Welcome back to Movie Recap. Today I'm gonna show you a 2006 Australian war film called,
Kokoda. Spoiler’s ahead. Sit back, relax and enjoy the video.
The movie begins in the year 1942 when the dominant forces of Japan relentlessly
conquer South East Asia, as the Japanese occupied Papua New Guinea, they pursue towards Australia
threatening its autonomy. The Australian 39th Home Guard called the Chockos or the chocolate
soldiers, are sent to Papua New Guinea, Kokoda as the forward patrol assigned to hold the line
protecting the borders of Port Moresby. For two weeks, they have been waiting for the AIF or
the Australian Army to come to relieve them from their station but as they struggle for survival,
being volunteers who are ill-equipped and without experience, the days and nights become harder to
endure with little to no food, shelter and proper treatment from tropical diseases. They are alone
and outnumbered by thousands of Japanese soldiers with this, the Chockos fight against all odds
considering themselves as lambs to the slaughter. Jack wakes up from a terrible nightmare where Max,
his brother, suffers a fatal injury to the stomach with a snake inside his intestines,
Jack's nightmare is caused by the side effects of Malaria having been left untreated for days.
Jack visits the field doctor to ask for Quinine, a medication for Malaria
but receives none for the doctor insists that they lack any medical supplies to help them,
instead he encourages Jack who seems hopeless telling him to have faith in their commanders.
The lieutenant then calls on lance corporal Wilstead commanding that Burke stays as the
second man to assist on Bren, a light machine gun and that they have a two hours notice
before their group head out for the night. Wilstead delivers the order to Blue, Darko,
and Johnno ordering them to check their weapons in one hour but Blue insults him which he calmly
disregards leaving them behind, on the other hand, Johnno, who is suffering Dysentery, heads
out to relieve himself but Jack stops him and reminds him to take his gun everywhere he goes.
Later that day, as the group waits for the lieutenant, Sam sings a satirical song about
General MacArthur, the hero of Bataan, and General Blame, the hero of Bardia and Greece
explicitly mocking them which entertains the group all the while preparing for the 24-hour ration in
the jungle. The lieutenant arrives and instructs them to take the same position as yesterday
but the only difference now is that the intel tells them that the Japanese will attack at night,
as they will need to carry on their mission to hold off the advances of the Japanese as long as
possible since they are the only troops available to do the task before the AIF arrives. As they
head to the jungle they pass by a few injured soldiers carried by some Fuzzies also known
as the indigenous people of the land helping them return to the station, upon reaching their area of
defense they settle at different spots to secure the area and wait the whole day standing by.
The Lieutenant of their unit gives each pair some grenades to use against the enemies,
the group waited for hours on standby experiencing both the extreme weather of the heat and the cold
rain. Later that day, the Lieutenant uses his binoculars to see any suspicious movements on
the opposite side and notices some faint motions but he is immediately killed by a Japanese soldier
in a camouflage hiding behind him which signals the start of the attack. Sam pounces at the
same Japanese soldier as Dan tries to shoot him and fortunately kills the Japanese. The Chockos
retaliate as the Japanese continue to conceal themselves making it difficult for them to
shoot the targets. Wilstead, who is shocked by the death of the Lieutenant, escapes the area
and hides under a big fallen trunk but is then bayoneted in the eye when his enemy caught him.
On the other hand, Jack notices that the Lieutenant is not responding to the situation thus
he commands his comrades, as a lance corporal, to fall back while Blue stays to cover them.
As they retreat reaching a safe distance from the Japanese, Jack tries to contact the station
but the line shortly cuts off. Johnno arrives frantically searching for them and insists that
they find Blue but the remaining men become hesitant as they are unsure if Blue is dead or
alive. Notwithstanding their conscience, Jack decides to find Blue with Darko,
late into the night they see Blue tied up helplessly enduring the painful stabs to his
stomach and groin as he is being tortured by the Japanese which soon ends with Blue's decapitation.
Jack and Darko are traumatized by what they saw thus hurriedly return to their hiding place,
Dan runs into them appearing to be separated from their group.
Jack asks where his brother, Max, is but the Japanese soldiers shoot Dan through the eye
instantly killing him. Dan's manner of death shocks Jack thus Darko drags Jack
to hide from the enemies and convinces him to pull himself together to find their comrades.
The next day, Jack and Darko wake up to see from afar that their camp station, Isurava,
is invaded. Darko insists that they should stop looking for their comrades and instead head
back to the station to back up their men but Jack wants to find their group first before returning.
After a while, they reach a creek and drink from it each taking turns to look out for each other.
Being vigilant, they sense a faint movement at their side from which Max reveals himself
leading them to their remaining comrades. Johnno asks for Blue to which Darko harshly
answers detailing Blue's death, Johnno becomes upset and mourns for the death of his mate.
After they have their fill, Darko, Jack and Max plan their way back to Isurava following the
direction of the creek. Darko points out that the injury of Sam will slow them down but Max responds
by suggesting they carry Sam using their handmade stretcher. However, Sam proceeds to walk with the
aid of a rod. Shortly after, they continue to journey on their way back to their station,
Johnno excuses himself to poop, Sam does him a favor by cutting a small tear on Johnno's shorts
for ventilation and easier secretion which Sam did the same to himself. When they reach a steep
part of the land that requires them to climb up it, Johnno complains about what seems like to
him a never-ending trail but Burke encourages him to keep going by setting Sam as an example
who despite his knee injury tries to keep up with them without any complaint. A day on the rough
terrain immensely weakens Sam making it harder for him to catch up causing the group to slow down,
nearly running into the Japanese. As the group becomes more and more
exhausted by the travel, they almost didn’t notice that Sam is missing. Fortunately,
Max goes back to find him crawling in a different direction almost losing them. At nightfall, they
set up a camp in the middle of nowhere to rest up and keep themselves warm for the night. Jack
trades with Max to take a watch of the group and while he keeps watching from a near distance, Sam
sneaks out to leave himself behind without their knowledge as he feels he is a burden to them.
The next day, the group awaken to find Sam gone, a message which they understand to be his willful
sacrifice. They then proceed to leave the place as Sam stays hidden in a hollow tree stump.
While the group continues on their track, Max sees a figure behind a tree which he assumes to be Sam,
suddenly, he is shot to the stomach by a Japanese patrol, and the group strike back at them. Max is
fatally wounded and is unable to walk, he requests to be left behind but Jack does not want to leave
him. The group carries Max in a handmade stretcher and passes through a river where Johnno almost
drowned. Upon reaching the other side of the river, Jack sends Burke out for 20 minutes to see
where the tracks lead, as the remaining three wait on Burke the time pass without seeing nor hearing
anything from Burke thus Jack decides that they should still go even if he has to carry for two.
Suddenly Burke shows up and lead them to an abandoned village.
Arriving at the village, they take refuge in an empty house where Max can rest.
Darko frustrated by their situation orders Burke and Johnno to look for food nearby
and he then argues with Jack insisting that they should leave Max to get back on track
to stop the Japanese from crossing the borders of Australia at Isurava
but Jack firmly refuses for he is unwilling to leave his little brother behind. While Burke and
Johnno execute the command of Darko, they stumble upon the dead bodies of the native villagers.
By the command of Jack as the group's leader, they stay at the empty village for a day.
Johnno and Darko bury the dead native villagers found near the area while Jack and Max reminisce
about their childhood days, which eventually leads to Jack being finally convinced by Max to leave
him behind as he has done his best to take care of him. Johnno without any more hope left in him,
volunteers to stay with Max at the village as Jack, Darko, and Burke get back on track to
Isurava. As Darko leads them, the treacherous trail ruins Jack's shoes with leeches sucking
on his legs and Burke's dysentery worsens, the trail they will take on next is decided by a toss
coin that directs them to climb up. Back at the village, Johnno shares a story about his past that
before volunteering for the brigade, he was an abandoned baby left at the convent and felt like
he doesn't belong anywhere thus Max invites him to stay at their home if ever they survive the war,
the conversation between Johnno and Max causes them to unexpectedly grow close as mates.
After their dangerous climb, the three Chockos, Jack, Darko, and Burke find themselves running
into the Japanese, luckily, they are well hidden in the tall grass. Later that night having to
patiently wait for hours, Darko's impulsive instinct drives him to sneak at one of the
Japanese soldiers against the orders of Jack. Despite being heavily outnumbered by the enemies,
Darko without a second thought recklessly stabs a Japanese watcher while the rest of the Japanese
men are sleeping in camp, Jack throws a grenade at the enemies as Burke shoots the rest of them
during their escape resulting in a failed ambush attempt. The next day, Darko and Jack get into a
petty fight, Burke notices an Australian soldier pass by, they call at them but are welcomed with
hostility as guns’ fire at them. The dire situation and the distance hindering their
proper communication made it difficult for their ally to see them. Then Jack and Darko remember
their secret code which is "Woolloomooloo" and they respond using it which saves them.
The soldier introduces himself belonging to the 2nd 16th battalion and tells them not to
take their previous encounter personally, he instructs them to follow the trail that will
lead them to Alola Headquarters. Jack informs him that two of their men are still out in
the jungle to which the soldier replies that the Fuzzies or the indigenous people
who are helping them have been rescuing soldiers all day and they might have already been rescued.
Jack reaches the camp station of Alola and desperately searches for Max hoping
that he is still alive but could not find him anywhere. Meanwhile, at the village,
Johnno brings in some water for Max who is bedridden, all of a sudden, they hear footsteps
outside, Johnno wanting to save his helpless mate fires at the Japanese and runs to the
jungle eventually being tracked down by them and killed. Max hears another footstep, he nervously
prepares his gun to shoot at the enemy and to his relief he sees an indigenous man smiling at him.
Back at the Alola Station, the place is crowded with severely injured soldiers from the 39th
battalion exhibiting the poor condition of their unit. The wounded soldiers all line up
to get treated at a makeshift hospital by the field doctor. A disheartened Jack receives a
new pair of shoes from Darko, just then an AIF soldier comes in requesting for available men
from the 39th to help hold the line. Many of the injured soldiers heed the call along with Jack,
Darko and Burke all volunteering to return to their duty back at the jungle. The doctor is
stunned by the number of wounded volunteers willingly returning to service and tries to
stop them but he is completely ignored by them. The Australian soldiers upon reaching the area
all gear up for combat as they prepare and settle in their positions expecting a long night ahead.
Later that night, Jack starts hearing voices as they stand by awaiting the attack from the
Japanese forces. And moments later the Japanese surge in waves attacking the Australian force.
The Australian soldiers desperately try to hold their position as much as they can as
the Japanese soldiers relentlessly charge at them. In the rage of the war, Burke assists
Darko with changing the mags of the Bren Light Machine Gun but as Burke reloads his own gun
and shoots fire at the Japanese soldiers he is fatally shot to the stomach. Darko goes to Burke
and bitterly cries as his second man dies in his arms while Jack with all his might avenges Burke.
The next morning at the Isurava village, the 39th Colonel meets with the surviving men of
the Chockos. The colonel gives them the news that they will finally be taken out of the line as they
withdraw from the battle and delivers a speech honoring their courage and conviction risking
their lives for their motherland Australia from the imminent threat of Japanese invasion. Later
that day, as the remaining men of the 39th leave their station Jack sees Max on a stretcher alive
carried by the Fuzzies. Max survived his fatal wound and Jack feels utterly
relieved to be reunited with his brother. The movie ends with information from the
war at Isurava Village where it states that the Australian soldiers are forced to withdraw for
being massively outnumbered by the Japanese. It took 3 more weeks of bloodshed before the Japanese
retreats despite almost capturing Port Moresby and that it was the first time that the Japanese were
stopped in the Second World War thus successfully securing the sovereignty of Australia.
A memorial is also dedicated to the Australian soldiers who fought at Isurava village
where four words are read as courage, endurance, mateship, and sacrifice.