Van Diemen's Land

This is based on a true story and although I'm not to fond when movies come along with tags like that, I really liked this one. It is slow moving though and I had a bit of trouble following the movie after 20 minutes. Actually I should say, I didn't know where it was moving to ... but this is a good thing!

So as you can imagine, I didn't know the true story behind this movie and if you can, don't read anything the movie or it's origin and just watch it to be surprised. Be prepared though, because not only is it slow moving, there isn't happening that much during the course of the movie. But besides being a weak point (for some), it also can be the highlight for others! I think the movie, wouldn't have worked, if it had been spiced up. I like how it creeps up on you ... So if you haven't watched it yet, either be warned or watch it to be "thrilled" (depending on what you like in a movie).

This feels like a 'Tourism Tasmania' commercial with a touch of cannibalism, truly a great combination.

The movie is based on the true account of Alexander Pearce, Australia's most notorious convict, and the events that took place in 1822, as Pearce and a group of convicts escape into the Tasmanian wilderness. The group is then left at the mercy of nature, themselves, and notably the human desire to eat.

This is truly a beautiful movie, the cinematography of sweeping landscapes and rugged bushland is worth watching the rental/ticket price alone. It strikes me as the type of DVD they play in appliance stores to show off the new HD-TVs (although they would have to skip the numerous bludgeoning scenes).

The story itself is a simple and tight narrative of the human condition pushed to its limits. While there is some grizzly violence and confronting concepts, the movie never descends into gratuitous visuals based purely on shock value.

While the story is compelling and rolls along nicely, I found myself just wanting a little more depth to all of the supporting characters. This is also one of the main strengths of this film, it makes you want more; I was always wondering what was going to happen next, what's that guy going to do, where are they going, what's around that corner, what does that taste like etc… Ultimately this factor leaves the viewer a tad unsatisfied yet appreciative of the movie as a whole.

On the Fruit-Meter, Van Demons Lands gets the "KIWI-FRUIT" - A bit grizzled and rough on the outside, but once you peel off the skin it's fresh and tasty, but it was a small fruit and I want some more.

MART-FLIX PUN-FUN – It's compelling to watch convicts battle their inner "demons"…..that sucked

It definitely worth watching! It is a film that reveals the evil side of the humanity, but because it is not an action film or a romantic film, so i give it 8/10. Also, the reflection on humanity disgusted me and which define the film as a thriller. It is a good opportunity to know the history by watching this film, and to think about what action we would take if we were in that position, deeply review ourselves.

It's based on a true story. The music, cinematography and the acting was superb. I love this movie, the bleakness, the nature..it's really interesting to see something darker about human nature.if you want something fun then this movie isn't for you. The music when the credits roll...outstanding! I never written a review before nor will it probably help you in anyway but it justifies that how much i love this movie.

sorry for my bad English

A peculiar ghostly experience aside from the frequent and grotesque close ups of people masticating. The film starts with a supercilious officer slurping down some slimy bits of what looks like sea food (mollusks?) and moves onto the timber cutting scenes where the guard tries to cheer up the convicts - 'freedom is work lads, finish this and we go back'. Well, they might have listened to him. Instead, for the next two hours, we are stuck in the forests of Tasmania with the convicts after their 'escape', their numbers quickly diminishing as they take to slurping down tasty bits of each other. Again, as with too many films where there are a lot of male characters together - another is Carpenter's 'The Thing' - it is often difficult distinguishing one guy from the other, especially as most have beards here.. Yes, I kept flinching at the horrendous violence, but can't say I cared much for any of the victims - aside from the first, who seemed the most interesting and charismatic. In that respect, despite great images of trees in the wind and evocative music, it was a bit of a slog, just waiting for the next one to die, and knowing the historical outcome anyway. (It didn't help that my version lacked subtitles and the melancholic narration was in Irish!). But the most memorable thing here is the overall mood of despair and doom in a washed out landscape - largely filmed in gray to add to the sense of coldness and desolation (in fact it's probably beautiful and sunny most of the year!). Was it also intentional to not include one single animal in the entire film:? Perhaps the sight of another living creature would have lightened the mood so it was avoided (aside from the mention of one snake being seen). In fact, we never leave the company of these demented convicts who were better off staying prisoners and serving their sentences. Even when a small group of three break away and leave the main group of nutters, we never see these three again - no respite from our time among the cannibals. Meanwhile the constant beauty of the nature around them made me think: yes, lucky country if the company were a bit cheerier.