Films directed by
Peter Weir

Gallipoli

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Gallipoli is not as much a war movie as it is a road picture with the Battle of Gallipoli as the destination. The story only gets down to the business of war within the last 30 minutes of the film.

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This battle is to Australians in many ways what Pickett’s Charge was to American South in our Civil War, a moment of definition for the national character. The fact that it was a folly that ended tragically is part of the point. For those who see battle as the ultimate test of manhood, to advance in the face of the certain death is the unquestionable display of your commitment to duty. The second and later waves of Australian soldiers to go over the edge of the trenchline during the Battle of the Nek were as certain of their fate as any man in Pickett’s divisions.

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Dead Poets Society

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Films like this one, in which an unconventional teacher inspires his students to be something more than what’s expected of them, are common enough to constitute a minor genre on their own. In addition to Dead Poets Society, we’ve seen Mr. Holland’s Opus, Dangerous Minds and Stand and Deliver. Those are just the ones that I could name off the top of my head.

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Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World

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The fans of Patrick O’Brian’s Aubrey-Maturin novels are not quite as rabid as those of J.R.R. Tolkein, but they are legion. And if Peter Weir didn’t face quite the monumental task that Peter Jackson did when adapting The Lord of the Rings, the obstacles to bringing Napoleonic-era naval warfare to the screen were formidable.

Firstly, he would be filming at least partially at sea and, as Steven Speilberg could tell you from his experience filming Jaws, that’s just asking for trouble. Secondly, the built-in audience for this film would contain a lot of naval history buffs, who would be sticklers for historical detail.

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