PopHorror Let's Get Scared
I’ve been a fan of Kiah Roache-Turner since his first film Wyrmwood, which gave us a unique take on the living dead. I loved his Ghostbusters with demons film Nekrotronic. I was excited as hell when after 7 years we finally got a sequel to Wyrmwood with Wyrmwood Apocalypse and it didn’t disappoint. Last year we got Sting, a giant spider movie that was a lot of fun and had excellent practical effects. Now Kiah has given us his latest, Beast of War, about a shark terrorizing a crashed boat during WWII.
Read on for my thoughts.
Synopsis
A group of young soldiers, fresh out of boot camp, find themselves stranded on a raft in the middle of the ocean after their ship is sunk by the enemy and must battle for their lives against a giant hungry great white shark.
Beast of War was written and directed by award-winning filmmaker Kiah Roache-Turner (Wyrmwood, Sting).The film stars Mark Coles Smith (Last Cab to Darwin), Joel Nankervis (“Dark Aradia”), Maximillian Johnson (Fear Below), Lee Tiger Halley (Netflix’s “Boy Swallows Universe”), Sam Parsonson (Hacksaw Ridge), Tristan McKinnon (It Will Find You), and Sam Delich (Christmas Bloody Christmas).
I was really excited for this film and I’m happy to say that it didn’t disappoint. I like that it took a little bit of time before throwing us into peril. We get to know the soldiers a little bit and see how they clash before things take a turn for the worst. One of the biggest being that one of the soldiers, Leo, is an Aboriginal and he faces racism from some of his fellow soldiers and is seen as less than, which is ironic because when shit gets real he’s the one who takes action and starts rescuing people. He’s the one gathering supplies. He’s the one with the plan holding everyone together. He’s the one struggling with PTSD from past events that this triggers. Mark Coles Smith does a great job as Leo and gives you someone to really rally behind. Most of the other soldiers are so injured from the get go that they kind of feel like cannon fodder or chum for the beast.
I’ve seen Beast of War being compared to Gothic Horror and I can see that to an extent. The cast is completely isolated in the dark, surrounded by water with no way out and a hungry creature swimming below. I like how the shark was used sparingly, we don’t know it’s there until it attacks, and when it does, it’s a beautifully fucking scary animatronic. The attack scenes are intense, gory, and disturbing. We get limbs torn off and people eaten alive. We also have some gore scenes of people being blown up with grenades and limbs splattering everywhere. Things definitely get pretty gory and as someone appreciates practical effects this film really delievered.
Final Thoughts
Beast of War is another banger from Kiah Roache-Turner. It’s a wonderfully gory survival horror movie with a great lead performance and solid supporting performances to anchor it down. Highly recommended.
