BENEATH HILL 60 (REVIEW)
Appropriately
released with Anzac day on the horizon, 'Beneath Hill 60' is the true story of
Australian troops in 1916 on the frightening Western Front, World War 1. However,
this particular tale is largely unknown as it concerns a secret platoon of soldiers
who are based underground tunnelling below the Germans above them.
Brendan
Cowell plays Captain Oliver Woodward, who after enlisting to fight for his country,
tears himself away from a perfect life and romance with a lovely farmgirl. He
is sent to the mud and carnage of the battlefields Western Front of France to
lead a motley bunch of tunnellers. The assignment is not pretty. They are to dig,
with their hands, a labyrinth of passageways in order to set up an array of charges
and explosives that if detonated, have the potential to change the course of the
war.
What becomes indicative to the casualties of war, a senseless
waste of young lives occurs during this dangerous trench warfare. Woodward goes
through personal strain but feels honour in completing his mission, even when
it seems impossible. Woodward must protect his tunnels, keep them under guard
and hidden from the enemy until he is given the word to detonate. This is an intense
waiting game and due to the time frame, some of the soldiers let their minds drift
from the importance of their jobs. This isn't a good idea when their combatants
are closing in, or should I say crawling in.
Fatigue and the
risk of the tunnels collapsing is another factor that Woodward deals with. This
film literally has layers of amazing sequences. There are flashback sequences
and long periods of dialogue that define some character development, but slow
proceedings down. Team Woodward is choc full of soldiers with various and also
odd personalities. None more so than Norman Morris, known as 'Pull Through', because
he is long, lanky and skinny enough to slide through he tiniest of holes. As played
by fast rising star, Gyton Grantly ('Blurred', 'All My Friends Are Leaving Brisbane')
he shows real character and elevates the talent he showed in the first series
of television's 'Underbelly'.
Many other local actors appear
throughout in smaller roles such as Jacqueline McKenzie, Aden Young and the great
stalwart of the Australian film industry, Chris Haywood, as a gruff by the book
colonel who mostly creates anticipation around his fellow soldiers.
The
director and well known actor, Jeremy Sims puts his actors through lots of dirty
work, recreating the horrors of the Western Front in muddy North Queensland locations.
Sims has directed before, the brilliant but under-seen film, 'Last Train to Freo'.
He has a strong talent at the helm, giving his second feature a strong look and
feel that's not for claustrophobics.
Peter Weir's classic,
'Gallipoli' set the benchmark of Australian war films that has yet to be surpassed.
However, 'Beneath Hill 60' is very emotional - the spirit of mateship is well
observed in this gripping account that manages to double as an insightful history
lesson just in time for ANZAC DAY.
Shane A. Bassett
