This film is part of Rentals
High Ground
A young Indigenous man teams up with a policeman to track down a warrior outlaw in this piercing exploration of justice and morality within the Australian settlement.
Director: Stephen Maxwell Johnson
Overview
Twelve years after a brutal Indigenous massacre during Australia’s colonial period, three of its protagonists are brought back together when a child survivor (Jacob Junior Nayinggul) and a policeman (Simon Baker) are enlisted to track down a tribal outlaw (Sean Mununggurr) who’s enacting his own reign of terror on new settlers.
As with Sweet Country, director Stephen Maxwell Johnson uses the skin of a fugitive thriller to explore notions of justice, morality and cultural imperialism. Featuring stunning images from the wilderness of the Northern Territory, and with exceptional performances, High Ground is both a thrilling drama and a powerful corrective to accepted notions of the Australian settlement.
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