Clint Eastwood, fresh off his success from Million Dollar Baby, has started casting for his highly anticipated war drama Flags Of Our Fathers. He is probably the coolest, most efficient senior citizen working today. After Paul Newman, of course.
According to Hollywood Reporter, Ryan Phillippe, Adam Beach, and Jesse Bradford are set to star in his WWII foray. Eastwood is reteaming with talented scribe Paul Haggis. The Battle of Iwo Jima was a turning point in the winter of 1945, where 22,000 Japanese and 26,000 Americans lost their lives. High fatalities aside, the battle yielded one of WWII's most enduring images: a photograph of U.S. servicemen raising an American flag on Mount Suribachi.
The original story of Flags Of Our Fathers was written by James, the son of Navy Corpsman John Bradley who only discovered his father's horrific war experience after he passed away. Phillippe will play the role of Bradley. Beach will play Ira Hayes, a Pima Indian who hits the bottle a bit too hard after the war concludes. The part of Rene Gagnon is going to Bradford, a ladies' man who helps to lift the flag featured in the influential photograph.
DreamWorks Pictures and Warner Brothers are distributing the movie. War may be the most evil thing known to man, but it does provide material for some pretty good movies. Talk about a weak attempt at turning lemons into lemonade.
Shooting will begin in August. And not the violent kind.
