Gallipoli (1981 movie)

Gallipoli is a 1981 Australian movie.  It is directed by Peter Weir and stars Mel Gibson and Mark Lee.  It is about several young men from rural Western Australia who join the Australian Army during the First World War. They are sent to the peninsula of Gallipoli in the Ottoman Empire.  They take part in the Gallipoli Campaign.  Over time the young men lose their innocence about the purpose of war.  The climax of the movie occurs on the Anzac battlefield at Gallipoli.  It shows the futile attack at the Battle of the Nek on 7 August 1915.

Gallipoli is a faithful portrayal of life in Australia in the 1910s. It captures the ideals and character of the Australians who joined up to fight, as well as the conditions they endured on the battlefield.  It does, however, change events for dramatic purposes.  It has a number of significant historical inaccuracies.

The many running scenes in the movie are set to Jean Michel Jarre's Oxygène.

Gallipoli was successful at the box office earning $11,740,000. Gallipoli was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Foreign Film.

References

Category:Australian movies
Category:1981 war movies
Category:Movies directed by Peter Weir