Sleeper awakens

Rating: 10/10 (3 August 2015)

Never heard of this show, and that's sad. With all the junk out there it's too bad this one missed our theaters.
Exceptionally well done and accurate in telling the tragic story of Gallipoli from both the ANZAC (Australia) and Turkish points of view. In that WWI was a totally absurd war with no reason (most wars do have reasons; WW2 was essential etc.) made the entire premise of a father from Australia leaving his farm to find his three sons whose bodies were never found after the campaign a profound premise.
The film mixed in flashbacks to the campaign to win the heights overlooking the Bosphorous Straights between the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. Churchill was blamed for the naval debacle that occurred (and he bore some culpability but little) but the entire idea of invading Turkey, especially at Gallipoli was insanity that soldiers like the Cooper boys paid for.
The acting is excellent with a host of different characters representing effectively the Australians, British, Turkish, and Greeks. The levels of conflict arising from a nation going from being the once proud Ottoman Empire, to a carved up mess with Islamic State overtones, to a Turkish nationalists movement that led to a secular state that Turkey is today, to the Greek/Turkish war continuation (that actually began long before the siege at Troy with Achilles) is all presented carefully in this film.
Crowe is humorless in this film, but there's not much to smile about as the Gladiator faces his worst fears head on with dignity and determination.
Well done, Russell Crowe. This is a hidden jewel of a movie. The R rating is a soft R at best and is only there for a few bits of war time violence that isn't much different that television violence. No profanity, no sex or nudity or drugs. Recommended for teenagers to understand the realities and tragedies of history and war. Recommended for all adults as a gripping mystery and adventure in historical fiction.