106. Sweet Country; movie review

SWEET COUNTRY
Cert 15
113 mins
BBFC advice: Contains strong language, injury detail, violence, racism theme

A few years ago I watched a documentary in which those celebrating Australia Day were stopped and asked what they thought about the plight of those native to the country.
The interviewer was, on each occasion, either brushed to one side or sworn at.
The sad fact is that Australia may be seen as the land of opportunity to those of us who are white and trained but the barriers for those of Aboriginal descent are still far too high.
In the early 1920s, when Warwick Thornton's film is set, they were treated as little more than slaves.
The relationship between 'the white fellas' and the 'black fellas' is central to a movie which sets a broad beautiful landscape against small ugly minds.
Sweet Country stars Hamilton Morris as Sam Kelly, a native Australian who lives with his wife (Natassia Gorey Furber) under the benign tutelage of a Christian homesteader (Sam Neill).
The latter's enlightened attitudes towards black people is very much the exception to the rule which usually sees them being both verbally and physically abused.
Kelly is forced to defend himself and his wife against one bigot and then they are compelled to go on the run.
The posse's chase is led by a raging former soldier (Bryan Brown) who is soon forced to realise that he does not have the upper hand in the Outback.
Only the most stupid are blind to the skills which others possess and the white immigrants appear more and more crass as they are given the runaround by the quiet but wily natives.
Morris says few words throughout the film but everything he does is significant.
Brown's Sergeant Fletcher is not alone in wearing emotion on his sleeve - drunken hollering seems to be the major pastime in the tiny Outback town in which Thornton's film is set.
Sweet Country is a deeply ironic title for a bleak, moving and important picture which shows the foundation for racial issues which still exist today - across the world as well as in Australia.
It also gives an interesting take on the early days of law-making in the more remote towns Down Under.
It is bitingly hard and given depth by an impressive cast.

Reasons to watch: Biting drama with stunning backdrop
Reasons to avoid: Its unnecessary flashes back and forward slow it down

Laughs: none
Jumps: one
Vomit: yes
Nudity: none
Overall rating: 8.5/10

Director quote - Warwick Thornton - "If we want to man up, or stand up as a country and move forward, we need to know about our history. The film is completely truthful about history, even though it’s fiction."

The big question - Why have native peoples been treated so awfully across the world?

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