After Gallipoli

Rating: 7/10 (18 April 2015)

This is another Australian movie exploring the legacy of Gallipoli, a First World War battle in which many ANZAC soldiers died and which has become iconic in Australian history. It is set in Australia, and Turkey, and tells the sad story of a man who has lost his sons, and goes to Turkey to find their remains. Flashbacks show the boys growing up in Australia and their experience of the horrors of the battle. This is not a war movie; it's a post-war movie.
Interestingly, this movie shows more of, and is even sympathetic to, the Turkish side. Crowe has succeeded admirably in showing us what Istanbul must have been like during the Greco-Turkish War.
Frankly, it bothers me that this movie demonised the Greek side (even though the harshness of the Greeks is an historical fact). This just seems wrong-headed to me given the genocides committed by the Ottoman Turks against the Armenians and Ottoman Greeks. Sort of like glorifying the Nazis. The fact that we don't understand this immediately is just sad. (I don't mean to slur Turkey itself, which is a wonderful country.)
Crowe is the heart of this movie, and he carries it effortlessly. Kurylenko also delivers a good performance. Jai Courtney (for some reason, billed as the lead actor) is too smoking hot for a role like this, but I thought he pulled it off. What would an Australian movie be without beefcake?
The movie worked for me. I was moved at times. However, the sentimentality and stereotyping was a little too much for me. Yes, we get it, the Australians suffered horribly at Gallipoli. At times the film seemed too simplistic and movieish. The supernatural part didn't appeal to me either. I'm glad I saw the movie, but I could have skipped it.