional characters, fighting against stereotyped bad guys and saving the world, becoming heroes in the meantime. It's also not just about how a picture about a flag being raised swung the war to the American's side. It's about soldiers who never saw themselves as heroes but thrown into the spotlight nevertheless to serve a 'higher purpose'.

Now, some of my friends who watched it do call it a little boring at times, or perhaps irritated by the constant flashbacks, certainly a unconventional portrayal of war movies. But they all agreed at least, that it was a meaningful show. The switching scenes of the 3 men in the battlefield juxtaposed with their shoulder bumping with the D.C. bigwigs back home, only serves to highlight the superficial packaging of the war to the American public, and how everything seems to be a show rather than what war really is -- a passage of excessive horror.

And the one scene, where Bradley drove past a limping and exhausted Ira Hayes, was so symbolic, no? (I suppose ever since I got into Film class I've been taking a different approach towards movies) It does seem that Eastwood was making an anti-war statement, however, I leave that up to you to decide for yourself.

What got me thinking, is something which I've already knew, was that the fact that the rifleman on the ground fighting the war, was only fighting because of his fellow men beside him. Because the person next to him was willing to give up his life for him, and vice versa. Band of Brothers drove home that point to me. And it got me thinking, because in the world today, with information being so widely accessible, should the riflemen know the real agenda behind their govt's decision for war, would they still have fought, or would they have deserted?

Imagine in Roman Antiquity, when civil war broke out. I personally don't think the foot soldiers knew what the Republic really represented. Were they fighting for the Republic, or a new era under the Empire? No, in all probabilty, they were fighting for their general, and their fellow legionnaire beside him, for promises of fertile lands and pillaging of provinces. Or going even further back, (even if a myth), would the Spartans have invaded Troy if they knew it was because their bum of a king lost his wife to a pretty boy Trojan?

So what are today's soliders fighting for?

To protect their country? To protect the entire world? For democracy? For their religion? For $? How much of their own beliefs are actually aligned to that of their government's?

What are you fighting for?

This film turns out to be more provoking than I thought. If you want to be entertained, go catch a Jackie Chan or a Owen Wilson. If you rather watch a docu-film, or a war movie, this movie is a must catch.

Eastwood, to his credit, has not only made this film from the American perspective. He made a complementary film called Letters from Iwo Jima, showing the war from the Japanses perspective. It's in Jap of course. And I'm in anticipation of it. Perhaps after watching Flags, you will too.