1,500 lucky diggers...
are poised to show Australian might in action...
and dispel any fears of a Japanese invasion.
They're headed for the capital of New Britain... Rabaul.
As soon as they've unpacked, they're off to the nearest beach.
Is the surf as good as Bondi, fellas?
And what better way to spend the day...
than dancing on a tropical beach with some of our prettiest flowers?
Pick one for me, mate.
So it's not far.
Hang on, OK? You right?
Don't worry, mate. We'll be at the mission soon.
You enjoying the war, Sister?
I'd enjoy it much more on a bitumen road.
So what happens when we reach this mission?
Well, you and I will find a nice quiet beach somewhere...
and continue where we left off last week.
Len!
So where will we be evacuated to... Moresby or Darwin?
Won't be long. We'll be there soon.
Our ships will be picking us up, won't they?
Sure, once they've driven the Japanese back to Tokyo.
Then we're stuck here?
Anyone would think you're scared of the Japs.
It's not them I'm worried about.
It's fighting you off till the end of the war.
You could always surrender, couldn't you?
Boris!
If we put that goat in handcuffs, he'd still get away.
He's Houdini with horns.
Boris! Boris!
Sister, I need your help over here.
There's some nurses staying here from a Baptist mission station.
They've agreed to help us out.
And the nuns have some medicine and bandages in their dispensary.
Is there anything else that we, uh, urgently need?
Coffins.
You're right, mate. You're right, mate.
They'll look after you, mate. Arggh!
They'll look after you. - You're right, Dave.
Sister, can you help me?
Cal, I need some iodine.
Can't get it for you right now.
Got my hands full. I'll be with you in a tick.
Sister. Quickly.
Now.
- Arggh! - Sorry, Dave. We're nearly done.
- For Christ's sake, get a move on. - I... I don't wanna hurt him.
Unless you pull your finger out, that wound's gonna get infected.
Kay, give us a hand here, will ya?
Can you hold onto this, please?
He didn't survive the Japanese to get himself killed by a nun.
I've got it, Sister.
Won't be long now.
- What's your name, mate? - It's Dave.
When did you start sending boys to war?
When we ran out of men.
Either we fight the Japs up here or we hand them Australia.
Which would you prefer, Sister?
Have these patients had their medication yet?
No, Major.
Well, don't just stand there gawking. Do it!
Thanks a lot.
You don't criticize army doctors.
It's like telling the Pope his sermons are boring.
Now he's got the shits, he'll take it out on us.
- We've been told to keep fighting. - With what?!
That piece of rust won't kill any Japs...
unless they pick it up and die from tetanus.
- Orders are orders. - Disobey them.
- Lorna... - The army could've got us out.
But they dumped us. They left us here.
They don't have the right to ask us to die.
Would you leave your patients?
I can't leave my men.
Come on, Len. We've gotta go.
So how about a smile to remember you by?
Keep moving. Let's go.
Why weren't we all evacuated?
There were ships in the harbour sailing out empty.
Retreat's a dirty word in the army.
Some general would have lost face at his club.
What will the Japanese do to us?
Treat us like prisoners of war, of course.
One of the boys here heard a whisper...
they've been raping nurses in Hong Kong,
so I'm keeping this handy just in case.
Morphine?
I'll kill myself before I let those buggers touch me.
Oh, Tootie, come on.
The most infectious disease in this world is panic...
and I won't allow it here.
So get back to work, all of you.
Have we been given any orders?
Keep our uniforms clean...
and act confident.
I've been praying for that young soldier.
Save your breath. He's got gangrene.
Will he survive?
Maybe. If we operate.
But we're out of anesthetics.
Do you know anyone who can turn water into chloroform?
The Americans will be here soon.
I'm sure they'll have plenty of supplies.
They lost all their ships at Pearl Harbor,
so unless they're damn good swimmers,
we'll be stuck here with the Japs for the next few months.
And what would they do with us?
That's anyone's guess, Sister.
Please.
Call me Berenice.
Lorna Whyte.
Relax. They're miles away.
I'm not scared.
I'm sure that our god will protect us.
Your god isn't white, he doesn't play cricket...
and he won't give a hoot what happens to you.
Sorry, Berenice, but it's hard to believe in anything...
when you haven't slept for three days.
We have our own little cure for insomnia.
Here.
Gonna need more than holy water to make me nod off.
No, it's brandy. It's medicinal, of course.
Oh, yeah?
I'm sorry that I wasn't much help at the hospital.
It doesn't matter now.
We'll probably both be raped and shot before the week is out.
You want a smoke to go with that?
Sisters.
Sisters!
What is it? What do you see?
Oh, yes. I knew they'd come.
Oh, what a wonderful day!
Have our boys landed?
What is it?
The Americans have come. Our prayers are answered!
I told you God wouldn't abandon us.
We're saved. God bless America.
That's not our flag.
- Grab the bags. - Boys, get inside.
Get off the veranda. Come on. Everyone, back in your beds.
The Japanese are on the beach. Should we evacuate the patients?
Where to? The jungle?
It's every man for himself now, Lorna.
If you smart, you'll get the hell outta here.
Wait.
No. Come back!
You can't just leave us! Wait!
You can't leave the patients. You can't leave them!
- We'd better fetch the doctors. - You're too late.
They've hightailed it out of here.
Well, did... did they give us any orders?
Yes. They said, Every man for himself.
They left us? I don't believe it.
What's happening?
Shh. Lie down.
Who's that?
Hurry. Hurry. Please.
Lock the doors. Lock all the doors.
Quickly, Sister.
Cover the door. Lock the doors and windows.
I can see them. They're coming.
Give us this day our daily bread...
and forgive us our trespasses...
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
- Get down! - We surrender!
- Get down! Get down! - Don't shoot! Please!
We are Red Cross nurses! These are our emblems.
No talk. Outside.
- No. - Halt! Sofort!
Heil Hitler!
Bishop Leo Scharmach, personal envoy to Adolf Hitler.
This mission is German territory...
under the protection of the Führer himself.
He has decreed that our natives are honorary Nazis.
Go ahead. Order him to shoot.
Then explain to your superiors...
why you have declared war on the Third Reich.
And I'll be sending you a bill for the damage you have caused.
Heil Hitler!
Let me help.
They're from our Berlin convent.
Great... Japs out there, Third Reich nuns here.
All I need is some Italians and I'll feel really relaxed.
You're in luck, then. Five of our sisters are from Rome.
It has to come off.
That's a job for surgeons.
We've assisted them often enough.
They brag about their skills, but we can do it if we have to.
Kay?
Have we got enough equipment?
- We can amputate and cauterize. - But there's no ether.
- What about your morphine? - He had the last of it this morning.
Then we'll do what they did in Lord Nelson's day.
We'll get him drunk on the convent's brandy.
There's none left, I'm afraid.
Two Japanese soldiers found the bottle last night.
Well, that's it, then.
No, not by a long shot.
- Where you going? - To the pub.
Captain says, no medicine, no anesthetic.
Please explain to the captain that I only ask for alcohol... sake.
Why does a woman need sake?
To get a young soldier drunk so that we can cut off his leg.
And he would allow a female to do this?
He must or he'll die.
Captain says you stay. Drink.
No.
I only drink milk.
No!
Ohh!
19's too young for a boy to die.
He might have made it to 20 if our doctors hadn't run off.
Let me take over here.
- It's alright. - Kay.
I should have saved him.
If you'd given in to that captain,
the Japs would have come for the rest of us.
You think they won't anyway?
This was under his pillow.
Love Rabaul. Sheilas everywhere.
Maybe I won't die a virgin after all.
Discovered my rifle is from World War One.
No wonder it won't shoot straight.
Arrive... Vunapope.
Only females in sight are nuns and nurses.
Some not too bad if you like older women.
Been a prisoner since January 1942.
Coping alright.
Miss fights with Len and his silly jokes.
Just put your head down a minute.
The worst part of being captured...
is you don't know how long you're in for.
Some wars are over in a couple of weeks,
but I'm sure there was one in Europe that went on for a hundred years.
Imagine going a hundred years without a bath, a bloke or a beer.
I've gone without them for three weeks now...
and I'm going nuts already.
The nuns never complain.
They share everything they have with our wounded patients.
Bishop Scharmach runs the place as though the Japs weren't here.
He reminds me of an army doctor, full of confidence, giving orders,
but all the nuns adore him.
Amen.
Ichi. Ni. San. Shi. Go. Roku. Shichi.
- Banzai. - Banzai!
Sometimes, if we're lucky, the natives set up meetings
between us and the soldiers who are fighting in the jungle...
and we gladly risk our lives for a few minutes with them.
I'm sure it's a sin to be doing this without the bishop's permission.
It's never a sin to save lives.
You're a sight for sore eyes. Len.
God, you look terrible.
I just lost my beer gut. That's all.
Here's quinine and I managed to scrounge a few extra treats...
socks, some tobacco, our Bible.
Our Bible? You're not turning into a holy roller?
We don't have any cigarette papers,
so we're using that instead.
Don't let Bishop Scharmach find out that I've been here.
We think he's a collaborator.
The natives are telling him what we're up to...
and he's passing it along to the Japanese.
- Can't you stop him? - How?
We're in the jungle and he's in there.
I knew you wouldn't let me down.
Sometimes at night...
I think about us...
in a house, with kids.
That's the most ridiculous thing I ever heard.
Yeah. I must have been delirious.
Toss it over. Quickly.
Oh, bugger it.
Leave it, Len. Go.
If the Japs find this they'll shoot ya.
Guards!
Get the hell out of here.
What's going on over there?
The bishop is hearing his confession.
There are no priests left outside.
Suzuki, this is Lorna.
What did he want?
Just a few kind words. The poor kid's homesick.
And he's Japanese, in case you haven't noticed.
Suzuki's not like the others.
Give him a gun and he will be.
You've seen how they behave. They don't have feelings.
Well, he showed me his mother's photo and cried.
- He's the enemy. - He's barely 15.
So what are you gonna do? Cheer him up?
Make him stronger so he'll be able to shoot a digger one day?
No.
Len? Len!
Lorna, if the Japs find out you know him they'll torture you too.
Just pray Len's strong enough not to say who helped him.
Who gave you food and medicine?
Leonard James Parkinson.
5-1-8-0-5.
Who gave you food and medicine?
Leonard James Parkinson.
8... 0...
This Australian is an enemy of the emperor.
Now you will see how we treat our enemies.
All people must watch. Watch or you join him.
- Look at him, Lorna. - I can't.
Make yourself do it or you'll be next.
Come on, you bastards!
Get it over with!
You don't bloody well scare me!
Lorna.
Go away.
I'm so sorry.
I suppose you've come to tell me how Len's in heaven now...
downing schooners with the angels.
Try and eat. It's horse.
When we were at the fence with Len, you said it was a sin.
Did you confess that sin to Scharmach?
I don't understand.
Scharmach's a collaborator. Len told me so.
No.
No, Lorna. This was not the bishop's doing.
Did you confess your sin to Scharmach?
Did he know that I'd helped Len?
Bishop Scharmach is not a traitor.
If anyone's to blame for Len's death it's the generals of your army.
They were the ones who left you here.
If the bishop hadn't rescued you, you'd all be dead now.
I can't believe that our routine continues...
as if nothing has happened.
The one thing that keeps me going...
is that I must find a way to get at Scharmach...
so no more of Len's men are betrayed.
Look.
Just what we need... more Japanese.
They're not Japanese. They're American.
Sister, the Yanks are miles away.
What do you know? They've finally come to save us.
- Over here! - Over here!
What's all this?
We're saved!
Oh, God bless America.
Oh, we're saved! Finally!
Take cover, everyone!
Sisters, get inside now!
They're attacking, they're attacking!
All of you boys under the bed now!
Get down now!
Run!
Berenice, run!
Run!
Get down!
No, Cordula!
Go see to the others. I am fine.
Keep still.
It's a tiny cut. It will heal itself.
Put a bandage on and let me go.
I don't believe you, Bishop. I'm not one of your nuns.
Did you talk like that to your army doctors?
- All the time. - No wonder they left.
Ouch!
Take care of them. I'll do this by myself.
Lorna, when you're ready. We need more dressings.
And some water over here, please.
Bishop.
Get one of your priests to give you the last rites.
How dare you joke like that!
A piece of shrapnel has landed in that tiny cut of yours...
and it's lodged against your carotid artery.
I don't understand.
Any time soon, it'll pierce it and you'll bleed to death in seconds.
I could remove that shrapnel now, but I know you're a busy man.
Thank you for saving our bishop.
I didn't save him. I just did what I've been trained for.
It's not like you to be humble, Lorna.
Sometimes I think you have the makings of a nun.
A nun?
If you think that's even remotely amusing...
I'm not joking. Think about it.
Nuns take three vows... poverty, chastity and obedience.
You're poor, obviously.
You're chaste, through no fault of your own.
You're obedient to the Japanese.
And you already wear a veil.
Welcome to the convent, Sister Lorna.
What's all this?
We're building an air-raid shelter.
The bishop says there's no time to waste.
Surely the Yanks must know they made a mistake.
They wouldn't bomb nuns, not deliberately.
They would murder half of heaven to destroy a Japanese base.
I will not allow my mission to be turned into a slaughter yard.
Ooh!
- Nice. - Hey!
Here we go. Pressure's on.
- Bodyline! - Ohh!
Isn't it time they were getting back in bed?
You won't be tucking us in for much longer, Sister.
The Japs are shutting the hospital down.
They're moving these boys to Rabaul... for their safety.
- Let's go, Bird. - Get a wicket!
Hey!
Alright, I'm in now.
- Nice run. - Be gentle, Bird.
Everyone in close, everyone in close. Come on, Matron.
Come on, beautiful.
Whoa!
Don Bradman in a veil!
Oh, is that the best you can do, Bird?
The last of Len's men have been rounded up from the jungle.
There are so few of them left and they look like hell.
Please let them be safe.
- Your favorite. - Thank you.
- There you go, soldier. - Thanks.
You sure you don't want to join us, Sister?
We could hide you down the back.
Sorry, fellas. I get car sick.
They'll need bandages for the trip. Can you scrounge some?
Alright.
Can you pass that round?
There you go.
You right?
Oh, you beauty! Free cigarettes.
What? Suzuki?
- Where are they? - You just missed them.
They said to tell you goodbye.
One of the young blokes wants to marry you.
- He's a bit too shy to ask. - Wait!
- Please! - See ya, sister!
No, it's a trap!
No, you're wrong. Suzuki couldn't.
This was all over him... Australian blood.
Konichiwa.
Auf Wiedersehen.
Konichiwa.
It is not decent for women to be in my house.
Japanese troops have been murdering Australians.
They've taken all our patients away in a truck.
It's not too late to save them.
You must contact the Red Cross at once.
Oh, forget it, Kay. He's useless.
They were butchered...
at a place called Tol.
- More than 100 Australian soldiers. - How do you know?
A native brought news to me before their blood had dried.
Then why aren't you trying to save our men?
What in God's name do you think I have been doing?
Our captain has performed a special act of kindness.
Kindness?
He has agreed to place all of your patients under his protection.
Do you know how much sake it took to do this?
Enough to get a whale drunk,
but he gave me his word they will not be harmed.
Can he be trusted?
Drunk or not, his honor is at stake.
Now, I need to lie down.
If only I could have used prayer to persuade him.
I've never had a hangover from a rosary.
- Can we trust him? - Well, we have to.
- Lorna, I have a message for you. - For me?
A boy from my village brought it.
He says Australian soldiers got onto a boat,
a big boat in the harbor,
and one of them asked him to tell Lorna Whyte,
Everyone is safe and you play lousy cricket.
Aren't they exquisite?
They must be Japanese nurses.
Most nurses don't charge by the hour, Sister.
They've been brought in as a gift for the troops.
They'll perform at the emperor's birthday.
Lorna.
I have an idea for the party.
¶ Three little maids from school are we
¶ Pert as a schoolgirl well can be
¶ Filled to the brim with girlish glee
¶ Three little maids from school
¶ Everything is a source of fun
¶ Nobody's safe for we care for none
¶ Life is a joke that's just begun
¶ Three little maids from school
¶ Three little maids who, all unwary... ¶
¶ Behold the Lord High Executioner
¶ A personage of noble rank and title
¶ A dignified and potent officer
¶ Whose functions are particularly vital
¶ Defer, defer to the Lord High Executioner
¶ Defer, defer
¶ To the noble Lord, to the noble Lord
¶ To the Lord High Executioner... ¶
Sugai's here.
¶ Taken from the county jail... ¶
I guess it must be treason to make fun of the emperor...
and somehow I don't think we'll be let off with a warning.
On our last night alive, I would like some companionship.
I haven't got time. I'm too busy praying for you.
I don't want your rosaries.
I want a schooner of beer, a Clark Gable movie...
and to hear you say you detest the Japs.
Did you ever stop to think...
that this is where all wars are born?
Yes, part of me wants to give in to it, Lorna,
but I'm fighting to resist that.
I will not leave this life with hate in my heart.
I didn't know you liked Clark Gable.
If you weren't a nun, we'd have a great conversation.
What's it like to be kissed?
Berenice!
Well, I want to know before I die.
When Clark Gable does it, he makes it look easy.
Len was a wonderful kisser.
If only we'd had more time.
Now I'll never know what it's like to be with a man.
Sometimes I really want a child.
My whole body aches for one.
- Really? - Nuns call it pram ache.
I often dream I have a baby in my arms.
Who's the father?
- Guess. - Clark Gable?
You little tart!
He's not even Catholic.
Maybe I should be praying for you.
I should never have picked that song from The Mikado'.
I am a truly wicked person. Why didn't you stop me?
Because it was funny.
Do you reckon they'll behead us?
Swords and honor they save for men.
Lowly females just get shot.
It won't be so bad.
We'll hold each other's hand...
and there'll be a loud bang...
and the next thing you know, you'll be in heaven.
And where will you be, Lorna?
The captain has bad news, I'm afraid.
- She had nothing to do with this. - What?
The Mikado. It was all my idea.
And a poor one too,
but there are worse things in this world than impudence.
I regret to report that a Japanese ship...
was last night torpedoed by an American submarine.
The Montevideo Maru...
was transporting 1,100 Australian soldiers and civilians...
from Rabaul to China.
There are no survivors.
They can't mean our boys.
Not our patients.
It's stuffy, hey?
Suzuki.
I go war. Tough guy.
I'm so sorry.
- Bow! - Of course.
Lorna, did you hear that?
It's just thunder.
But the sky is clear.
It must be one hell of a battle.
What's happening? What are they doing?
Don't touch that!
Friend. Friend.
Suzuki friend.
Ohh!
This is all your doing.
- What have I got to do with it? - Don't treat me like a fool.
Half the Japanese fleet has been wiped out...
because the Americans knew they were coming.
- Someone tipped them off. - Oh, how would I do that?
- He thinks you have a wireless. - Well, that's ridiculous.
Ask your nuns if we have a wireless.
Ask them if they've seen us at night sitting up chatting to Canberra.
All nurses, all nuns, pack. Leaving in one hour.
I forbid this. You understand?
You cannot do this to my nuns without permission.
When the Fuhrer learns of this outrage, you will be sorry.
All nurses, go inside and pack.
You will be leaving this camp.
All nuns must stay.
Lorna, here's some curtains in case you need clothes where you're going.
I got the idea from Gone with the Wind.
Keep them. I don't wanna look pretty for the Japs.
All of you, one minute!
I'll pray for you. We all will.
Who's the patron saint of brothels?
That's probably where we're heading thanks to your bishop.
Scharmach could have fought for us. He could've kept the nurses here.
No. He tried. I know he did.
He's booting us out 'cause he thinks we have a wireless.
That's not true.
Your beloved bishop is a Japanese collaborator...
and when all this is over
I'll make sure he hangs for war crimes.
Goodbye, Lorna.
We will never forget you.
'Bye!
- Thank you! - Goodbye!
The priest nearly fainted...
when I told him that I'd slapped you.
He says I've been contaminated by the violence of this war...
and he's ordered me to apologize, Lorna.
But since you're gone, I can only do it in writing...
and hope that by some miracle...
my letters might reach you one day.
I've actually started to miss you.
Whole months go by when I don't play poker or smell tobacco...
or hear you tell a risqué joke.
I still don't understand what the actress said to the bishop.
But nothing kills hunger pains like a good laugh.
Injured Japanese soldiers keep arriving.
Most have lost limbs or are shell-shocked.
They remind me of children who are trying not to cry.
Last night, some of the wounded were taken outside.
Then the Japanese doctors...
went around and medicated each with a bullet.
I didn't pray for any of them.
To be honest, prayers wouldn't come.
And soon the thought occurred to me...
if the Japanese would kill their own men,
what must they have done to you,
to you and all the nurses?
We arrived at our new camp yesterday, Berenice.
We don't even know where we are,
but there's a harbor outside...
and we think our guard calls it Yokohama.
So now we're a million miles from home.
Our new Japanese have got us quite worried.
They bow all the time and shower us with food.
I haven't a clue what's going on.
Kay says they want to fatten us up
like Christmas turkeys for their brothels,
so we have to stay as skinny as possible.
Our second Easter in captivity
and all of us are prisoners of this war...
Japanese and missionaries.
What are they?
Americans.
Everyone, hurry to the shelter!
One at a time! There's room for everyone.
Don't panic!
I built this mission as a place of peace.
Look at it now.
Where was God when this was happening?
Where was he, Sister?
Gee, it's great to see an Aussie.
I'm Geoff.
Lorna Whyte. 2/10th Ambulance Corps.
Yes, I heard you lot were up here.
They were trying to make me do propaganda broadcasts...
and some of them were about you nurses.
- Us? - Haven't they told you?
They're conducting prisoner exchanges with the Allies.
That's why you're here. They're sending you home.
No, no, it must be some sort of trick.
Eight American nurses left last month...
and you lot are next.
When your ship docks in Fremantle, have a beer for me, Lorna.
¶ Should old acquaintance be forgot
¶ And never brought to mind... ¶
I deserved that slap you gave me, Berenice.
Your bishop has sent us up here to freedom.
That wonderful man has delivered us from evil.
It isn't New Year's Eve, but we're singing Auld Lang Syne
because the Japanese have told us we're leaving Yokohama.
Australia, here we come.
Home. Is there a lovelier word in the whole English language?
Month after month...
the Americans return and pound Vunapope into dust.
We have nothing left,
no food, shelter, no water to wash in.
By now I must smell like a chook house in a heat wave.
So we weren't surprised when the Japanese announced...
that we too are being moved,
miles away to a valley called Ramale.
There are no raids there,
so we shall have some peace and quiet at last.
Timber and prayers are no match for bombs,
but we carry our faith inside and nothing can destroy that.
We left our mission and all our dreams...
on 6 June 1944...
a date no-one will remember but us.
We are now in the hands of God.
After three days, we have arrived...
and now our work begins.
We will find the biggest hut and turn it into a church...
Our Lady of Ramale.
The Japanese have moved us inland...
to a village called Totsuka.
They say the Australian Government cancelled the prisoner exchange...
and left us to rot here till we die,
but not even Canberra could be so cruel.
Ohh! Bloody hell!
No speak!
Thank God for death. It's what keeps us alive.
When Japanese people drop off the twig,
their family don't bother with flowers.
Instead, they leave rice balls.
Not on your life, mate. I was here first.
Yeah, I'll admit it... we have to fight for everything.
But we win.
Arggh!
Stop this! At once!
- She stole a soldier's food. - I didn't!
Release her!
Or what? You'll tell your Führer?
Hitler is dead! You have no friends left!
Sister Marie will not live much longer.
She was the first nun I ordained.
Does she blame me?
For what?
For not sending all of you down to Brisbane when I had the chance.
A wiser man, a better man would not have brought his flock to this.
We chose to stay...
and you respected that.
You are a good man.
Am I?
The captain gave it to me as a punishment.
You see, I told him he could take the Australian nurses...
if my nuns could remain at the mission.
I thought they would be part of a prisoner exchange.
And the nurses?
Trapped in Yokohama.
And I am responsible.
I have hurt too many people.
I cannot face Sister Marie.
Marie needs you, My Lord.
We all do.
I am dried up inside.
Marie cannot...
She must not leave this life without your comfort.
You come with me now to her bedside.
Please.
Through this holy anointing, in his most tender mercy...
may the Lord forgive you for whatever sins you have committed...
through your sense of sight.
Amen.
Through this holy anointing, in his most tender mercy...
may the Lord forgive you for whatever sins you have committed...
through your sense of taste and through your ability to speak.
Amen.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners...
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.
Our guards have just told us...
that thousands of bombs have sent Tokyo up in flames.
Since its houses are made of paper and wood,
everything is burning.
The wireless says people are running through the streets,
their clothes on fire as they try to reach the river.
I know I should be happy that the enemy is destroyed, Berenice,
but all I feel is shame.
The captain's wife... and child...
died last night.
Please tell the captain how sorry we are.
He says that this will be your grave.
You will die here, buried here, never leave Japan.
I wish I could speak your language.
I wish I could say that I understood why you want to end your life.
We've all seen more than we can bear.
It's a glorious sunny day.
And we've forgotten how blue Sydney Harbor is.
Will anyone be meeting us?
Our mothers.
Did they bring food?
Roast chicken,
mashed pumpkin, meringues.
We can smell them as we race down the gangplank.
They know us at once.
We've hardly changed.
So they bury us in their hugs...
and say, Welcome home. We've missed you.
We've been ordered to dig a tunnel.
They say it's for air raids, but one of the remaining guards...
has confessed there is a death squad on the way.
I've been told you've died already, Lorna.
I hope with all my heart it's not true.
But if it is, please, please forgive me.
Whoever finds these, pray for me and for all of us who are forgotten.
Sister Berenice Twohill,
July 1945.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death.
Cooee!
- Gone? - Every last one.
So Kay and the others have gone out scrounging for food.
- Come on. - Leave me, Lorna. No.
Lorna, go.
We are nursing sisters of the Australian Army General Hospital.
If that don't beat it all.
You gals white?
Don't you ever get up off your knees?
Well, say something.
You're dead.
Really?
Ever seen a ghost smoke Craven A?
How did you know I was here?
I wrote to Bishop Scharmach.
I told you we'd both make it back.
You never said that.
You must have been too busy praying to hear.
Lorna.
You're so pretty.
You still look like a holy roller.
How can you live without lipstick? I felt naked for the entire war.
Anyway, I happened to be in Sydney and I thought we might catch up,
maybe go to the pictures sometime.
I hear A Streetcar Named Desire's terrific.
But your mother superior wouldn't approve.
No, I guess not.
Of course, I could buy the tickets,
sneak you in when the lights went down.
Then no-one would ever know.
I'm really glad that you came.
Whoever thought I'd miss a Protestant.
Or that I'd have a nun for a mate.
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