About When Grief Hath Mates
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DIRECTOR'S NOTES
In early 1942, Austin McCallum, like thousands of other Allied servicemen, servicewomen and civilians, was taken prisoner by the Japanese and forced to endure the horrendous life of a P.O.W. for three and a half years.
A life. where torture, starvation, and death, were daily companions, but also a life rich in friendship, courage, and humour. For as Dinny, says to his new mate, Art: "Life's pretty sweet, even in a hell like this".
And if ever there was a correct word to describe the infamous Japanese P.O.W. camps such as Changi, the Burma Railway, and Ambon, it is "hell": a place where only by sharing everything with a mate could a man hold onto his most precious possession - his humanity.
Such is the story of "When Grief Hath Mates".
Graeme Forsyth, December 1995
Gallery
Photos by Mick Watson
Media
