Who are you?

Peter Weir’s Gallipoli begins with the reading of Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book, a coming of age story of a boy that must choose between the unknown of men and the familiarity of friends and family. The choice for reading Kipling’s story seems to play a small, yet powerful role in the movie. The history of India is similar to the history of Australia—the British occupied the land, assuming control over the natives and territory. Kipling’s family was part of the British colonialization of India, calling themselves “anglo-Indians.” They were neither a part of India nor a part of England. This is the theme of Gallipoli: are Australians anglo-Australians (that is, British-Australians), British, or Australian? Weir tells Australia’s coming of age story through the friendships of British idealist Archie, the rough around the edges Billy, Barney, and Snowy, and the in-between Frank Dunne.

Archie represents the British idealism of Australia. He is strongly connected to the British Empire, although there is no direct tie given. When he meets the anti-England character Frank Dunne, he continuously argues for Australia’s obligations to England:

Archie: What do you mean it’s not our war?

Frank: It’s an English war! It’s got nothing to do with us.

Archie: You know what you are? You’re a blood coward!

Frank clearly believes that Australia is not a part of England, and that they have no duty to the “mother” country. Archie, on the other hand, feels a complete responsibility to England, yet when Archie is asked facts about the war, he is unable to give an answer. His response to the war is completely based on unsupported feelings. He only blindly follows because of an obligation that was imbedded into him from a young age: he wants to be brave, and he wants adventure.

Frank’s friends, Billy, Barney, and Snowy are first seen reading a newspaper around their boiling billy at the railroad: the typical Australian setting. These men represent the true hardworking, sometimes vulgar, culture of Australia. At the scene, the men read how the Turkish have began using new, brutal techniques of warfare that are devastating the Australian soldiers. This shock of brutality triggers Billy’s and Snowy’s decision to join the army (Barney needs coercion by the promise of women liking a man in uniform). This desire to be in the war is different from Archie’s blind devotion to England: the men have the facts. They seem to join out of their own volition to defend their home country, Australia. They are the front runners for Australia’s newly found independence. They are not joining the army to please Britain, but embrace their first chance to call Australia their own.

Frank does not decide to join the army until he sees the reception Archie receives from the family, and most importantly the females, they meet after their journey across the desert. Frank has to make a choice: does he join the Light Horse with the British-idealist mate, or the Infantry with the true Australians? He chooses the British idealism over Australia’s independence. As Frank says, the Light Horse has, “got a bit of class.” But this class crumbles at the end of the film. The class of unloaded guns, fighting with bayonets, never surrender attitude. These things stand no chance against the new technology of warfare. The British image of the athletic, brave, and gentleman shatters. And Australia is able to rise on its own and claim their independence. Like Mowgli, Australia is able to grow up.

“’Now,’ he said, ‘I will go to men.’”