Flags of Our Fathers Pics

The story starts in medias res, using a complex series of flashbacks. The three surviving servicemen, Hayes, Gagnon, and Bradley, identified from the iconic flag-raising photograph atop Mount Suribachi, are recalled to the US mainland on President Roosevelt's orders, to help the 7th war bond drive. As they tour the country amid a deluge of enthusiasm, and under the guidance of a senior US Treasury official, they have a series of memory flashbacks which, for simplicity, are given here in chronological order:

The plot focuses on seven United States Marines of the 28th Marine Regiment, 5th Marine Division, Sgt. Mike Strank, Pfc. Rene Gagnon, Pfc. Ira Hayes, Cpl. Harlon Block, Pfc. Franklin Sousley, Sgt. Hank Hansen, and Pfc. Ralph Ignatowski, as well as their Navy Corpsman, PhM2. John "Doc" Bradley.

In December 1944, U.S. Marines train at Camp Tarawa, Hawaii. They train by climbing a large mountain and getting in Higgins boats. The Marines then set sail across the Pacific, and it is revealed that they are headed to the small island of Iwo Jima, located less than 700 miles from the Japanese mainland. Captain Severance explains they will expect tough resistance as unlike in previous battles such as Guam, Tinian and Saipan, they will be fighting on Japanese soil. A few days later, the armada arrives off the coast of Iwo Jima and the ships of the United States Navy open fire on suspected Japanese positions. it is learned that the Navy is cutting the bombardment from the planned ten days to merely three. On the night before the landings, Mike is put in charge of second platoon.

The next day, February 19, 1945, the Marines hit the beach in landing craft and meet no resistance. Ralph, aka "Iggy", suspects that the Navy killed all the Japanese defenders, as do most of the Marines. After several tense minutes the Marines advance and the Japanese open fire. The battle is extremely intense, and the Marines take heavy casualties. Japanese heavy artillery opens fire upon the Marines on shore, as well as the Navy ships. After several attempts, Second Platoon takes out a Japanese pillbox which was pinning them down. They advance, as do many other Marines. The battle begins to calm down and the beachheads are secured. Two days later the Marines attack Mount Suribachi under a rain of Japanese artillery and machine gun fire, as the Navy bombards the mountain. It is here that Doc saves the lives of several Marines under fire which later earns him the Navy Cross. Finally, the mountain is secure. For the next four nights, the Marines take cover in foxholes as Japanese soldiers charge through the mist.

On February 23, the platoon under Hank's command is ordered to climb Mount Suribachi. They reach the top and hoist the American flag atop the mountain. For the first time in 1,000 years an enemy flag is raised on Japanese so

Flags of Our Fathers is a 2006 American war film directed, co-produced and scored by Clint Eastwood and written by William Broyles, Jr. and Paul Haggis. It is based on the book of the same name written by James Bradley and Ron Powers about the Battle of Iwo Jima, the five Marines and one Navy Corpsman who were involved in raising the flag on Iwo Jima, and the aftereffects of that event on their lives. This movie is taken from the American viewpoint of the Battle for Iwo Jima, while the sequel, Letters from Iwo Jima, is from the Japanese viewpoint of the battle, which Eastwood also directed. Letters from Iwo Jima was released in Japan on December 9, 2006 and in the United States on December 20, 2006, two months after the release of Flags of Our Fathers on October 20, 2006. The film is produced by Eastwood, Robert Lorenz and Steven Spielberg.