LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA
RYAN: We just saw the foreign language version of “Saving Private Ryan.”
CAROLINE: Actually, it was “Letters from Iwo Jima,” the counterpart to “Flags of Our Fathers,” which one of us saw.
RYAN: Mmm hmm.
CAROLINE: And that would be me.
RYAN: Although this film had some artistically creative moments, I really didn’t like it.
CAROLINE: It’s another bloody war movie, and that’s all you really need to know. Except this time it’s with Japanese people.
RYAN: And I had trouble understanding what they were saying.
CAROLINE: (laughs)
RYAN: The subtitles were in white and a lot of the scenes were really light, so you couldn’t even read them.
CAROLINE: That did happen a few times, yes. There were a few good battle scenes in this movie that were pretty powerful, if you’re into that sort of thing. But other than that, it’s a long two-plus hours.
RYAN: And I might sound like a really dumb American, but I can’t tell if people are acting well when they’re speaking another language.
CAROLINE: I can’t either! And Penny Cruz is nominated for Best Actress in “Volver” and I guess she was good, but I’ll have to take the Academy’s word for it.
RYAN: She sure couldn’t sing in that film.
CAROLINE: Oh God, no.
RYAN: Here’s what I liked about “Letters from Iwo Jima”: I liked that we saw it with our friend Sean, because he’s super fun.
CAROLINE: And I saw “Flags of Our Fathers” with him so it was like coming full circle for me.
RYAN: And Sean’s funny in a movie. His performance was great.
CAROLINE: (laughs)
RYAN: I also liked that as the movie got bleaker for the Japonais, the color of the film was drained, and it became more black and white.
CAROLINE: I guess it was a good movie. I mean, the Academy loves Clint Eastwood and that’s all there is to it. ‘Cuz this is a boring, long film about the war and I suppose if you’re over seventy, and World War II is not a distant memory for you, then you should see this. Other than that, go see “Music and Lyrics” next week.
RYAN: Or “Dreamgirls.” We only saw this because we want to see all the films that are nominated for Best Picture. But I don’t understand how this got nominated over movies like “Little Children” or “Dreamgirls.”
CAROLINE: Agreed. Bottom line?
RYAN: I think you made points quite nicely earlier.
CAROLINE: Suffice it to say, you can skip this one.
RYAN: There’s too much suicide in this movie!
SEAN: And there was no Ryan Phillippe.