Everyone seems to be tripping over themselves to speak of the beauty of this film. After watching it with an open mind, I can't give it any more than a 7 out of 10.
The film does not operate on the sublime, intellectual "art" level that some films, such as "Dead Poet's Society" seem to fit into nicely. You know, films that keep your mind moving from start to finish... as opposed to films that put everything before you and contain no subtext, no visual style, and no clear emotional tone or overall message. If it was art, I would be left thinking deeply and profoundly about all that I had seen. Instead I'm left with a little historical knowledge, and nothing else.
Archy (Mark Lee) is the only character with any depth. We don't understand the motivations of the other characters, or why they act the way they do. They are all automatons, whether their motivation comes from within (Frank Dunne), or from some Australian war propaganda (everyone else in the film).
The anti-war message is clear. However, whatever message was being put forth about the idividual young men in the army was completely lost on me.
A good, emotional film, but the ending isn't the big emotional punctuation mark everyone makes it out to be. Maybe I've seen too many war movies (or not enough), but while this movie is certainly above average among scale, writing and acting, it wasn't very exciting till the last few minutes, and even then there is such a sense of inevitability that I just had to laugh at the stupidity of those men who were giving orders, and the idiocy of the people following them.
But then, maybe that was the point.
The film does not operate on the sublime, intellectual "art" level that some films, such as "Dead Poet's Society" seem to fit into nicely. You know, films that keep your mind moving from start to finish... as opposed to films that put everything before you and contain no subtext, no visual style, and no clear emotional tone or overall message. If it was art, I would be left thinking deeply and profoundly about all that I had seen. Instead I'm left with a little historical knowledge, and nothing else.
Archy (Mark Lee) is the only character with any depth. We don't understand the motivations of the other characters, or why they act the way they do. They are all automatons, whether their motivation comes from within (Frank Dunne), or from some Australian war propaganda (everyone else in the film).
The anti-war message is clear. However, whatever message was being put forth about the idividual young men in the army was completely lost on me.
A good, emotional film, but the ending isn't the big emotional punctuation mark everyone makes it out to be. Maybe I've seen too many war movies (or not enough), but while this movie is certainly above average among scale, writing and acting, it wasn't very exciting till the last few minutes, and even then there is such a sense of inevitability that I just had to laugh at the stupidity of those men who were giving orders, and the idiocy of the people following them.
But then, maybe that was the point.