From Academy Award-winning director Clint Eastwood ("Million Dollar Baby," "Unforgiven") comes the World War II drama "Flags of Our Fathers," produced by Eastwood and Academy Award winner Steven Spielberg ("Saving Private Ryan," "Schindler's List").

February 1945. Even as victory in Europe was finally within reach, the war in the Pacific raged on. One of the most crucial and bloodiest battles of the war was the struggle for the island of Iwo Jima, which culminated with what would become one of the most iconic images in history: five Marines and a Navy corpsman raising the American flag on Mount Suribachi.

The inspiring photo capturing that moment became a symbol of victory to a nation that had grown weary of war and made instant heroes of the six American soldiers at the base of the flag, some of whom would die soon after, never knowing that they had been immortalized. But the surviving flag raisers had no interest in being held up as symbols and did not consider themselves heroes; they wanted only to stay on the front with their brothers in arms who were fighting and dying without fanfare or glory.

"Flags of Our Fathers" is based on the bestselling book by James Bradley with Ron Powers, which chronicled the battle of Iwo Jima and the fates of the flag raisers and some of their brothers in Easy Company. Bradley's father, John "Doc" Bradley, was one of the soldiers pictured raising the flag, although James never knew the full extent of his father's experiences until after the elder Bradley's death in 1994.

MOVIE REVIEW

Flags of our Fathers is one of two World War II movies by Clint Eastwood hitting theaters this year. Fathers takes a look at the Battle of Iwo Jima from the perspective of the Americans, whereas his companion piece, Letters From Iwo Jima, will examine the same battle only through the eyes of the Japanese. It is an ambitious endeavor to do such a thing, and unfortunately, from the way Flags of our Fathers turned out, Eastwood will need to do a bit of editing on Letters From Iwo Jima to make a dent come the Oscars.
Read our Flags of Our Fathers movie review »