The Settlers

Shot in 4:3 format, this austerely staged drama is set in the inhospitable environment of Tierra del Fuego in the historical period of its cruel colonization. The Settlers is minimalist in terms of its imagery and acting, and raw in the brutality of its violence and sexual deviancy. The character of the Scottish lieutenant, with Sam Spruell aptly cast in the role, is the satisfying highlight of the film’s gloomy and depraved spirit. The rousing applause from the Iberophone audience at the festival screening indicated how important such reflection on the darker sides of South American history is for them. All nations must deal with their past to some extent. [San Sebastian International Film Festival] (09/24/2023)

I was tempted by the perverse violence, shocking and sexually twisted, it sounded like the Chilean version of A Serbian Film featuring colonists and I couldn't miss it, but the result is a heavyweight borefest, where I was bored to the point of hallucination! The actors, the dialogue and the story were very uninteresting, really zero interest, it went absolutely off the rails and that one rape of a guy by a guy really didn't get me out of my seat. There was one more brutal scene, but that's really pathetically small. I was kind of hoping for some proper carnage in the finale to pull it up to at least average. I'd describe it as a True descent into the Madness of Boredom ! Historical cheaply made art from Chile. It made me boil with hatred. Audience ingratitude. Fuck those settlers! 3/10. (04/01/2024)