A white settler, back from WWI and mentally disturbed, arrives in town and immediately unleashes his wrath on the indigenous help. One indigenous man stands up to him, and ends up shooting him dead in self-defence. He goes on the run, and a posse is formed to track him down. But the harsh landscape proves as unforgiving of their search as they are of black men standing up them.
This is a movie "inspired" by true events that relates a tale that could have been gripping. However, the story fails to anchor itself to any one character's point-of-view, and so the audience is set emotionally adrift. The indigenous man, Sam, on the run with his wife, would seem most likely to guide us through the story, but his thoughts and fears remain largely distanced and impenetrable. As for the white men, the sergeant has a romance storyline, and some kind of redemptive arc, though that particular transformation seems implausible. It hinges on us believing a fanatical racist is redeemed by hearing that the murder victim raped the accused's wife. It is hard to believe that a veteran lawman in such a town would be driven to life-changing action by this news.
Another character, the good Christian, book-ends the story, making him a candidate for our guide. But he appears rarely and comments too little for us to feel any empathy with him.
This story, told from the point-of-view of Philomac, as a coming-of-age story, would have been much more powerful. Instead, we get to admire the visuals, and applaud another depiction of White Australia's brutalizing origin story. But there is no character to empathize with, no emotional journey to share, because the film lacks a centre. Worthy politics, but so-so storytelling skills.
This is a movie "inspired" by true events that relates a tale that could have been gripping. However, the story fails to anchor itself to any one character's point-of-view, and so the audience is set emotionally adrift. The indigenous man, Sam, on the run with his wife, would seem most likely to guide us through the story, but his thoughts and fears remain largely distanced and impenetrable. As for the white men, the sergeant has a romance storyline, and some kind of redemptive arc, though that particular transformation seems implausible. It hinges on us believing a fanatical racist is redeemed by hearing that the murder victim raped the accused's wife. It is hard to believe that a veteran lawman in such a town would be driven to life-changing action by this news.
Another character, the good Christian, book-ends the story, making him a candidate for our guide. But he appears rarely and comments too little for us to feel any empathy with him.
This story, told from the point-of-view of Philomac, as a coming-of-age story, would have been much more powerful. Instead, we get to admire the visuals, and applaud another depiction of White Australia's brutalizing origin story. But there is no character to empathize with, no emotional journey to share, because the film lacks a centre. Worthy politics, but so-so storytelling skills.