Ceremonial flag

Review ni Vives Anunciacion

Flags of Our Fathers
Directed by Clint Eastwood
Written by William Broyles Jr., Paul Haggis
Starring Ryan Phillippe, Jesse Bradford, Adam Beach
DreamWorks/ Warner Brothers
** (2 stars)

A picture is worth a thousand words, pero sa Flags of Our Fathers kulang ang one thousand words dahil paulit-ulit na tatanungin ni director Clint Eastwood kung ano ang tunay na kahulugan ng kabayanihan. Paulit-ulit hanggang matapos ang pelikula, may sermon pa. Actually mas kasalanan ng mga writers.

Based on the book by James Bradley and Ron Powers, Flags of Our Fathers is Clint Eastwood’s lavish deconstruction of the famous photo taken by Joe Rosenthal depicting the raising of the star spangled banner by American soldiers on Iwo Jima on February 23, 1945. More than what it means to the American public, Flags of Our Fathers dissects the true meaning of heroism sa katauhan ng tatlo sa anim na sundalong nagtaas ng bandila.

Sina Doc Bradley (Ryan Philippe), Rene Gagnon (Jesse Bradford) at Ira Hayes (Adam Beach) ay tatlo sa mga sundalong nagtaas ng bandilang Amerikano sa Iwo Jima sa ika-limang araw ng may 40-days na pakikipagdigmaan ng US laban sa mga Hapon noong World War 2.

Kaagad naging sikat ang mga flag raisers matapos ilathala ang larawan sa mga pahayagan, kaya hindi nag-atubili ang gobyernong iuwi sila sa Amerika para maging poster boys sa kampanya para makalikom ng 14 Billion dollars pantustos sa gastusin ng digmaan. Binansagan silang Heroes of Iwo Jima. Hindi nahirapan si Rene na mag-adjust sa bago niyang kasikatan, samantalang hindi matanggap ni Ira ang bansag sa kaniya bilang bayani. But the story is told through the experiences of Doc as the attending medic of the fallen GIs.

It’s easier to like Flags of Our Fathers than say how contrived it truly is. Don’t get me wrong - it’s a handsomely made film, beautifully photographed and light-handedly guided by Eastwood, as most Eastwood films are. Will it receive many Oscar nominations? For sure. But what it truly is is a sappy, repetitive and preachy no-brainer of a story that condemns idolatry but glorifies the idol at the same time.

There’s no need for Flags to repeat its theme in every scene, but in case somebody misses it, there’s even a sermon at the end defining what heroes are. Heroes are but our creation, it says, but they are heroes nonetheless. For once, Dirty Harry blinks on his politics.

If it’s arrogance to call this a literal, spoonfeeding, no-brainer drama, it’s because the movie condescends to its audience and makes sure it gets its message in the most melodramatic manner possible. War Movies for Dummies New Illustrated Edition.