Australia has produced quite a few excellent war movies. They have a different flavour to both British and American productions.
Here are some of the best
Gallipoli (1981)
Youtube.
The film follows the journey of two young Western Australians, Archy Hamilton (Mark Lee) and Frank Dunne (Mel Gibson), who enlist in the Australian Imperial Force. As they confront the brutal realities of warfare and the human cost of conflict,
Gallipoli captures the sacrifice at the centre of a pivotal moment in Australian history.
The Lighthorsemen
Amazon Prime, Binge, Foxtel Go
The Lighthorsemen chronicles the valorous exploits of the Australian Light Horse Brigade, including their legendary charge at the Battle of Beersheba in 1917. The film deftly balances the epic scale of battle sequences with intimate character studies, offering a profound exploration of courage, camaraderie, and sacrifice amidst the harsh realities of war.
Breaker Morant
Netflix, Amazon Prime
Breaker Morant actually depicts events that predate the creation of the ANZAC legend, but it’s a testament to the fact that Australian identity had already begun to form in the years immediately following foundation. The film follows real-life events surrounding the court-martial of Lieutenant Harry “Breaker” Morant during the Second Boer War in South Africa. Set in 1901, the film delves into the moral complexities of war as it follows Morant and two of his fellow soldiers who are charged with war crimes. Though the trio acted under orders, they are being used as scapegoats by their British superiors who wish to distance themselves from their own morally unscrupulous acts.
Breaker Morant shows the formation of Australian rebellion against British hegemony that later became infamous during World War I.
Danger Close The Battle of Long Tan
Available to rent or buy on Apple TV+ and Amazon Prime
Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan focuses on a legendary engagement during the Vietnam war. The film is a visceral depiction of the battle of Long Tan, where a small contingent of Australian and New Zealand soldiers found themselves vastly outnumbered by North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces. Starring Travis Fimmel,
Danger Close effectively captures the essence of the ANZAC spirit, alive and well, decades after the dissolution of ANZAC forces. It does so by demonstrating the ideals of mateship, courage and sacrifice, which were depended on to survive.
Beneath Hill 60
Available to rent or buy on Apple TV+ and Amazon Prime
Beneath Hill 60 is one for the unsung heroes of World War I, delving into the little-known story of the Australian miners who tunnelled beneath enemy lines on the Western front. The film follows Oliver Woodward, an Australian mining engineer, as he leads a team tasked with planting explosives beneath a heavily fortified German position known as Hill 60. Woodward and his men must not only confront the enemy, but also the psychological toll of their sacrifice.
There is another quintessential film depicting the AIF in Vietnam that I would recommend
The Odd Angry Shot 1979
The Odd Angry Shot is an Australian war film written, directed and produced by Tom Jeffrey (with Sue Millikin).[2] It is based on the book of the same title by William Nagle, and follows the experiences of Australian soldiers during the Vietnam War. The movie, which was shot on location in New South Wales and Canungra, Queensland, traces the tour of duty of an Australian Special Air Service Regiment reconnaissance team from their departure to their return home to Australia. It avoids much of the political comment on Australia’s involvement in Vietnam, unlike Hollywood films which tend to explore the rights and wrongs of the Vietnam War.
The film focuses on the soldiers in their cantonments away from the battlefield, where they spend the bulk of their time playing cards, smoking, drinking beer, nursing their tinea, making jokes and messing about with American forces. The film also contains some small scale battle scenes. When the men return to Australia, they reflect on how both they and the general Australian society have changed. (In particular, they find it unwise to disclose that they fought in Vietnam: to do so invited abuse in a society divided about whether Australians should have been sent to fight there.)
Quote from the movie (Sanitised?)
- Harry: I said 'get f*cked', you great beer-sodden bag of shit!
- Sergeant-Major: Right, you're all on a charge.
- Harry: Well, you'd better make it murder, because I'm gonna knock your f*cking head right off.
