User Reviews

Directed by Sam Curtain, who co-wrote this with Benjamin Jung-Clarke, Beaten to Death starts with Jack (Thomas Roach) being brutalized by Ricky (Justan Wagner) as the body of his wife Rachel (Nicole Tudor) lies dead next to them. Barely alive, Jack stabs the man in the throat and stumbles out of the room. He runs into his neighbor Ned (David Tracy),, but that's just the start of his torture.

That title should tell you everything, because Jack gets destroyed in this movie, which moves across multiple timelines and spends much of its time showing a blinded Jack wandering the Australian outback screaming, covered in blood and dirt and near death.

There's long moments of a man in absolute pain just yelling alternating with moments of extreme violence and an ocular assault that awakened the dead body of Fulci who was probably either smiling or annoyed to be awoken from his slumber. You're either going to love how audacious this is or hate that there's this much endless gore. But hey - the cinematography is gorgeous and in no way does this movie do anything less than go hard and then somehow find a way to go even harder.

This is a "Stud Ranch" production. Does that mean Blue Oyster Bar members had a hand in the making of this movie?

We start out with Ricky Gervais being pounded into ground beef by an Alien Ant Farm backup biker dancer who's ultra-hairy and lubes his leather in his own blood.

We're lectured about the 2006 movie 'Header' for some reason.

If you're going to perform CPR, then I suggest your heart's on the left side of the body, not your right. No wonder she couldn't be saved.

The movie starts out like some 'Saw' garbage with dead people and no explanation.

Is that Eric Bana?

I've enabled the subtitles as I find the Kiwi accent hard to follow.

The Road Warrior rises from the grave once more and scouts the baron wasteland in search of fuel, snakes, and hippie camps.

The movie strangely cuts in some Paddy's singing the Irish blues in a pub. By the end of the movie, you'll understand what all these cut scenes mean, but watching it cold turkey, it looks out of place and is not explained. They kind of tell the story backwards into leadups of how, what, or why.

Ivan Rebroff drives Agent Smith around while singing bluegrass tunes straight from Kentucky's heartland.

Is that Guy Pearce? Not more of this 'Proposition' garbage!

Ivan Rebroff pounds the already pulped ground beef victim, then reveals his kink - Stud Ranch - by tying him up and removing his eyes with no anesthesia. I didn't think he was really going to do that. If this movie were to end right now, then 30 minutes would do it justice.

I think after having your eyes extracted and nailed to a wall, you'd be in shock the next morning, not wandering around aimlessly like a nomadic road warrior.

Oh, they're doing these cut-back scenes in the lead-up business again.

Now he's pinned back up on the wall in one of Jigsaw's games again.

The eyeless road warrior tries to confess to the barrel of a rifle but can't bring himself to say ten hail Mary's or swallow the communion.

He looks like a fly who has encountered the swatter too many times.

Ivan Rebroff recaptures the eyeless road warrior, and I question what that scene was back then with the dog. Oh, they're doing that annoying retelling cut-back scene business again.

The eyeless Slipknot warrior is made to "dig your grave," then Ivan Rebroff fills in the blanks, and if this movie were to finish right now at the 51-minute mark, then that would do it justice as the eyeless road warrior is being buried alive.

Instead of allowing the viewer to go to bed, it then cuts back to the very start and explains the leadup to these burial events, all starting with the ultra-haired Alien Ant Farm dancer, who's a big boss drug dealer selling to first-time buyers who are meddling in the drug trade with no experience. I believe they were just after a baggy for personal use at a bargain, but the hairy fella only deals in bulk purchases and is insulted at their offer.

We then cut back to the eyeless Slipknot warrior, who claws his way out of a six-foot hole. Hmm, the Alien Ant Farm member had trouble digging the dirt as it was just dry clay, but the eyeless Slipknot victim makes his way out of the rich soil that I'd die for in my garden.

The eyeless Slipknot warrior just went to town on an unsuspecting shower victim very viciously, and his face looks like a piece of burned beef roast when I overcook it in the BBQ.

He then walks the plains in permanent darkness, and I'm guessing the person he stabbed was his dead girlfriend, as the silhouette had pigtails.

So that means Ivan Rebroff is still lurking out here somewhere.

The eyeless Slipknot warrior finds renewed vigor to live from reciting a psalm and runs through Kruger National Park, but that new lease on life soon turns to suicide for a second time, where he contemplates shanking himself with a sharp limb dagger.

I find it hard to believe he didn't cross paths with a deadly snake once in this movie.

What would be the perfect cherry on top for this movie is for the eyeless Slipknot warrior to encounter The Gimp and his two cohorts doing a similar number on Marsellus Wallace in that fashion.

The moral of the story is that the eyeless road warrior is recaptured again by a Danny Trejo lookalike and is gutted like Rosie does to fish in 'Point Break.'

Movie has no story to follow thru, actually it has, a very small one to lead on to the beating. Guy goes out of his way to buy drugs and resell, dealer gets upset how little money guy has, kill his wife and start beating guy. That's it.

It's not that much violent for people, like myself, who is used to gore violent movies. Less violent than guinea pig, VHS, August underground, oldboy and such. Less disturbing that Serbian film for sure. It's just about a guy taking a beating while trying to flee. But it is a journey for sure. Cinematography is beautiful, perfectly acted by the lead actor, who made the best with what little he had in terms of story and motivation.

If you're into violent movies that are only that, give it a try. Otherwise there won't be nothing for you here.

From its weak premise, to the unnecessary non-linear way the movie unfolds, to just how ugly this movie is in general. I don't mean the violence. I was well prepared for the violence, and movies like Terrifier 2 were more brutal than this. I mean how every set that wasn't out in the desert made you want to take a shower after looking at it.

I live in the southern US and I know what it's like to be stereotyped in a movie. We're depicted as ignorant bumpkins who never seem to have indoor air conditioning, and do nothing but hunting, fishing, fighting, and drinking beer. This movie adds to the ongoing Australian trope that anyone out there can and will kill you, and they all seem to be related. This movie had the nerve to steal the ending from Eden Lake, not once, but twice in the same movie! (SPOILER FOR EDEN LAKE. IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN IT, GO WATCH THAT INSTEAD) It was silly and predictable the FIRST time the main character inadvertently brought a relative of the man he killed to that isolated house. The second and final time was absolutely stupid. The main character, after walking through the desert for a couple of days with no eyes, finally stumbles upon a road, and eventually a man in a truck. What does the man do when he sees someone covered in blood, begging for help? Well, he goes back to that same gd house, of course. Because that man is the father of the dead guy from the beginning, and the other dead guy the eyeless man was somehow able to find from miles away, despite having zero eyes.

This movie is ridiculous, and just expects its audience to buy into the most unbelievable stuff, over and over. At one point, main character is nailed by his hands to the wall by the older brother. He eventually falls, which further rips his hands open. Ten minutes later, he's digging his own grave with absolutely no difficulty. I can't use a shovel if my hands are mildly blistered. But this guy's out there digging a hole deeper than his height, after having been crucified like jesus for hours, up until a few minutes before the scene.

The girlfriend. What a pointless character. They could have cut her completely out, and nothing would have changed. Oh wait. She was only there to give the main character a reason to have the brother drive him to the house where it all happened, rather than drive him to the hospital. You see her singing in a bar, looking at him as if they are in a Hallmark movie. No dialogue. When you see her again, they're sleeping together, and talking about making a drug deal. What? We don't even know this girlfriend. We're never given a chance. She goes from having to wear a bag over her head along with the main character, so the guy can pick up the drugs with them, to being knocked down, and dying from a brain injury. This is the catalyst that drives the entire plot, and it's just some random girl he met in a bar.

Final complaint: The grunting, crying, moaning, and attempts to end his own life by the main character had to have taken up at least 15 minutes of this movie's run time. They made an hour and a half long movie feel as if it were three hours long.

In "Beaten to Death," director Sam Curtain crafts a narrative wrought with desperation and struggle, weaving the tale of Jack, the beleaguered protagonist. Amidst the barren yet mesmerizing expanse of the Australian outback, Jack's journey unfolds through a blend of reality and obscured vision, creating a narrative both haunting and engaging.

The film's visual storytelling is nuanced, with scenes transitioning from the stark harshness of Jack's initial reality to fleeting moments of hope and emotional respite during tender reminisces of Rachel and the dawn's early light. These transitions paint a vivid picture of Jack's struggle, evoking a blend of dread and empathy.

A substantial part of the narrative is perceived through the surreal lens of a blinded Jack. As he treads through perceived vast, perilous landscapes, the reality is a singular, confined piece of land, symbolizing Jack's isolation and desperation, and serving as a metaphor for the disorienting nature of fear and despair.

As the layers of the story peel back, revealing Jack and Rachel's initial morally ambiguous venture into drug dealing, a grim irony unfolds. Their humble, cold blue-tinged life before the tumult sharply juxtaposes against the surreal, danger-foreboding red clouded sky, encapsulating the dire circumstances that edge individuals towards the abyss.

Scenes marked by bright whites, surreal imagery, and features etched out in inky blacks create a disorienting tableau, blurring the boundaries between reality and Jack's perception. As the narrative arcs towards closure with the warmth of aid in the end, it signifies not a redemption, but an acceptance of Jack's grim reality, providing a somber resolution to his harrowing journey.

"Beaten to Death" explores the essence of human endurance, the shattering impact of desperation, and the harsh acceptance of reality amidst adversity. With its compelling narrative structure, rich visual palette, and complex protagonist, it leaves a lasting, reflective imprint. Through the obscured veil of Jack's vision, the narrative delves into the stark and often brutal reality of human struggle, making 'Beaten to Death' a thought-provoking, emotionally resonant venture into the dark underbelly of survival and acceptance.

Disturbing? Probably for some. I found the situations and dialogue a bit silly. Acting is a bit hammy as well. I kept thinking if this had the guts and grit of the Snowtown Murders, it would have succeeded. There are too many rookie moments, the makeup is a bit unrealistic, the eye gouging in particular was overhyped. I'd heard there were wince enduring moments. Maybe one, but they skip the moment off screen so it doesn't really serve as a scare or gross out moment. If you got through Hostel, this will be a cinch. I liked it but wouldn't recommend it to my extreme horror fans, so to me it missed its audience.

Beaten To Death is a 2022 Australian horror film directed by Sam Curtain. This film was unrelenting in its violent and gory visuals. It's about a man and his wife named Rachel, who are struggling financially. They come up with a risky plan to start selling drugs. Through a friend, they track down a man who they think can help them buy purchasing their first batch of drugs from him. Unfortunately for them, he is very untrusting of others and is mentally unstable. He thinks they'll snitch on him so he snaps and beats Jack almost to death and Rachel is killed in an accident when she is pushed, hitting her head. This is where the main premise for the film starts. Jack gets the upper hand momentarily and ends up killing the man in self defense, setting off a terrifying chain of events. He escapes to go find help. He unknowingly leads himself to the man's older brother who proceeds to spend the better half of the film beating and torturing Jack. He crudely removes Jack's eyes and even makes him dig a grave for him and Rachel.

Even though it was a very violent and bloody film, I think it was necessary in telling this type of story. People will do crazy things when they are in pain and grieving. The film deals with several different topics, the main one being dealing with the loss of a loved one. It also explores the ideas of feeling completely lost and wanting to give up/die but also having the will to survive, despite everything.

It hits very heavy at times but has a nice counter balance in the score and cinematography. The film features a lot of softer vocal stylings when heavy metal would have worked just as effectively. The story takes place in Tasmania so we get to see a lot of sweeping and vast landscapes that are pleasant to see even though they feature a bloodied and blinded man running desperately through them. Don't even get me started on that dog!

The ending of the film was something that wasn't entirely original (the dream sequence) but it was so bloody and raw in its approach that it leaves the viewer feeling completely gutted, pun intended. 9/10 would recommend.