Sweet Country Dvd

Sweet Country is a 2017 Australian meat pie Western drama film, directed by Warwick Thornton. Set in 1929 in the sparsely populated outback of the Northern Territory and based on a series of true events, it tells a harsh story against the backdrop of a divided society (between the European settlers and Aboriginal Australians) in the interwar period in Australia.

It was first screened in the main competition section of the 74th Venice International Film Festival in September 2017 and after winning the Special Jury Prize award there, went on to win several awards internationally.

Plot

Sam Kelly is a late middle-aged Aboriginal farm worker in the outback of Australia’s Northern Territory some time after the end of the First World War. His employer, Fred Smith, a kindly preacher, agrees to lend Sam with his wife Lizzie to a bitter and very abusive alcoholic war veteran named Harry March (who has been affected by his involvement in the war) on a neighbouring farm to renovate the latter’s paddock fences. After sending Sam out to round up some cattle, Harry rapes Sam’s wife, Lizzie, while Sam is away. Sam’s relationship with Harry quickly deteriorates.

Later, Harry visits the farm on which Sam works looking for a runaway Aboriginal youth named Philomac, who had escaped after Harry had chained him up to stop him from stealing. Harry fires rifle shots into the house then kicks in the door, leading Sam (inside with Lizzie) to pick up a gun and kill Harry in self-defence.

Sam goes on the run from the law, setting out with Lizzie across the outback. The manhunt for Sam is led by Sergeant Fletcher, who has to contend with the heat, venomous animals and hostile natives. Eventually Sam and Lizzie return to turn themselves in, and Fletcher has a gallows constructed and tries to influence the judge who comes to the town to conduct the trial. More details emerge and Sam is acquitted, but he is killed by a sniper after the trial ends.

Cast

Hamilton Morris as Sam Kelly
Sam Neill as Fred Smith
Bryan Brown as Sergeant Fletcher
Thomas M. Wright as Mick Kennedy
Matt Day as Judge Taylor
Ewen Leslie as Harry March
Natassia Gorey-Furber as Lizzie Kelly
Gibson John as Archie
Anni Finsterer as Nell
Shanica Cole as Lucy
Tremayne and Trevon Doolan as Philomac
Luka Magdeline Cole as Olive