Kokoda (2006)

A bitter battle is fought between Australian and Japanese soldiers along the Kokoda trail in New Guinea during World War II.

Director:

Alister Grierson

Writers:

Alister Grierson, John Lonie

Stars:

Jack Finsterer, Travis McMahon, Simon Stone

2 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jack Finsterer	...	Jack Scholt
Travis McMahon	...	Darko
Simon Stone	...	Max Scholt
Luke Ford	...	Burke
Tom Budge	...	Johnno
Steve Le Marquand	...	Sam
Angus Sampson	...	Dan
Christopher James Baker	...	Blue (as Christopher Baker)
Ewen Leslie	...	Wilstead
Ben Barrack	...	The Lieutenant
Shane Bourne	...	The Doctor
William McInnes	...	The Colonel
Darren Taylor	...	Soldier - Forward Position
Lucas Stibbard	...	Wounded Man
Jeffey Gunn	...	Smiling PNG Stretcher Bearer

Storyline

A bitter battle is fought between Australian and Japanese soldiers along the Kokoda trail in New Guinea during World War II.

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Plot Keywords:

downpour | jungle warfare | 20th century | australian soldier | japanese soldier | 

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Taglines:

Heroes became legends.

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Genres:

Action | Drama | War

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Certificate:

PG-13

Did You Know?

Trivia

This movie's closing epilogue states: "The massively outnumbered Australians were eventually forced to withdraw from Isurava and fight a series of desperate rearguard actions back along the [Kokoda] track. After three more weeks of bloodshed, the Japanese, stretched to breaking point, were forced to retreat even though they were now in sight of their goal, Port Moresby [the capital of Papua New Guinea]. For the first time in the Second World War the Japanese army had been stopped. Australia would not be invaded. Chiselled into the memorial at the village of Isurava are four words: - Courage - Endurance - Mateship - Sacrifice - "

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Goofs

After the Australians regroup after the first Japanese attack, Darko and Jack decide to find out what happened to Bluey. They both set out with rifles. However, in one of the subsequent shots Darko is clearly carrying a Bren light machine gun. In the next shot he is suddenly carrying a rifle again.

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Quotes

The Colonel: The brigadier wants you to know, your gallantry, your courage, your fortitude, are an inspiration. And I want you to know, that you are some of the finest soldiers I have ever seen. You have seen things in this place no man should witness... some of these things you must forget. For history will remember you. And in the years to come, others will wish that they had your conviction. Remember, remember that glory is not the exultation of war, but the exultation of man, man's nobility made ...

User Reviews

Good, gritty film

Saw this today and I was quite impressed. It wasn't perfect, but I'm sure they had a very limited budget so it's hard to nit pick too much. It's good to see such an important part of Australian history as the mammoth effort to stop the Japanese advance through Papua New Guinea put on film. At the time the bulk of the Australian forces were in North Africa fighting the Germans and Italians, and the desperate defence of PNG was first handled by the very in-experienced militia troops, as featured in the film.

I think the majority of it was filmed near Canungra, which is still used as the Australian army's jungle warfare centre. The makers obviously wanted to showcase the terrible jungle conditions that the soldiers fought in. It was good also to see the famous "fuzzy wuzzy angels" as the soldiers called the native stretcher-bearers prominently featured.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Australia

Language:

English German

Release Date:

2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Кокода

Filming Locations:

Mount Tamborine, Queensland, Australia

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$2,249,162

Company Credits

Production Co:

Australian Film Finance Corporation (AFFC), GFN Productions, Pacific Film and Television Commission

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1