Beneath Hill 60 (2010)

The extraordinary true story of Oliver Woodward. It's 1916 and Woodward must tear himself from his new young love to go to the mud and carnage of the Western Front. Deep beneath the German ... See full summary »

Director:

Jeremy Sims

Writer:

David Roach

Stars:

Brendan Cowell, Harrison Gilbertson, Steve Le Marquand

8 wins & 22 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Brendan Cowell	...	Oliver Woodward
Alan Dukes	...	Jim Sneddon
Alex Thompson	...	Walter Sneddon
Harrison Gilbertson	...	Frank Tiffin
Duncan Young	...	Tom Dwyer
Steve Le Marquand	...	Bill Fraser
Gyton Grantley	...	Norman Morris
Warwick Young	...	Percy Marsden
Mark Coles Smith	...	Billy Bacon
Martin Thomas	...	Ginger O'Donnell
Oliver Leimbach	...	Screaming Soldier
Anthony Hayes	...	William McBride
Leon Ford	...	Lt. Robert Clayton
Fletcher Illidge	...	Colin Waddell
Morgan Illidge	...	Gordon Waddell

Storyline

The extraordinary true story of Oliver Woodward. It's 1916 and Woodward must tear himself from his new young love to go to the mud and carnage of the Western Front. Deep beneath the German lines. Woodward and his secret platoon of Australian tunnelers fight to defend a leaking, labyrinthine tunnel system packed with enough high explosives to change the course of the War.

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Plot Keywords:

year 1916 | digit in title | 1910s | nonlinear timeline | gallipoli | 

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Taglines:

The silent war

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Genres:

Drama | History | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some war and violence and language

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

Australia

Language:

English German

Release Date:

15 April 2010 (Australia)

Also Known As:

A Guerra Silenciosa

Filming Locations:

Townsville, Queensland, Australia

Box Office

Budget:

$9,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Lucky Country Productions, New South Wales Film & Television Office, Pacific Film and Television Commission

Technical Specs

Runtime:

122 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

A camouflet is an artificial cavern created by an explosion. If the explosion reaches the surface then it is called a crater.

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Goofs

The scene where Jim Sneddon is buried by his mates, the grave site, the soil from it, as well as the entire surrounding area, is completely dry despite the depiction of consistent drenching rain for days on end.

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Connections

Referenced in Top Gear Australia: Episode #2.8 (2009)

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Soundtracks

"Mademoiselle from Armentieres"
(uncredited)
Tune - traditional; source of English lyrics unknown
Sung by Australian soldiers with modified bawdy lyrics

User Reviews

Beneath Hill 60 is a gem.

This film should be seen by all Australians. It is authentic and extremely well acted; no overacting and no gilding the lily. Take a box of tissues. As an indication of how special this movie was, at the end while the credits were playing, everyone except two people remained in their seats for the entire running time of the credits and the upper part of the theatre was full. I would like to encourage younger people to see it; young people like those who visit Gallipoli would appreciate its significance. It depicts the true nature of the first world war and also depicts the essence of the Australian character; free-spirited, somewhat disrespectful of officer ranks until said officers earn respect. WWI was not like other wars; though the very awfulness of the trenches is obvious, the movie dwells just enough but not too much on this aspect. I hope it is successful overseas though I cannot imagine the British going to see it in large numbers, nor the Americans. The British are gently lampooned once or twice and would not take kindly to this, and the Americans do not get a look in at all so they would not be likely to be motivated to see it. However, if they did, I think they would appreciate it.