X
- 2018
- R
- Samuel Goldwyn Films
- 1 h 53 m
- 2018
- R
- Samuel Goldwyn Films
- 1 h 53 m
Summary Sam, a middle-aged Aboriginal man, works for a preacher in the outback of Australia’s Northern Territory. When Harry, a bitter war veteran, moves into a neighbouring outpost, the preacher sends Sam and his family to help Harry renovate his cattle yards. But Sam’s relationship with the cruel and ill-tempered Harry quickly deteriorates, cu...
Directed By: Warwick Thornton
Written By: David Tranter, Steven McGregor
- 2018
- R
- Samuel Goldwyn Films
- 1 h 53 m
- 2018
- R
- Samuel Goldwyn Films
- 1 h 53 m
Sweet Country
7.1
Where to Watch
Summary Sam, a middle-aged Aboriginal man, works for a preacher in the outback of Australia’s Northern Territory. When Harry, a bitter war veteran, moves into a neighbouring outpost, the preacher sends Sam and his family to help Harry renovate his cattle yards. But Sam’s relationship with the cruel and ill-tempered Harry quickly deteriorates, cu...
Directed By: Warwick Thornton
Written By: David Tranter, Steven McGregor
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
Based on 22 Critic Reviews
88
100% Positive
22 Reviews
22 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
Based on 22 Critic Reviews
88
100% Positive
22 Reviews
22 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
A painfully real portrait of racism in Australia.
This is fiercely powerful storytelling, simple and muscular in one way, but also conveying nuance and sophistication in its depiction of character.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 39 User Ratings
7.1
69% Positive
27 Ratings
27 Ratings
21% Mixed
8 Ratings
8 Ratings
10% Negative
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 39 User Ratings
7.1
69% Positive
27 Ratings
27 Ratings
21% Mixed
8 Ratings
8 Ratings
10% Negative
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
The title is one of the most beautifully ironic thing I've read in a very long time after seeing this film.
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Thornton delicately peels back all the layers of Aussie injustice in this film, but what’s most unnerving is that the story proves to be so universal.
Poetically directed by Warwick Thornton, whose Samson & Delilah also threw a spotlight over aboriginal characters, Sweet Country has a shaggy, digressive eccentricity common to Ozploitation cinema, not to mention a humane understanding of its characters.
While many familiar tropes are present, including murder, mayhem, a tough lawman and a tentative posse, Thornton uses them to tell a 20th century outback story and offer sharp, pointed commentary on relations between whites and indigenous peoples.
Sweet Country is epic and personal, daring to tell a simple story in a challenging, arresting way. It’s a demanding two hours but leavened by great performances, especially from newcomer Hamilton Morris.
The film is a meticulous examination of how the dehumanization of Australia's native population bred an environment of cyclical violence and mistrust.
I enjoyed this movie, which paints a credible picture of life at the Australian frontier, which is unfamiliar to me. Some of the things it shows are the loneliness, abuse, alcoholism, and racism of the settlers and disparity between indigenous people that work for the white settlers and who have lost their heritage as opposed to the tribal people who live in a different world.
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I learned nothing about the Aboriginal culture, but for the 3000th time that the colonial authorities were bad and Jesus was good. The slow pace shows the pointlessness of many scenes.
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Even though this is not the typical simplistic good-vs-evil black-and-white story that Hollywood serves us at every turn when it comes to racial relations, it's still a bore.
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(Mauro Lanari)
Nihilistic despair orchestrated with all the directorial tricks adored by festivals (it won the Special Jury Prize at the 74th Venice International Film Festival). The narrative is paroxystically dilated (obvious: for echoing the boundless spaces), the diegesis is non-linear (obvious: for echoing the Aboriginal tradition), and the desert is everywhere, in the landscape, in the non-dialogues, in the interminable soporific silences. Some have called it a "cooled deep emotional participationNihilistic despair orchestrated with all the directorial tricks adored by festivals (it won the Special Jury Prize at the 74th Venice International Film Festival). The narrative is paroxystically dilated (obvious: for echoing the boundless spaces), the diegesis is non-linear (obvious: for echoing the Aboriginal tradition), and the desert is everywhere, in the landscape, in the non-dialogues, in the interminable soporific silences. Some have called it a "cooled deep emotional participation." I consider it the whole rhetorical arsenal flaunted, complete with a metacinematographic touch (justice in the open-air screening room).
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Production Company
Bunya Productions,
Sweet Country Films
Release Date Apr 6, 2018
Duration 1 h 53 m
Rating R
Tagline Justice seen to be done just isn't enough.
Awards
Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) Awards
• 6 Wins & 10 Nominations
Australian Film Critics Association Awards
• 6 Wins & 9 Nominations
Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards
• 3 Wins & 8 Nominations
