| Gallipoli | |
|---|---|
&sq=&lang=&file=File:Gallipoli_original_Australian_poster.jpg) Australian theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Peter Weir |
| Screenplay by | David Williamson |
| Story by | Peter Weir |
| Produced by | |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Russell Boyd |
| Edited by | William Anderson |
Production company | Associated R&R Films |
| Distributed by |
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Release dates |
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Running time | 111 minutes[1] |
| Country | Australia |
| Language | English |
| Budget | A$2.8 million[2] |
| Box office | A$11.7 million (Australia) $5.7 million (US)[3] |
Gallipoli is a 1981 Australian war drama film directed by Peter Weir and produced by Patricia Lovell and Robert Stigwood, starring Mel Gibson and Mark Lee. The film revolves around several young men from Western Australia who enlist in the Australian Army during World War I. They are sent to the Gallipoli peninsula in the Ottoman Empire (modern Turkey), where they take part in the Gallipoli campaign. During the course of the film, the young men slowly lose their innocence about the purpose of war. The climax of the film occurs on the Anzac battlefield at Gallipoli, depicting the futile attack at the Battle of the Nek on 7 August 1915. It modifies events for dramatic purpose and contains a number of significant historical inaccuracies.
Gallipoli, which had a budget of $2.6 million, provides a faithful portrayal of life in Australia in the 1910s—reminiscent of Weir's 1975 film Picnic at Hanging Rock set in 1900—and captures the ideals and character of the Australians who joined up to fight, as well as the conditions they endured on the battlefield, although its portrayal of British forces has been criticised as inaccurate. It followed the Australian New Wave war film Breaker Morant (1980) and preceded the 5-part TV series Anzacs (1985), and The Lighthorsemen (1987). Themes of these films include the Australian identity, such as mateship and larrikinism, the loss of innocence in war, and the continued coming of age of the Australian nation and its soldiers (later called the Anzac spirit).
Gallipoli received heavy international promotion and distribution and helped to elevate the worldwide reputation of the Australian film industry and of later Australian New Wave films. The film also helped to launch the international career of actor Mel Gibson. Due to the Gallipoli battlefields becoming tourist destinations in the 21st century, the film is often shown at the hostels and hotels in Eceabat and Çanakkale on the Dardanelles. In the 20 to 1 episode "Great Aussie Films", Gallipoli was listed as Number 1.[citation needed]
- ^ Gallipoli (1981), classified 08/10/1981 British Board of Film Classification
- ^ Stratton, David. The Avocado Plantation: Boom and Bust in the Australian Film Industry, Pan MacMillan, 1990, pp. 22–24.
- ^ Gallipoli at Box Office Mojo