Gallipoli

Gallipoli is a harsh war film about the Australian soldiers who were sent all the way to the other side of the globe to die in the First World War.

The film's protagonists are the idealistic and somewhat naive Archy, who strikes up a friendship with the rootless Frank Dunne. Archy dreams of a glorious future in the army and, full of optimism and thirst for adventure, lets himself be recruited, while Frank is rather less starry-eyed. During their training in Egypt it is mostly fun and games, but it becomes deadly serious at the great battle of Gallipoli in Turkey, where the Australian soldiers are used by the British as cannon fodder. Here the horrors and senselessness of war finally dawn on Archy and Frank.

There is not much momentum in the story, but the human drama is gripping nonetheless, supported by the film's wealth of detail and realism.