Tension simmers between a tough-as-nails sergeant and the soldiers who he eventually leads into battle at Iwo Jima in this iconic World War II drama. John Wayne is very good as the moody sergeant with a beating human heart behind his tough exterior and John Agar is excellent as the private who clashes personalities with him the most. The son of a legendary military leader, Agar has to wrestle with the fact that he feels obliged to fight regardless of personal preference. He also has a touching scene in which he waxes poetic about marriage and fatherhood as ways to prove that one's life meant something. None of the other characters or performances are on the same level as Wayne and Agar (though Forrest Tucker has the occasional strong moment) and considering how blatantly flag-waving a film it is, it is understandable that 'Sands of Iwo Jima' might not appeal to some viewers. The two main characters have more dimension than the typical patriotic soldiers out there though, and the film is technically well produced. There are some great montages and gradual dissolves and the film seamlessly incorporates actual battle footage into the filmed action. With lots of zooms and tracking shots, the film is hardly static either. Some of the special effects (backdrops as Wayne drives along) show their age, but this stacks up rather well all things considered.

This is a very well done movie. The casting is excellent, the acting is very good, and the action is well done. A tough, hard bitten sergeant trains his men for combat, during which he beats down a rebellious private, teaches a recruit to do the bayonet drill by dancing with him, and then leads them into battle. John Agar plays a career officers rebellious brat who enlisted and actually comes of age on Mount Surabachi. Unfortunately he does this after the sergeant is killed by a hidden sniper. I admit that I found the last scene a little hard emotionally as John Wayne is shot while he was reading a letter about his son. Earlier in the movie he went back to a women's place, obviously for a sexual liaison, found her child crying in the crib and threw down all his money so the baby could eat. This was a touching scene for me also.

Twenty years before George C. Scott said basically the same thing in "Patton", a Marine lieutenant said it in this, a post-war made flag waver of why we fight. John Wayne is a tough marine sergeant determined to turn his troop into a battalion to be reckoned with. He knows that they aren't dealing with a weak enemy and doesn't care that his men for the most part can't stand him. Something else is more important.Actually, Wayne has their best interests at heart, and when the film moves from combat training into action, the men pick up on it. It's all about looking out for each other, finding brotherhood in the cause, which the men don't realize until they see one of the others killed, and it is then that they turn into the men that Wayne was out to see them made into.This was box-office gold for Wayne, Oscar Nominated for his tough performance. At first glance, it is no different than most of the performances he had been playing since stardom hit him with "Stagecoach", but he is playing a much more complex character than normal. Wayne is a drunk, a father figure, a sentimentalist, a bully. But each of those has causes, intentions and effects, so he's simply more than a hero. There are too many similar characters among his troop to single anybody out, although Forrest Tucker deserves mention as the tough Thomas who has lots of reasons for hating Wayne but will find out that he needs him and vice versa. Stock war footage is obvious, but what is newly filmed for this makes for exciting battle sequences.

During World War II, bombastic Marine Sergeant John Wayne (as John M. Stryker) trains a diverse (for the time) group of younger men for the tough "Sands of Iwo Jima" battle. Deserted by his own family, Mr. Wayne develops fatherly affections for his recruits, while lambasting them. Wayne gets close to arrogant John Agar (as Peter "Pete" Conway), while bickering with him. You've got to wonder why Wayne trained anyone, when he could have easily won the battle of Iwo Jima by himself. Come to think of it, why didn't we just send Wayne to knock off Hitler, and be done with it? Since this film is so ludicrous, I decide to ask my aunt about the actors. Wayne was "a very handsome man," "opinionated" and "in charge" most of the time. Eventfully, he became the character "John Wayne". Agar grew a little too fond of alcohol as time went on, although "he was a very nice man." They would meet for drinks in beautiful downtown Burbank. If Agar had a few too many, and became "nasty," my aunt would sing a few choruses of "On the Good Ship Lollipop" to quiet him down. Okay, she said, "to shut him up!" Now that I see he was divorcing "Mrs. Agar", I know why that technique worked.Back to the film… It was nominated for several "Academy Awards" and is nicely produced. Several of the actual Marines serving at Iwo Jima appear. Director Allan Dwan, whose career date back to many successful "silent movie" features, brings a lot of experience to the film; he works well with Wayne and gets a more comfortable budget than usual, from the studio ("Republic"). Wayne solidified his superstar status with "Sands of Iwo Jima" and his iconic characterization received a "Best Actor" notice; but, see his "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" (also 1949) for a better overall performance.****** Sands of Iwo Jima (12/14/49) Allan Dwan ~ John Wayne, John Agar, Forrest Tucker, James Brown