Hawkins forces a young skittish soldier to partake in his brutality and later starts to groom a young boy as his murderous protegé. The Nightingale also tackles the idea of the violence being passed down to the next generation. Even Billy has to be considered a threat to her in this way, he has given her no real reason to fear him. Clare faces several threats throughout the film in the way of men. Most of the women in this film are seen simply as objects to those in power. Violence against women is also at the forefront as mentioned above. It is the prevalent theme in this movie and, while it’s not fun, it is important to see these stories being told Through Clare, we see how that has affected her also, as the Irish were once one of the groups considered less-than. Through Billy, we see what has been done to his people and what that has done to him as a young man. The brutality of colonialism and its impact on the indigenous people of many nations does not get a hard look often in media. Themesįor all of its bloodshed and violence, The Nightingale does manage to say a lot. ![]() She spends a lot of time on the victims and the bystanders during these scenes to take some of the focus from the act itself and emphasize how it affects everyone involved. ![]() ![]() There are several acts of rape and sexual assault in this movie, and Kent definitely wants you to understand the depravity of these men. The other aspect of violence that is heavily featured is rape. The most sensitive death scene takes place within that first 30 minutes I warned of earlier, so if you are able to make it through that point, you should be fine the rest of the way. There are multiple helpless individuals and minors that are killed in the film, and every one of them is difficult to take. There are some that are more sensitive to the murder of innocents, and The Nightingale does have this as well. Guns weren’t quite as potent in those times. The rest of the bloodshed is moderate and simply serves to let you know the individual has been murdered. There is only one scene that gets bad in this regard, but it is a significant moment beyond the act that is being carried out, and I understand why director Jennifer Kent ( The Babadook) went there. I personally don’t enjoy a lot of gore and blood in my movies, and The Nightingale definitely has plenty of blood. While I don’t want to spoil the movie, we have to be honest about what you’re getting into. However, while Clare is just an object to the British soldier, she still looks at Billy as less than her and this dynamic makes for a difficult partnership throughout most of the movie. Billy has seen all of his people killed at the hands of the British, and that is one thing that he and Clare can relate to. His character is by no means comedic relief, but the interactions he has with Clare help give the audience something to help them see through all of the blood.īoth Franciosi and Ganambarr give strong performances that make us feel the trauma they’ve faced. Baykali Ganambarr ( The Furnace) makes his acting debut as Billy and it is his introduction that helps get the movie going in a more enjoyable direction. When Clare sets out on her journey for revenge, she has to enlist the help of an Aboriginal tracker. Sam Claflin ( The Hunger Games series) plays the brutal soldier, Hawkins, and the face of colonialism in this film. The CastĪisling Franciosi ( The Fall, Game of Thrones) plays Clare, an Irish indentured servant who has everything taken from her by a British soldier. Things don’t get much better from there in terms of the brutality but the need for the protagonist to get her revenge was enough to help me endure. Within the first 30 minutes, you will be completely disgusted and may not want to continue watching the movie. We may not enjoy seeing or hearing a lot of what happens in The Nightingale but it pales in comparison to the reality of the times. It is a brutal movie at times, and beautiful at others and is one of the most honest depictions of that period that I may have seen. 86 (currently) on Rotten Tomatoes running list of the best movies of 2019, The Nightingale is a movie about the violence of colonialism and revenge, set in Colonial Australia. ![]() We recently covered Little Woods arriving on Hulu last month, and this past week The Nightingale joined it.Ĭoming in at no. One of the fun parts of the end of a year is the fact that the good movies that were released early in the year make their way to streaming. It follows an indentured servant on a quest for revenge against the British soldier who destroyed her life. The Nightingale is a brutal film set in colonial Australia. By Michael Bibbins 3 years ago Follow Tweet
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