12 Australian Films You Must See Before You Die
3. Gallipoli
Perhaps harshly not on top of this list, Peter Weir's war masterpiece is a brilliant examination of the futility of war and the pointless carnage of World War 1. The film concentrates on the journeys of Mel Gibson and Mark Lee as pals Frank and Mark, who sign up to join the battle going on abroad, before finding themselves amongst the atrocities in Gallipoli, Turkey.
While the first act takes it time in exploring the reasons why Australians signed up for a battle that had no relevance to their country and the second act explores the actual good times the soldiers had overseas, it's the third act that makes it all work. Watching the pained screams of Gibson's Frank as he fails to stop the launch of soldiers that will result in the death of his friend, is absolutely heartbreaking.
The only downside of the film is the portrayal of the English generals, who feel like pantomime villains. Rather than showing these men as out of their depth and lacking experience, they appear here like they're in a Black Adder episode, incredibly stupid and uncaring of the deaths occurring around them.
Despite this flaw, the film is still quite brilliant, with the recreation of Gallipoli in both scale and mood a remarkable feat. It may be a quite intimate affair, but it still remains one of the truly great war films ever made.