Jeri Jacquin
Currently on Bluray and DVD from writer/director Kiah Roache-Turner and Well Go USA is the struggle of war and an unexpected force in the BEAST OF WAR.
It is World War II and young Australian soldiers are training for war, but not for the one they anticipated. Crossing the Timor Sea, it doesn’t take long before their boat is hit and sinks. Leo (Mark Coles Smith) helps to rescue as many from the sea as he can including Will (Joel Nankervis), Teddy (Lee Tiger Halley), Thompson (Sam Parsonson) and Stan (Maximillian Johnson) and Kelly (Sam Delich). Leo is the lone Aboriginal soldier and that does not escape the constant hits by Kelly causing a rift between the two.
Floating together on a large piece of the ship, the soldiers quickly discover that they are being hunted more than if they were on land. It doesn’t take long before Kelly begins to aggravate the survivors with his nastiness and deceptions. Leo tries to keep the group focused on survival, and he knows a little bit more about it than the others. What lies below the water shows no mercy and only cares about one thing, dragging each one down into the dark waters.
It is a battle of wills both above and below the water!
Smith as Leo is an aboriginal soldier that is not only dealing with being paid less than the other soldiers but also being looked down upon for his culture. Yet, that being said, there isn’t a part of him that isn’t respectful and wanting to help anyone who needed it – even if it means taking on a bully fellow soldier. I loved that about Smith’s portrayal of this character, it is his own experiences that keep him level headed and empathetic to everyone, even Kelly.
Delich as Kelly is just a plain hot mess of a human being that finds pleasure in ridiculing and degrading everyone around him. Even trapped out at sea, Kelly doesn’t hesitate to use psychological meanness in the secret hopes to be a survivor. Delich gives an outstanding performance of exactly what a “bad guy” would do and every good movie needs one bad guy besides what’s beneath their raft.
Nankervis, Halley, Parsonson, and Johnson each play soldiers that clearly have every reason to be afraid and look for leadership in Leo. They are young and already afraid of everything that comes with war – except an enemy with teeth. Each one of these actors gave something unique to the story being told and added another layer of horror to a horrific attempt at survival.
Other cast include Tristan McKinnon as Bobby, Steve Le Marquand as Sergeant, Lauren Grimson as Hazel, Laura Browne as Susan, Jay Gallagher as Corporal Gallagher, Aswan Reid as Archie and Masa Yamaguchi as Commander Harada.
Well Go USA Entertainment is a theatrical and home entertainment company specializing in bringing the best Action, Genre and Independent films from around the world to North American markets. As a leader in independent film distribution, Well Go USA Entertainment’s titles can be seen across a variety of platforms including theatrical, digital, subscription and cable VOD, packaged media and broadcast television. Well Go USA Entertainment currently releases three to five films per month. To see more please visit www.wellgousa.com.
The film is inspired by the actual 1942 sinking of the HMAS Armidale losing 100 men, but also is reminiscent of the USS Indianapolis that sank in in 1945 after delivering components of the atomic bomb. They also experienced a similar experience with over 879 deaths.
There are plenty of man vs. ocean films and, lets be honest, some are excellent and some are not so good. BEAST OF WAR takes us on a roller coaster ride because not only are they fighting for their lives on the open ocean, but they are dealing with the tension and intentions of everyone left on the small piece of leftover ship. There isn’t a moment in the film where those two things aren’t so intertwined that it is easy, for a fraction of a second, to forget that each other isn’t the biggest problem!
Director Roache-Turner didn’t attempt to reinvent the man vs. shark films but instead took a true story, put in actors who add another layer and surround it all with man’s worst fear about water and war. The soldiers didn’t know whether to look for a fin in the water or look straight for the enemies’ ships or up for enemy planes! Also added was the ‘no fear’ aspect of putting in some of the harshest attacks on the soldiers so horror you want, horror you get.
BEAST OF WAR is such a combination of war, soldiers, fear, personal conflicts, culture, and survival that it is a serious watch. Coming in at eighty-seven minutes, it is full throttle from beginning to end so don’t look away.
In the end – survival is the mission!
