Kokoda (2006)

User Rating:

6.1/10   

Director:

Alister Grierson

Writers:

Alister Grierson (written by)
John Lonie (written by)

Release Date:

2007 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama | War

Tagline:

Mates Became Heroes. The Track Became Legend.

Plot:

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

Plot Keywords:

Soldier | Shot In The The Stomach | Platoon | Jungle War | Hand To Hand Combat

Awards:

1 win & 6 nominations

Cast

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 Baker	...	Blue
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

Also Known As:

Kokoda: 39th Battalion (UK)
Untitled Alister Grierson Project (Australia) (working title)

Runtime:

Argentina:92 min | Australia:92 min

Country:

Australia

Language:

English | German

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:M | USA:PG-13 | Argentina:13 | Singapore:NC-16

Filming Locations:

Mount Tamborine, Queensland, Australia

Company:

Australian Film Finance Corporation (AFFC)

Trivia:

William McInnes did this movie for free. His part only required him to be on set for a day. In his own words he says: “I suppose in a minor way, doing this part is like tipping my hat to my father's generation. It's only a day's work and I decide to donate my fee to Legacy. So at least someone will get something out of it.”

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When Darko and Jack are creeping through the bush, you can see a figure run past in the distant background. The director admitted in the commentary that the figure was his safety officer running for the toilet.

Quotes:

[from trailer]
Dan: Suppose it'd be inappropriate to ask for leave on the grounds of compassion at this late juncture?
Sam: What grounds would they be then?
Dan: On the grounds that I don't wanna get me head blown off.

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.