Sands of Iwo Jima

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Sands of Iwo Jima

1950,

1h 50m,

War

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Watchlist

Watchlist

100%

13 Reviews

Tomatometer

80%

5,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

100%

Tomatometer

13 Reviews

80%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

Marine Sgt. John Stryker (John Wayne) is despised by his own men for his rough attitude and exhausting training regimen. As the war in the Pacific progresses, though, they begin to respect Stryker's hard-edged outlook on war and his brutal training methods, as it has helped them prepare for the harsh realities of the battlefield. They'll need all of Stryker's battle tactics if they want to survive what will end up being one of the bloodiest engagements of the war: the Battle of Iwo Jima.

Frank J. Avella

The Contending

Apr 28, 2025

B

The film blends striking real footage of the battle with Dwan’s newly shot scenes. That lends the movie a hard authenticity and makes it quite compelling.

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Apr 27, 2025

3.5/4

This is compelling stuff, distinguished by some of the best battle sequences ever placed on film.

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Sean Axmaker

Stream on Demand

Aug 19, 2023

... a rare role for Wayne to show a darker side of his persona... which earned him his first Academy Award nomination.

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Steve Crum

Video-Reviewmaster.com

Mar 8, 2008

5/5

One of John Wayne's best performances, and an entertainment above average on its own.

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Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Jan 12, 2007

B+

In one of his best roles, Wayne's Stryker is a sergeant disliked by his recruits due to his ruthless training and rigid code of ethics. The film established the two-generational plot as a Wayne staple, here contrasted with John Agar's "soft" soldier.

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James Plath

Movie Metropolis

Oct 21, 2005

4/5

Solid patriotic WWII vehicle for Wayne.

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Kylo S

Feb 23, 2019

I Guess As Far As A 'Glorified' Look At A Debacle Of A Military Exercise, To Capture A Small Piece Of Rock In The Pacific, Mostly To Prove A Point, That The USA Has Gumpton & Might; It Acheives 'Hero Status' On What Might Otherwise Be Reflected Upon By Others As A Tradegy, A Great-Loss & Nothing To Really Celebrate. It Is However An Important Event In The American Narrative Of 'Freedom', So This Reflection, Some Might Call Post-War Properganda, Is What It Is. I Know The Clint Eastwood Films On The Same Topic, One Told From The United States Side, The Other Film From The Japanese Side, Are A Better Rendition-Reflection Of How Difficult It All Was. The Interesting Part Of This Version Was The Mix Of Real Footage From The Battle.

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Feb 2, 2019

The best thrilling and inspiring movie ever made! With the best movie character ever portrayed: John Wayne as Nathan Stryker!

George S

Sep 27, 2018

I knew many marines that were there. They seemed to think it was the most realistic was movie ever made.

Hermione S

Feb 21, 2018

All the way around, this is one of The Duke's most definitive and great War movies.

Ron W

Oct 15, 2017

"THE SANDS OF IWO JIMA" is one of the top 3 war films of all times. John Wayne is the man boys like me wanted to be like. God bless our military!

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Hagrid S

Aug 31, 2017

Classic. Follows the war movie formula. Probably gave birth to it.

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Allan Dwan

Director

John Wayne

Sgt. John M. Stryker

John Agar

Pfc. Peter Conway

Forrest Tucker

Pfc. Al Thomas

Adele Mara

Allison Bromley

Wally Cassell

Pfc. Benny Regazzi

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Synopsis

Marine Sgt. John Stryker (John Wayne) is despised by his own men for his rough attitude and exhausting training regimen. As the war in the Pacific progresses, though, they begin to respect Stryker's hard-edged outlook on war and his brutal training methods, as it has helped them prepare for the harsh realities of the battlefield. They'll need all of Stryker's battle tactics if they want to survive what will end up being one of the bloodiest engagements of the war: the Battle of Iwo Jima.

Director: Allan Dwan
Producer: Edmund Grainger
Screenwriter: Harry Brown, James Edward Grant
Distributor: Artisan Entertainment, Republic Pictures
Production Co: Republic Pictures Corporation
Genre: War
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 1, 1950, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 14, 2014
Runtime: 1h 50m

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