Kokoda

While this film is not without it's flaws, it is definitely worth seeing. I found the dialogue hard to distinguish at times, and the plot line takes a little sorting out but the visuals work to stunning effect. It is a film that evokes a visceral (not to say gut-wrenching) response; one that brings the viewer much closer to understanding the nerve-jangling, terrifying experience of war, and the fortitude required to endure it.

Grierson's starting point are the words of the Isurava Memorial. It was the 'courage, mateship, endurance and sacrifice' of the boys and men of the 39th, 2/14th and 2/16th battalions, that bound these ordinary individuals together into a force stronger than the combined effects of their circumstances and the Japanese army.

The film is graphic in its depiction of the demands that that environment makes upon you physically. Though while watching it you might not feel the strength sapping jungle humidity or smell the stench of battle and its aftermath, you're left in no doubt about the challenges placed on human bodies by dysentery and malaria.

This is no glorification of war, but its grim and gritty reality. Seeing the film will help you appreciate the efforts of those who were there.

It's funny that the ending of this film has been criticised here as unrealistic and melodramatic. One commenter even said it was of "Neighbours" (soap opera) quality.

In fact the final scene is an exact reconstruction of a parade of members of the 39th battalion before their commander, Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Honner at the village of Menari. Every word spoken by William McInnes (playing Honner) in this scene is taken from the official record of the proceedings on that day.

So much for "Neighbours".

The film is good without being great. The budget supplies the reason. What it does convey is the hostile terrain over which the Australian soldiers had to lug all their supplies, including heavy artillery pieces... and then they had to fight the Japanese, who heavily outnumbered them, when they reached the top of the ranges.

These were part-time soldiers, reservists with inferior training and green troops for the most part. Their job was to hold the line until the professional veterans (back from North Africa) arrived to take over. It was a war fought in platoon and section strength, with few pitched battles. Ever since the survivors of the two reserve battalions have been called "The Ragged Bloody Heroes", and deservedly so.

Recently these has been some revisionism among politically biased historians, claiming that Kokoda was a waste of time and effort; that the Japanese had no intention of invading Australia. While they may not have been as serious about Kokoda as they were regarding the developing disaster at Gualalcanal, one thing is certain: if the Japanese had not been held back on the Kokoda Track, taking Port Moresby would have been a prize too easily won to refuse. Taking Moresby, and perhaps then Australia could have changed not only the war in the South West Pacific area, but perhaps the whole course of WW2.

The men of the 39th battalion had no opportunity to speculate from afar, and safety, on the political potential of Kokoda as relevant to 2006 politics. They had to fight and die where they stood. That is why their story is worth telling, a story of small groups of men fighting shadows in a jungle nightmare scenario, without the option of surrender.

ojfosterbrown, the only hyperbole here is yours. The statements you take such a dislike to accurately reflect history. The 39th were poorly trained and ill-equipped and Australians did think the Japanese were about to invade.

Ralph Honnor and his immediate superiors were screwed by Australian High Command (Blamey) and the "boys" of the 39th were later directly insulted to their faces by Blamey.

Ifra, if you think Private Ryan is an ideal to strive for, then you'd better develop a taste for that Chardonnay.

Pacific400, I'm no right-winger, but the fact is Japan has consistently refused to acknowledge its heinous crimes in WW2, why shouldn't audiences be shown what went on? Do you object to films showing Nazi crimes? Did you object to the NKVD machine-gunning Soviet grunts in Enemy at the Gates? Yes, let's not forget the great job the US did, they certainly never have, and they have no problem taking credit for others' work (U571), but how many of them know this story? How many of us know this story? Technical quibbles correct. Old .303s were standard, as were new Brens, militia definitely didn't have Thompsons and may not have had Owens, the thing only went into production in 1941 and the militia may not have had first pick of the weapons...

As for those saying the movie is missing the Big Picture, this isn't A Bridge Too Far, it shows the Kokoda campaign exactly as experienced by the 39th Bn, a series of small engagements where some cracked and some were heroes and the enemy were "faceless", "mysterious", utterly unknown by Australians, capable of astonishing cruelty and eventually forced into cannibalism.

As to those saying we don't make WW2 movies (or TV), try The Last Bullet, The Heroes, The Cowra Breakout, Attack Force Z (with Mel and Sam), Blood Oath, The Rats of Tobruk, Piece of Cake, Kokoda Front Line (academy award-winning documentary filmed where this film is set in the period immediately after - cameraman Damien Parrer died in combat on his return to New Guinea) and Death of a Soldier (even Paradise Road and Map of the Human Heart). What we don't do is make VN or Korean War movies.

This movie had its flaws, all movies do, but instead of castigating a first-time director for his lack of budget, castigate the studios for never having told this story before.

A war movie that finally showed what it's really like, "green" reservists climbing jungle-covered mountains while suffering from dysentery, malaria, not knowing where the enemy is and being in desperate need of a crap.

In the mountainous terrain of New Guinea, is the Kokoda trail. A small band of improperly trained and ill equipped soldiers have to keep the advancing Japanese troops, threatening to over take Australia. The Japanese outnumber them one hundred to one; though this isn't their only threat; disease and injured soldiers are dropping like flies, holding out till the back up forces arrive.

Kokoda is a vividly created film on Australia's last stand against the Japanese army. Not covering all of war in New Guinea, we are only shown a small part, focusing in the fight of this small band of soldiers. Director Alister Grierson draws out the gritty detail of the land; the mud and rain in the claustrophobic rain forest. The are scenes of great intensity that play out like a horror film, mixed with some beautiful cinematography by Jules O'Loughlin.

Iconic part of Australian history aside, Kokoda isn't that great of a war film. Though struck with budget restraints, the problem lies within the script. The first acts seems omitted, plunging us right into action, there's not a lot of setup. The Characters aren't fleshed out, we don't know who these people are, making it hard to make an emotional connection; even though your placed right in the horror with them.

In a great performance, Jack Finsterer is amazing as Jack, leader of the small band of soldiers. Equally great is Travis McMahon as the hot-headed Darko. The rest of the cast doesn't compare to Jack and Travis, with cameos from Shane Bourne and William McInnes.

While Kokoda is not a epic war film, for which it should have been, Kokoda is a wonderful experience, paying homage to our war heroes.

Saw this today and I was quite impressed. It wasn't perfect, but I'm sure they had a very limited budget so it's hard to nit pick too much. It's good to see such an important part of Australian history as the mammoth effort to stop the Japanese advance through Papua New Guinea put on film. At the time the bulk of the Australian forces were in North Africa fighting the Germans and Italians, and the desperate defence of PNG was first handled by the very in-experienced militia troops, as featured in the film.

I think the majority of it was filmed near Canungra, which is still used as the Australian army's jungle warfare centre. The makers obviously wanted to showcase the terrible jungle conditions that the soldiers fought in. It was good also to see the famous "fuzzy wuzzy angels" as the soldiers called the native stretcher-bearers prominently featured.