In August 1966, in a Vietnamese rubber plantation called Long Tan, 108 young and inexperienced Australian and New Zealand soldiers are fighting for their lives against 2500 North Vietnamese and Viet Cong soldiers.
South Vietnam, late afternoon on August 18, 1966 - for three and a half hours, in the pouring rain, amid the mud and shattered trees of a rubber plantation called Long Tan, Major Harry Smith and his dispersed company of 108 young and mostly inexperienced Australian and New Zealand soldiers are fighting for their lives, holding off an overwhelming enemy force of 2,500 battle hardened Main Force Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army soldiers. With their ammunition running out, their casualties mounting and the enemy massing for a final assault each man begins to search for his own answer - and the strength to triumph over an uncertain future with honor, decency and courage. The Battle of Long Tan is one of the most savage and decisive engagements in ANZAC history, earning both the United States and South Vietnamese Presidential Unit Citations for gallantry along with many individual awards. But not before 18 Australians and more than 245 Vietnamese are killed.Written by
Martin Walsh
Travis Fimmel undertook weapons training with ex Commando and SASR soldiers in Perth prior to filming commencing See more »
Goofs
The entire battle took place in a torrential tropical downpour from start to finish. Evidently, this would be hard to film for dramatic purposes. The airstrike never happened not because of a dud smoke grenade, but the cloud was so low and rain so intense the pilots could not identity the target area. See more »
Many military veterans were involved in the production of this film, both as actors, extras or film crew. They are named and acknowledged in the final credits for their military service in addition to their film roles. See more »
I watched this movie at the Sydney Film Festival ahead of its official release. Thank you to everyone involved in making this movie. It is important that Australian stories such as this are told. The Australian values of mateship and the larrikin spirit are at the centre of this true story. If you identify as being an Australian, you need to go and see this movie when it comes to cinemas in August. I'll be going to see it again when it is officially released. It is one of those movies which leaves you thinking about it well after leaving the cinema. 10 out of 10.
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I watched this movie at the Sydney Film Festival ahead of its official release. Thank you to everyone involved in making this movie. It is important that Australian stories such as this are told. The Australian values of mateship and the larrikin spirit are at the centre of this true story. If you identify as being an Australian, you need to go and see this movie when it comes to cinemas in August. I'll be going to see it again when it is officially released. It is one of those movies which leaves you thinking about it well after leaving the cinema. 10 out of 10.