Sands of Iwo Jima (1950) - Quotes

A Great Human Story in Film

Taglines: A great human story... makes a mighty motion picture.

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Strength in Adversity and Hope

Taglines: Alone and outnumbered, they had one thing in their favor... the American dream.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Conflict and Accusation in Combat

PFC Al Thomas: What's this all about?

Sgt. Stryker: Just that I hate your guts!

Sgt. Stryker: You doped off and got one of my men killed and one of them bayonetted! You haven't had enough, get on your feet!

PCF Al Thomas: (now realizing why Stryker is so angry, he tries to explain) Stryker....

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Military Orders Amidst Chaos

PFC Benny Regazzi: [whispering] Stryker!

Sgt. Stryker: [whispering] Get down! Stay down! You have your orders, don't move!

PFC Peter Conway: [whispering] There's somebody wounded out there.

Sgt. Stryker: Quiet.

PFC Peter Conway: Let's go get him!

Sgt. Stryker: (as Conway starts out of the trench Stryker shoves him back down) Stay down, it might be a Jap trick, they pulled it off plenty of times at Guadalcanal.

PFC Peter Conway: That doesn't sound like a Jap to me!

Sgt. Stryker: I don't care what it sounds like to you! You stick your head up, you'll tip our position.

PFC Charlie Bass: Stryker!

PFC Peter Conway: That's Bass. How many Japs know your name, Stryker? That's Bass, you know his voice!

Sgt. Stryker: Shut up.

PFC Peter Conway: Aren't you human at all? Don't you know a friend of yours might be dying?

Sgt. Stryker: (still anxious to avoid a confrontation) Knock it off!

PFC Peter Conway: (uncontrollably seething) Just like my father taught you, be a good Marine, be tough! Well you can sit here and be tough if you want to, but I'm going on to get that guy and the only way you can stop me is to kill me!

Sgt Stryker: That's JUST what I'll do!

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

The Harsh Reality of War

PFC Al Thomas: That's war.

PFC Charlie Bass: What's war?

PFC Al Thomas: Trading real estate for men.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Warning Against Excessive Drinking

PFC Charlie Bass: Don't do it. Just this once, don't do it.

Sgt. Stryker: Don't do what?

PFC Charlie Bass: Don't get blind, staggerin stinkin falling down drunk.

Sgt. Stryker: Charlie, nobody sets out to get blind, staggerin stinkin falling down drunk.

PFC Charlie Bass: Yeah, some people do.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

A Lesson in Focus and Survival

Sgt. Stryker: (running a grenade drill to raw recruits) Pull pin! Prepare to throw! Throw!

Sgt. Stryker: (suddenly spotting the errant grenade) Grenade! Hit the deck!

Sgt. Stryker: You idiot. When are you gonna wake up? You wanna see that dame again, keep your mind on your work!

PFC Al Thomas: (to Conway, now seeing why Stryker so dislikes Conway) You may not know this, boy, but you just got your life saved.

Forty Years of Preparation on the Island

Officer: [giving the pre-invasion briefing] Now, nobody knows exactly what they've got on this island, but they've had forty years to put it there.

Growing Hatred Between Two Characters

PFC Al Thomas: You know, my natural dislike for you is turning into a great hatred, Bass.

Frustration with Leadership in Combat Situations

PFC Al Thomas: Ten thousand sergeants in this corps and I gotta draw Stryker!

Sgt. Stryker's Tough Leadership Philosophy

Sgt. Stryker: My name is Stryker, Sergeant John M. Stryker. You're gonna be my squad - a rifle squad. Three of us have seen action: Corporal Dunn, Charlie Bass, and myself. You're gonna learn from us. In boot camp, you learned out of a book. Out here, you gotta remember the book and learn a thousand things that have never been printed, probably never will be. You gotta learn right and you gotta learn fast. And any man that doesn't want to cooperate, I'll make him wish he hadn't been born. Before I'm through with you, you're gonna move like one man and think like one man. If you don't, you'll be dead. Now, you guys have had a nice, easy day. I hope you enjoyed it because it's the last one you're gonna get for a long time. You joined the Marines because you wanted to fight. Well, you're gonna get your chance, and I'm here to see that you know how. If I can't teach you one way, I'll teach ya another. But I'm gonna get the job done. Any questions? That's all.