Through the use of surviving diaries, letters and photographs from both sides, the film shows the bravery and the suffering on both sides. The film also contains: interviews with international experts, location landscape, underwater and aerial photography, 3-D computer animations and re-enactments of trenches.
Reception
Critical response
When the film was released in France, Varietymagazinefilm critic, Lisa Nesselson, reviewed the film favorably, writing, "A thorough recounting of the carnage when Allied Forces attempted to take the Dardanelles Straits and the title peninsula in Turkey during WWI, Gallipoli serves up the paradoxes and idiocy of battle as expressed in letters and journals written by the men who were there...Clear, informative and frequently moving narration by Jeremy Irons and Sam Neill ties together six years of research by vet documaker Tolga Ornek. Drawing heavily on surviving correspondence, and skillfully illustrated with a blend of still photos, period footage and re-enactments, film keeps talking heads to a minimum. It brings to life long-dead adversaries who did their duty despite massive casualties from artillery, mines and the ravages of dysentery...Tech credits are top notch." Australian film critic Louise Keller wrote, "A potent and magnificent documentary, Gallipoli impacts emotionally through its humanity and intensely personal stories. It has taken filmmaker Tolga Örnek six long years to research, write, produce and direct this outstanding film that documents the thoughts of soldiers who fought on all sides of this futile fiasco of a war. Although Örnek's script concisely recounts the circumstances and events that took place in the lead up to the nine month war, in which tens of thousands of soldiers lost their lives, it is not a story about who won or lost. Everyone lost in this shocking conflict, when young men not only fought against each other, but against extreme weather conditions, severe hardships like the ravages of disease, flies and lice."
Awards
For this film, Tolga Örnek has been awarded an honorary medal in the general division of the Order of Australia.
