Sands of Iwo Jima

Sands of Iwo Jima is a 1950 American war drama about a hardened Marine sergeant, John M. Stryker, who trains a platoon of new recruits for combat in the Pacific during the Second World War. His harsh discipline and unrelenting demands make him feared and resented by his men, who regard him as cold and cruel. Only when they reach the beaches of Iwo Jima do they come to see the purpose behind his methods and the burden he carries. The story builds toward the battle for the island, a turning point in the Pacific campaign.

The film was directed by Allan Dwan, whose long career stretched back to the 1910s and includes Richelieu, Robin Hood, Heidi and Young People among the features he made before this one, and Silver Lode among those that followed. John Wayne plays Sergeant Stryker, with John Agar, Adele Mara, Forrest Tucker, Wally Cassell and James Brown heading a credited cast of 49. Republic Pictures produced it for about 1 million dollars, and it returned roughly 8 million dollars worldwide.

On IMDb the film holds a rating of 7 out of 10 from around 12,000 votes, while on TMDB it stands at 6.3 out of 10 from 179 votes. A critics' rating of 7.5 out of 10 from 13 reviews places it somewhat above the audience scores recorded on both sites.