Beaten to Death – Movie Review (3/5)

BEATEN TO DEATH is a new horror movie from Australia. Fans of Aussie horror will know it can get very brutal. This new movie is no exception though it offers a few twists. In fact, it manages to deliver something unique. Read our full Beaten to Death movie review here!

BEATEN TO DEATH is a new horror movie where the title doubles as the plot description. Well, okay, a very short plot description, but also a very saying one. In other words, you have to be able to stomach brutal violence to be able to watch this one. We’re talking realistic depictions and a very bleak outlook for our title character.

This horror movie is from Australia and fans of Aussie horror movies will know that they can go hard. Extremely hard. The Australian origin combined with the title is a straight-up warning. However, it should also tell you that this has a lot going for it. And it does, so I would absolutely recommend watching it.

Continue reading our Beaten to Death movie review below. Find it in select theaters from September 1, 2023.

How did things get so bad?

Apart from the very brief plot of just the title, Beaten to Death does offer a longer plot description. All the events in the movie (the brutal beatings) unfold after a man named Jack makes a desperate – and damn stupid – choice. This comes rather late in the movie, so you’ll be waiting a while to find out just how it all began.

Instead, what you’ll see straight away, is how the path he’s on has left Jack beaten and bruised in the middle of a very rural outback setting. Basically, Jack is now stranded in the middle of nowhere, and in very bad shape after having barely survived a brutal assault.

However, this is just the beginning. We need to understand not only where things began, but how bad they will get. And, of course, in between we learn how things got so insanely bad for Jack.

Jack is portrayed by Thomas Roach who delivers an amazing performance from beginning to end.

However, so does everyone else. If any one of the few characters hadn’t pulled their own weight (so to speak), then this wouldn’t have worked nearly as well. Especially David Tracy gets a lot to work with as Ned. He’s an actor I really hope to see in many more genre movies in the years to come.

Aussie horror hits damn hard

If you’ve watched Wolf Creek or The Loved Ones – to mention just two of off the top of my head – you’ll know that Aussie horror can get brutal. Extremely brutal. This new movie is no exception though it offers a few twists.

As seen in Wolf Creek, the outback is no joke and the people living there are depicted in a very umm particular way. These iconic Aussie horror movies always reminded me of Texas Chainsaw Massacre or The Hills Have Eyes. Only Australian movies tend to be more realistic in the most gut-wrenching ways.

Also, for Beaten to Death, there’s quite a bit of going back and forth chronologically. Each time it “teases” how bad things will get before showing us just how our main character got to this point.

At one point, the screen just goes black – due to the character not being able to see – and we just hear what happens. Right along with the main character who clearly also feels what’s happening.

It’s bold and cruel, and gorgeously efficient.

Watch Beaten to Death in select theaters!

Beaten to Death comes from director Sam Curtain, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Benjamin Jung-Clarke. If you look up a few of Sam Curtain’s previous films, you’ll see they tend to have very violent plots. Also, they have IMDb ratings under 5, which this one does not.

Well, not as of writing this review, anyway, and it really shouldn’t. This horror movie is a solid movie that won’t be for everyone due to the violence. However, the title does indicate that this won’t be a comfortable watch. 

The writer and director along with the star of the film, Thomas Roach, and assistant director Libby Jessup are the producers of the film. The SFX Makeup is done by Danica Hadolt who does an amazing job. Again, the focus of Beaten to Death is realism and that is definitely achieved. Damn!

The runtime is 92 minutes, and that’s about as much as you can handle. Especially as we keep seeing just how bad it will get before going back to see just how it got to that particular point. Ouch. If you’re a fan of Wolf Creek or a movie such as Killing Grounds, then definitely check out this one!

BEATEN TO DEATH is in select theaters on September 1, 2023.

Details

Director: Sam Curtain
Screenwriters: Sam Curtain, Benjamin Jung-Clarke
Cast: Thomas Roach, David Tracy, Justan Wagner, Nicole Tudor