Kokoda - Accuracy of the Film

The film "Kokoda" (2006), directed by Alister Grierson accurately depicts the events that occurred during the Kokoda Campaign (1942), in Papua New Guinea.   The film follows the story of a lost platoon of "Chocos" (A.K.A Chocolate Soldiers, as they were expected to "melt" in the heat of the battle) who faced harsh conditions, and experienced the ruthless nature of the battle.
The harsh environments of the Kokoda track are identical to those portrayed the film. Throughout the film, the soldiers appear to be in wet, humid and muddy conditions, and set in dense tropical rainforest. The filming location of Kokoda was based in Mount Tambourine, which is known for its tropical rainforests. The location of the Kokoda trail is also set in tropical rainforest. An extract from a poem written by a Kokoda veteran, Private H McLaren, describes the crossing of the Owen Stanley Range, "Splashing through mud and water, stumbling every yard" (Pg. 87, Oxford Big Ideas).   By comparing the movie to first person accounts of Kokoda veterans, it is clear that the conditions are identical.
The nature of the battle depicted in the film is ruthless. The fighting taken place in the film was by the "Maroubra Forces", which comprised of soldiers who had received little training in jungle warfare, and were equipped with old, outdated weapons and many of which who had only recently turned 18 (Pg. 86, Oxford Big Ideas). With that in mind, when they were faced with Japanese soldiers,   it was clear that there was no time for consideration of the other person's life. If you didn't take the life of the person who was shooting at you, it would be your life which was taken. This was essentially how Australian and Japanese veterans of Kokoda described the events in the documentary, "Beyond Kokoda", directed by Shaun Gibson. This was also identical to how the battle was portrayed throughout the film.
The film "Kokoda",   although not an exact account of the Kokoda Campaign, is a valuable representation...