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Bullets fly and bombs explode in Clint Eastwood's new film Flags of Our Fathers. The historical recreation of the historic siege of Iwo Jima is awe-inspiring in its intensity and grisly detail. But the movie isn't just about combat. It's about other kinds of conflict—wars of words, battles fought for the hearts and minds of a nation, and private conflicts with addiction, depression, and prejudice.

But one thing unites the three central characters of this story—they all took part in the famous flag raising on Mt. Surabachi on that small, rocky Japanese island, a moment captured by AP photographer Joe Rosenthal. And that photograph had a significant impact on American patriotism.

All told, the battle of Iwo Jima was a triumph for U.S. forces, but that victory came at a heavy price. More than 26,000 Marines were killed or wounded on that island, and 22,000 Japanese defenders died there as well. In Eastwood's complex adaptation of James Bradley's book, we see through the eyes of the Marines who fought there. And then we follow them home to learn about further challenges that awaited them.

My full review is at Christianity Today Movies.

David DiCerto (Catholic News Service) raves that the performances are "superb," and he praises Eastwood's direction, saying he has delivered a powerful work about heroism. "Eastwood does not subvert the traditional ideal of valor, but honors it by reminding us that the heroes of Iwo Jima were not supermen, but ordinary boys who rose to the occasion, sacrificing their lives to do what was needed, not for glory, but for the greater good and the guy next to them in the foxhole."

Christian Hamaker (Crosswalk) praises the film for its refusal to "offer easy notions of patriotism or jingoistic symbolism. … " But he's not entirely impressed. "[T]he movie is fragmented and often didactic. It never fully engages our interest, despite some effective moments. Its derivative qualities and somewhat cynical message leave these Flags flying at half-mast."

Marcus Yoars, Steven Isaac, and Bob Neven (Plugged In) combine forces to review the film. They conclude that, " … throughout the course of its objectively depressing, meticulously tiring depiction of war, it seems to be trying to say that nothing about the taking of that singular picture and the military's subsequent use of it was, for lack of a superlative, good. … It's sufficient to simply report that the overwhelming emotional effect of the film is to make you mistrust the government—and let the chips and facts fall as they may."

But they add that the film does teach us "what a true hero is."

Mainstream critics are impressed, although many consider it a flawed success.

Christian Bale. Michael Caine. Director Christopher Nolan. Sounds like the next Batman movie, right?

While that fabulous team is indeed preparing to bring back Batman in 2007's The Dark Knight, starring Heath Ledger as The Joker, you don't have to wait to see them together again on the big screen.

Nolan's The Prestige pits two magicians—played by Bale and Hugh Jackman—against one another in a battle for superiority and, of course, the heart of a girl. The supporting cast, which includes not only Caine but also David Bowie, Scarlett Johansson, and Andy Serkis, is winning high praise. But this late-Victorian thriller is challenging audiences and critics to keep up with the narrative's twists and turns even as it dazzles them with surprises and spectacular special effects.

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October (Web-only) 2006, Vol. 50