Breaker Morant

Set during the Second Boer War, the 1980 Australian film, Breaker Morant, directed by Bruce Beresford, tells the gripping tale of three Australian soldiers who are put on trial by the British command for allegedly committing war crimes. The film stars Edward Woodward, Jack Thompson, and John Waters, and is based on the real-life court-martial of Australian soldiers during the war. Breaker Morant is a compelling drama that explores themes of military law, war ethics, political propaganda, and the gross miscarriage of justice.

The film's title character, played by Edward Woodward, is Lieutenant Harry "Breaker" Morant, a rough-hewn yet charismatic bush poet and horseman. He's called 'Breaker' for his expertise in breaking wild horses, a skill that meets its match in the harsh realities of war. Morant, along with his two compatriots Lieutenant Peter Handcock (Bryan Brown) and Lieutenant George Witton (Lewis Fitz-Gerald), officers of the Bushveldt Carbineers, a specialist Australian unit, are charged with murdering prisoners of war and a German missionary.

The film traces the journey of these three men from being loyal soldiers dutifully serving an imperial power to becoming disillusioned scapegoats for a war that doesn't seem to be going according to plan. Their legal defense is placed in the hands of a former lawyer turned officer Major J. F. Thomas (played by a powerhouse Jack Thompson), who is ill-prepared but resolute, navigating a complex and unfamiliar military legal system.

Much of the film is set indoors within the court-martial setting, giving it an intensely close-knit and heated atmosphere. These scenes are skilfully intercut with flashback sequences of gripping battlefield tensions. These flashbacks provide context to the men's actions and offer viewers a glimpse into the brutal realities of the Boer war and the dubious activities of a guerrilla conflict.

Edward Woodward’s nuanced performance as Morant forms the soul of the movie. He portrays Morant as a man filled with pride, honor, anguish, and resentment, all fighting for space in an uncompromising war. Bryan Brown and Lewis Fitz-Gerald fit perfectly into their roles as loyal Australian soldiers, while Jack Thompson, as their defense lawyer, delivers a performance loaded with righteous indignation and desperation.

Beresford's robust storytelling and the ensemble cast's deeply rooted performances bring to light the anguishing paradox of morality and survival in the landscape of war. The script, which is based on Kenneth G. Ross's play and real-life proceedings, is power-packed with dialogues that resonate beyond the film's runtime, revealing the tragic hypocrisy of war and the political calculations that often play a significant role in the administration of justice.

The cinematography of the film deserves a special mention. The harsh yet beautiful South Australian landscape is a fitting stand-in for the South African veldt, offering a stark contrast to the close-quarter drama that unfolds in the courtroom.

One of the key plotlines in Breaker Morant is the trial and how Major Thomas struggles to defend his fellow Australians against the almost insurmountable might of British military law. The movie gradually unveils the eccentricities of a war tribunal, where the lines between justice and tactics blur, and where the term 'war crimes' becomes a subjective term used by victors in war as a political weapon.

Breaker Morant, in its heart, is a film about the dehumanizing aspect of war, where men in uniforms must forgo their sense of right and wrong to survive. It's an excellent example of the classic courtroom drama genre, with exceptional performances, meticulously researched settings, and an intensely human story of sacrifice, duty, and justice.

Lingering on long after the credits have rolled, it is a movie that speaks in universal truths about war, authoritative command, and the price of loyalty. It's not just a tale of the Second Boer War, but a timeless comment on all wars and the often-compromising situations that soldiers find themselves in. It is a film that reminds viewers about the greys of morality in war, framed within the shackles of duty, authority, and survival.