The Battle of Iwo Jima depicts naval, air and land offensive by the U.S. military against the Japanese Imperial Army defending their island of Iwo Jima over a span of 37 days from 19 February to the 26 March 1945 toward the end of the Pacific War. U.S. Marine Corps casualties (6,821 killed, 19,217 wounded) exceeded the Japanese (21,884 killed, 216 taken prisoner). The strategic value of the island remains controversial as it was useless as an air staging field or naval fleet base.

The scene reduces to a small detail the staged sequence of the raising of the U.S. flag on Mount Surabachi. The work is constructed from United States Navy, Marine Corps and the Coast Guard films documenting the battle.