Anzacs (1985)

The story concerns a fictitious company of men under arms in the 8th Battalion formed and trained in Victoria. The first episode is a primer of how they got together including the friendship between Martin Barrington, Dick Baker and his sister Kate. At the train station on the way to the Broadmeadows Army Camp is Pat Cleary, the typical Aussie larrikin. At the camp they are joined by Roly Collin, Tom McArther and Bill Harris. From there you follow them through the training camp where they are commanded by Lt Harold Armstrong with whom the men form an instant bond. Alongside this thread is that of Dick Baker's sister, Kate, who joins up as a nurse and provides the romantic slant to the story-line. After basic training the boys are sent off to fight against the Turks and landed at Anzac Cove where they earn their first reputation at Gallipoli.

The survivors are shipped to France where they are rewarded with a chance to basically do it all again. They do manage a little time off in London, before returning to France to get shot at all over again, only this time over a much longer period, until the Germans finally run out of cattle before the Allies, and surrender.

It is incredible how much of World War I was fought with a 'let's see who has the last man standing' mentality. It makes for infuriating viewing as so-called military strategists come up with one poorly planned counter-attack after another with almost total disregard for the lives of the men involved. It is as if they are playing with toy soldiers. "Let's just keep throwing men and machines at each other until one side has nothing left."

The village was completely destroyed in World War I during what became the Battle of Pozières, which was part of the Battle of the Somme. The village was subsequently rebuilt, and is now the site of several war memorials. The Australian flag flies over Pozières in recognition of the sacrifice of the ANZACs in the Battle of Pozières. Amongst the British and other Commonwealth forces who fought at Pozières, the Australians suffered over 5,000 killed, wounded or taken prisoner.

Led by General John Monash, they became a crack fighting corps of the British Army. While making up only five per cent of the Allied forces, the Anzacs played a crucial role in winning the “war to end all wars”. Their efforts were instrumental in Allied victories in numerous key battles, including Messines, Hamel, Amiens, Mont St Quentin and the Hindenberg Line.

A nice inclusion after hours of living in the pockets of these characters, is History in the Making - The Making of Anzacs. At 45 minutes it manages to squeeze a lot of quality stuff in, such as interviews with key cast and crew, and more technical aspects of filmmaking such as stunts, effects, costuming, design and the music. It is narrated and has the same technical specifications as the feature.