Breaker Morant Review- By Michael J. Carlisle

 Title: Breaker Morant
Year: 1980
Director: Bruce Beresford
Country: Australia
Language: English

The second Boer war (Oct 1899 - May 1902) was a military engagement between the United Kingdom, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State. The British war effort was supported by troops from several regions of the British Empire (Canada, Australia, New Zealand) The first war began as a plight for independence against British rule. Originally opting for passive resistance, armed resistance became the only option for the Boers when the British made it clear that they would not budge. The second Boer War broke out after Britain rejected the Transvaal ultimatum. The ultimatum had demanded that all disputes between the two states be settled by arbitration; troops ought to be removed from the border and ships headed for South Africa needed to retreat.

In Breaker Morant, three Australian lieutenants (George Witton, Peter Handcock and Harry Morant) are court martialed for executing prisoners. They are being used as scapegoats by the General Staff, who hope to distance themselves from the irregular practices of the war

A high point of the Australian film renaissance of the 1970s and early ’80s, Bruce Beresford’s Breaker Morant is an incredible dramatization of one of Australia's more controversial episodes in its colonial history. Loosely based on a play by Kenneth Ross and a script by Jonathan Hardy and David Stevens for an unrealized television movie, this adaptation of history underwent significant changes by the Director. Beresford intends to use the story as political commentary, by displaying a stark contrast between the cozy moral certainties of the courtroom and the harsh justice meted out by soldiers brutalized by war. 

 Beresford takes full advantage of Donald McAlpine’s imposing photography in scenes of action that bring to life the courtroom testimony. His use of lighting foreshadows a great injustice  about to occur. It is suggested that the Australians are more "savage" than their enemies, at least from a bureaucratic standpoint. Reminding many of Stanley Kubrick’s Paths of Glory (1957) and Joseph Losey’s King & Country (1964), this film is a scathing commentary of "standard operating procedure". Such parallels in our own time can be seen, even when they are deemed politically unnacceptable

 Breaker Morant was a huge critical success in Australia, winning ten awards (including best film and best director) at the 1980 Australian Film Institute Awards. It was acclaimed as an important contribution to Australia’s film revival, although it did strike a nerve with the British public at the time of release. The film is quite memorable, I'd watch it again. Praise it! 4/5